This Special Issue is based on a selection of papers initially presented at the conference on “Resilience and the Third Sector” (Institute of Public Sector Accounting Research, University of Edinburgh, November 2022). The third sector is pervasive in most societies and makes a distinctive and widely-recognized contribution to the public good by building social capital, frequently affording a foundation for social cohesiveness. However, it is a fragile sector that is significantly affected by crises (the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune). These have the potential to curtail the capacity of third-sector organizations (TSOs) to deliver societal benefits and, in the most extreme cases, even threaten their survival. Given this, the resilience of TSOs (albeit this term has multiple layers and manifold meanings) is critical. This paper explores a range of connotations linked to third-sector resilience and explores contemporary evidence (including the papers in this Special Issue) as to how the sector identifies, manages, and learns from crises. In addition, it provides a brief outline research agenda as a basis for encouraging researchers to focus on resilience in TSOs and enhance knowledge. It is argued that more rigorous, evidence-based research of this nature has the potential to positively influence practice in the sector, as well as policy formulation by government and others who steer TSOs.
Sustainability is a critical societal aim, and local governments (LGs) play an important role in fostering sustainability, as the implementation of the global aims set by the United Nations—namely, the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs offer novel accounting, reporting, and management perspectives for LGs. The objective of the study is to understand the role of the accounting–management nexus which is needed to institutionalize sustainability in LG practices. We adopted an institutional work perspective to investigate how actors at the field, organizational, and suborganizational levels of LGs can foster sustainability in accounting and management. Based on interviews with managers and other representatives from the 18 largest LGs in Finland, we found that although sustainability integration is still in the early stages and there is considerable heterogeneity in LGs’ handling of sustainability issues, there is clear potential for the simultaneous deployment of different institutional work types. This has positive implications for the institutionalization of sustainability accounting and management practices in LGs, enhancing understanding of how sustainability is fostered in public sector accounting and management by focusing on organizational-level institutional work.