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Business sustainability and E‐footprints on Earth's life and ecosystems: generic models

Göran Svensson (Oslo School of Management, Oslo, Norway)
Beverly Wagner (University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK)

European Business Review

ISSN: 0955-534X

Article publication date: 12 October 2012

11383

Abstract

Purpose

Companies and their business networks impact on Earth's life and ecosystems must be seriously addressed and minimized. The purpose of this paper therefore proposes and describes a generic model as well as a network model of business sustainability.

Design/methodology/approach

“Business sustainability” is defined as a company's or an organization's efforts to manage its impact on Earth's life‐ and eco‐systems and its whole business network. The work concentrates on one research question, namely: how can business sustainability and E‐footprints be conceptualised?

Findings

The model introduced emphasises not only the importance of business networks adopting an E‐footprint and an Earth‐to‐Earth (EE) cradle‐to‐cradle approach, but also a transformative Earth (E) footprint‐model derived and inspired from a causal framework in complexity sciences.

Research limitations/implications

Research is rare that simultaneously focuses on EE‐approaches, E‐footprint stakeholders and zero‐sum cycles. The authors have striven to address this gap by introducing a business sustainability model in an EE‐approach and with an interconnecting transformative E‐footprint‐model.

Practical implications

It is crucial to embed appropriate routines and processes within the company in the first instance with the aim of business sustainability. This may cause a ripple effect in the company's business network as raw material producers, value‐adding suppliers and customers become drawn into make appropriate strategic, tactical and operative adaptations in their own business dealings. This stresses the importance of E‐footprint stakeholders fostering networks of both interdependent and collaborative corporate efforts aimed at business sustainability.

Originality/value

The main contribution should be a business sustainability model of life and ecosystems from an EE‐approach with a transformative E‐footprint.model. Each company within a business network must endeavour to minimise its E‐footprint through its zero‐sum cycles. These should be seen as interdependent and interconnected thereby contributing to the total E‐footprint of the business network.

Keywords

Citation

Svensson, G. and Wagner, B. (2012), "Business sustainability and E‐footprints on Earth's life and ecosystems: generic models", European Business Review, Vol. 24 No. 6, pp. 543-552. https://doi.org/10.1108/09555341211270555

Publisher

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Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2012, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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