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PurposeThis study aims to better understand the communication of sustainability by Canadian universities, specifically the use of websites, interactive features and sustainability plans.Design/methodology/approachA total of 95 Canadian universities were included in this study. The mixed-methods approach sought to capture the communication of sustainability via websites, the interactive features used, as well as to evaluate the quality of sustainability plans.FindingsThe study revealed that 67% of universities address sustainability on their websites. On average, universities offer three to four interactive features on their sustainability-related Web pages, and the average score of the quality of campus sustainability plans was 29 (out of 41).Research limitations/implicationsThis study does not investigate the extent to which interactive features enhance the involvement and participation in sustainability efforts or the extent to which the sustainability plans were put into practice by universities.Practical implicationsThe findings assist with understanding how higher education institutions (HEIs) can enhance their sustainability communication via their websites to encourage interaction and engagement in campus sustainability. The findings can also help universities to enhance the effectiveness of sustainability plans.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first research to assess sustainability content and the interactive features on sustainability-related pages of Canadian universities' websites. The quality of sustainability plans is also evaluated. The study informs the present understanding of communicating sustainability by Canadian universities and provides a basis for future investigations in HEIs in Canada and beyond.

Kerrie Pickering,1 Ryan Plummer,1,2 Tony Shaw,3,4 Gary Pickering1,4,5 1Environmental Sustainability Research Centre, Brock University, St Catharines, ON, Canada; 2Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden; 3Department of Geography, 4Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute, 5Department of Psychology, Brock University, St Catharines, ON, Canada Background: Wine regions throughout the world are experiencing climate change characterized by the gradual alterations in growing seasons, temperature, precipitation, and the occurrences of extreme weather events that have significant consequences for quality wine production. Adapting to these new challenges depends largely on the present and future adaptive capacity of the grape growers, winemakers, and supporting institutions in order to minimize the impacts of climate change on grape yield and wine quality. Accordingly, the objective of this study was to develop a conceptual framework for assessing the adaptive capacity of a grape or wine region and apply it in the context of the Ontario wine industry. The framework consists of a three tiered structure, comprising eight operational and strategic determinants (financial, institutional, technological, political, knowledge, perception, social capital, and diversity). A comprehensive questionnaire was created from this framework consisting of 26 statements to which participants indicated their level of agreement. A total of 42 Ontario wine industry members completed the questionnaire via an on line survey. Results: The determinants related to perception, diversity, and knowledge have the highest degree of capacity, while political and technological determinants show the least. Overall, stakeholders are aware of both negative and positive impacts climate change could have on wine production. Results are discussed to explore opportunities to enhance adaptive capacity in the grape/wine community. Many stakeholders have already incorporated new adaptive technologies into present practices and are interested in learning new skills to assist in future adaptation. Keywords: climate change, adaptation, wine, Ontario

Understanding the underlying values, beliefs and emotions that influence the public's perceptions and opinions on climate change (CC)is increasingly important, as CC is a complex and politicized phenomenon. Additionally, optimizing messaging for communicating CC and encouraging greater mitigation behavior can yield significant benefits to global stakeholders. Here we evaluated the effectiveness of informative, persuasive and empathic message frames about a major climate-related local flooding event through online surveys administered to 370 adults in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, Canada and 360 adults in Queensland, Australia. Measures of trust in climate communicators and climate science, concern over CC effects, and belief that most recent floods are due to CC were assessed before and after message exposure, along with related values, beliefs and emotions. Willingness to support pro-environmental groups was assessed as a proxy measure of behavioural intent. Cumulative odds ordinal regression and multinomial regression were used to predict group membership (no support, passive support, active support). Political affiliation, trust and belief in CC, belief in anthropogenic CC, pro-environmental values, and, in some regressions, previous flood exposure, were significant predictors of activism support. Respondents who received the empathic message frame and had low to medium pro-environmental values were more likely to believe the link between flooding and CC compared to those who received the informative message frame. These results, including the finding that some elicited emotions predicted behavioral intent, provide insight into how to construct climate information for groups with varying beliefs, values and experiences, to reduce climate skepticism and encourage pro-environmental behavior.

A shift appears to be occurring in thinking about flooding, from a resistance-based approach to one of resilience. Accordingly, how stakeholders in flood-prone regions perceive the system and its governance are salient questions. This study queried stakeholders' internal representations of ecosystems (resistance- or resilience-based), preferences for governance actors and mechanisms for flooding, and the relationship between them in five different regions of the world. The influence of personal experience on these variables was also assessed. Most respondents aligned themselves with a resilience-based approach in relation to system connectedness and response to disturbance; however, respondents were almost evenly split between resistance- and resilience-based approaches when considering system management. Responses generally were considered to hold for other disturbances as well. There was no clear relationship between internal representations and preferences for governance actors or mechanisms. Respondents generally favoured actor combinations that included governments and mechanism combinations that included regulations and policies. Those who had personal experience with flooding tended to align themselves with a resilience-based internal representation of system management, but personal experience showed no clear relationship with governance preferences. The findings support an evolutionary perspective of flood management where emerging paradigms enhance preceding ones, and prompt a critical discussion about the universality of resilience as a framing construct. ; Financial support for the CADWAGO project from Riksbankens Jubileumsfond, the Volkswagen Stiftung and Compagnia di San Paolo through the Europe and Global Challenges programme, as well as the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB). ; https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/8/5/191