A leading direction in accounting research focuses on accounting in its organizational context, i.e. its practice, role and effects within firms. However, in recent years there has been an increasing interest in studying issues related to the external environment. Particularly distinctive are studies of the relationship between social trends and accounting. The central argument for this is that it increases the timeliness and social relevance of research. This project, which consists of a number of sub-projects, focuses on a number of current societal trends - the pursuit/demand for sustainable development, financial crises, globalization and changing market conditions - and relates them to equally current accounting issues - harmonization and globalization of accounting, accounting quality, integrated reporting, the link between management/governance and the impact of crises in and on firms (especially banks), and the development/testing of methodologies/approaches to deal with increased business complexity. The project aims to contribute not only to the research community but also to other accounting stakeholders, primarily standard setters and regulators (e.g. International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), EU and FAR), companies (e.g. management and accountants) and financial market participants. The knowledge the project is expected to generate is also highly relevant for education in the subject.