Mapping environmental, social, governance initiatives against sustainable development goals: knowledge management in the Indian tourism sector for firm legitimacy

Industry reporting on sustainability efforts is no longer optional for firms that want to be perceived as credible and contributing to society. In the article by Liu et al. (2025), the authors examine how sustainability effort reporting with environmental, societal and governance (ESG) initiative disclosures by firms contribute to a perceived credibility and how these efforts align with global sustainable development goals (SDGs). The authors look through the lens of the Indian tourism sector as a key global emerging economy with strong relational implications, further examining the role of knowledge management (KM) in optimizing corporate sustainability efforts.ESG initiatives refer to a series of corporate activities and policies that focus on addressing sustainability and ethical concerns across three key areas that each contribute to a firm’s sustainability reporting, capital and legitimacy. Environmental initiatives encompass minimizing negative environmental impact and promoting sustainability, social initiatives aim to enhance social well-being, create equity and develop communities, and governance initiatives aim to establish policies that support transparency, accountability and ethical values within and beyond the firm. Through these initiatives, firms demonstrate a commitment to sustainable and responsible business practices and contribute to sustainability agendas on national and global levels.ESG initiatives can be directly mapped against the United Nations SDGs to directly link corporate sustainability activities to global sustainability goals and objectives as well as highlight the genuine contributions of firms’ efforts against globally recognized sustainability targets. For example, environmental initiatives correlate to SDGs of clean water, affordable and clean energy, responsible consumption and climate action. Social initiatives align with SDGs of eliminating hunger, increasing health, creating jobs and economic growth, reducing inequality and creating sustainable cities. Governance initiatives align with a focus on gender equality, creating a world with peace, justice and collaboration. When firms map ESG initiatives against SDGs, they clearly highlight the impact they are making, meet the expectations of their stakeholders and improve policies for a more sustainable sector.Within the Indian tourism sector, firms hold a unique position within global capital and strong links to their local communities, positioning them as vital contributors to sustainable initiatives. How firms align with this framework of initiatives varies significantly – separating the tourism sector into hospitality, leisure and travel presents more nuance in these results. Indian tourism firms’ sustainability initiatives directly contribute to national and global sustainability goals, advancing India’s sustainable tourism goals and are a leading example for other firms in similar emerging markets and economies. Tourism sustainability disclosures are essential for policymakers and firms to understand and continue to encourage sustainable tourism, increasing global competitiveness and stakeholder trust.Sustainability reporting communicates ESG efforts to internal and external stakeholders, creating firm legitimacy. By disclosing ESG initiatives in detail, firms appear more legitimate and improve their social standing with accountability and transparency. Even further benefits can be reaped by firms when KM is positioned as a key element in the sustainability goals and progress initiatives.KM is essential for enhancing a firm’s intellectual capital, which comprises human, structural and relational assets that underline ESG initiatives. KM enables firms to collect, integrate and redistribute sustainable knowledge for transparent disclosures. KM is key to embedding ESG initiatives into business operations, promoting knowledgeable employees, enhanced skills, governance and resources that align with sustainability.The authors found that knowledge-sharing behavior between employees in the tourism sector positively affects sustainability performance and intellectual capital. Firms can leverage KM to produce data-driven sustainability disclosures, as evidence of alignment with national and global sustainability initiatives. KM links sustainable reporting into actionable strategy to reach SDGs through communicating with stakeholders, increasing trust and stakeholder engagement with accessible and accountable reporting. It also quantifies ESG initiatives to reduce any ambiguity and correctly represent the firm’s sustainable actions.Within the Indian tourism sector, Liu et al. (2025) found that firms are significantly biased toward environmental initiatives, with a far larger amount compared to social and governance initiatives. Firms that undertook these initiatives reported increased intellectual capital, legitimacy, and trust. However, further social and governance initiatives should be undertaken to align firms further with the global SDGs.The research put forward in the article offers several practical implications.By aligning ESG initiatives with global SDGs, firms legitimize their sustainability initiatives for increased stakeholder trust, community engagement and improved reputation. Liu et al. (2025) find that when KM is integrated in this process, firms can further reap the benefits of their corporate sustainability actions and strategies. In the Indian tourism sector, it is clear that ESG initiatives have significant national and global implications for sector reputation and show the importance of these actions in emerging economic contexts.This review is based on “Unearthing facets of sustainability initiatives reporting and legitimacy: a knowledge management perspective” by Weiming Liu, Nidhi Sahore, Bhumika Gupta, Paolo Coppola and Antonella Della Puca.