IS sustainability research: A trans-disciplinary framework for a ‘grand challenge’

To address the “grand challenge” of biosphere sustainability, it is imperative that weexamine the assumptions and philosophies underlying Information Systemssustainability research and expand research approaches. Despite calls for transdisciplinaryresearch and recognition that addressing sustainability will requiremultiple perspectives, a review of the IS sustainability literature finds that fewpublications incorporate knowledge or methods from outside traditional businesscentricboundaries. Drawing on a diverse range of IS and sustainability literature, wedevelop a trans-disciplinary framework for IS Sustainability Research (ISSR) based ona view of sustainability that recognizes the environment as a critical stakeholder ratherthan a collection of resources to be managed and exploited. We identify three broadareas of inquiry and representative research questions which address the connectionsbetween human activity, the natural capital of the biosphere, and the societal goals ofhuman-environment interactions through which ISSR can contribute to the grandchallenge of biosphere sustainability.