Local Governments’ environmental disclosure via social networks: Organizational legitimacy and stakeholders’ interactions

In recent years, the use of social media has considerably increased interaction between the public sector and citizens. At the same time, environmental issues such as climate change are increasingly gaining importance in society. In such a scenario, local governments are called to engage and communicate with citizens on environmental issues and policies. This article explores whether and how local governments use the social platform Facebook with organizational legitimacy purposes and to interact with citizens on environmental sustainability. The paper contributes to understanding of how a social media platform could be regarded as a tool for disclosure of environmental information by local governments and the related organizational challenges.