La sostenibilità ambientale in azienda: quale relazione tra disclosure volontaria e gestione interna?.

[Autom. eng. transl.] The dimension of environmental sustainability within corporate action is a topic of growing importance, especially considering the environmental communication policies that companies adopt. This work analyzes the relationship between "voluntary environmental communication" and "internal environmental management" in order to understand if and how the two dimensions are associated and consistent with each other. Internal environmental management is intended, in particular, as the company's attention to environmental sustainability in the context of internal decision-making systems and implementation of sustainability practices. From the theoretical point of view, the study identifies four representative categories of possible associations, making use of a high-low matrix representing the two dimensions indicated and defined in accordance with previous studies. The sample of analysis is represented by forty-four companies operating in sectors considered to have a high environmental impact. The research uses a questionnaire regarding the size of internal management while calculating a disclosure index for what concerns the external dimension. The results show a prevalence of internal environmental management compared to voluntary communication practices. This last dimension is subordinate and less important than the internal management. The association between the two dimensions is present only for a subset of companies that are also the most attentive to environmental sustainability.