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Open Access
Article
Publication date: 8 March 2024

Sanna-Mari Renfors

Higher education institutions and their lecturers are strategic agents and main drivers that contribute to circular economy transition. This requires them to understand the key…

Abstract

Purpose

Higher education institutions and their lecturers are strategic agents and main drivers that contribute to circular economy transition. This requires them to understand the key circular economy competencies and how to integrate circular economy holistically into their curricula with the suitable teaching and learning approaches. This study aims to support them by providing an overview on the characteristics of education for the circular economy (ECE) and suggestions to lecturers to further develop their curricula.

Design/methodology/approach

The data consisted of scientific articles (n = 22) describing circular economy courses in higher education. Qualitative content analysis with quantitative features was performed on the selected articles to answer the research question.

Findings

The findings confirm that the system’s focus is the key issue in ECE. However, to integrate circular economy holistically into the curricula, ECE should be implemented more widely in the context of different industries and market contexts to find innovative teaching and learning approaches. The demand side needs to be incorporated in the courses, as systemic transformation is also about transforming consumption. All levels of implementation and circular economy objectives should be included in courses to promote systems thinking. In addition, innovative forms of real workplace interaction should be increased.

Originality/value

As ECE has started to emerge as a new field of study, this article provides the first integrated overview of the topic.

Details

International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1467-6370

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 4 April 2023

Chun-Chien Lin and Yu-Chen Chang

This study aims to examine how external and internal conditions drive the impact of circular economy mechanism by decomposing into three policy networks in terms of reduce, reuse…

1379

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to examine how external and internal conditions drive the impact of circular economy mechanism by decomposing into three policy networks in terms of reduce, reuse and recycle, to better understand the contingency model of climate change and effect of firm size on subsequent performance.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing on circular economy network and resource-based view (RBV)-network-resilience strategy framework, a pooled longitudinal cross-sectional data model is developed using a sample of 4,050 Taiwanese manufacturing multinational corporations (MNCs) making foreign direct investment between 2013 and 2018. Structural equation modeling analysis is used to comprehensively examine and investigate each circular economy policy network in the context of climate change and firm size. Post hoc multigroup analysis (MGA) is also conducted.

Findings

MGA shows that the reduce policy network is positively and negatively related to manufacturing know-how and production size, respectively. The impact of reuse policy network can enhance the competence of large firms. The recycle policy network is more prominent in terms of competence enhancement of climate change.

Practical implications

MNCs are seeking to build circular economy policy networks to a greater extent, given climate change pressure and guidelines.

Originality/value

This study adds to the circular economy and RBV-network-related literature on climate change and interactions to enhance performance, echoing the recent call on the sustainability of the circular economy of MNCs.

Details

International Journal of Climate Change Strategies and Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1756-8692

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 22 March 2024

Sheak Salman, Shah Murtoza Morshed, Md. Rezaul Karim, Rafat Rahman, Sadia Hasanat and Afia Ahsan

The imperative to conserve resources and minimize operational expenses has spurred a notable increase in the adoption of lean manufacturing within the context of the circular

Abstract

Purpose

The imperative to conserve resources and minimize operational expenses has spurred a notable increase in the adoption of lean manufacturing within the context of the circular economy across diverse industries in recent years. However, a notable gap exists in the research landscape, particularly concerning the implementation of lean practices within the pharmaceutical industry to enhance circular economy performance. Addressing this void, this study endeavors to identify and prioritize the pivotal drivers influencing lean manufacturing within the pharmaceutical sector.

Findings

The outcome of this rigorous examination highlights that “Continuous Monitoring Process for Sustainable Lean Implementation,” “Management Involvement for Sustainable Implementation” and “Training and Education” emerge as the most consequential drivers. These factors are deemed crucial for augmenting circular economy performance, underscoring the significance of management engagement, training initiatives and a continuous monitoring process in fostering a closed-loop practice within the pharmaceutical industry.

Research limitations/implications

The findings contribute valuable insights for decision-makers aiming to adopt lean practices within a circular economy framework. Specifically, by streamlining the process of developing a robust action plan tailored to the unique needs of the pharmaceutical sector, our study provides actionable guidance for enhancing overall sustainability in the manufacturing processes.

Originality/value

This study represents one of the initial efforts to systematically identify and assess the drivers to LM implementation within the pharmaceutical industry, contributing to the emerging body of knowledge in this area.

Details

International Journal of Industrial Engineering and Operations Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2690-6090

Keywords

Open Access
Book part
Publication date: 2 October 2023

Sönnich Dahl Sönnichsen

This chapter highlights how implementing circular economy principles can help companies working with sustainability to move from a reductionist and waste management approach to…

Abstract

This chapter highlights how implementing circular economy principles can help companies working with sustainability to move from a reductionist and waste management approach to marketing competitive circular value propositions that intentionally design out waste (e.g. emissions and pollution) by rethinking, reinventing and redesigning the value chain. Schijvens, a Dutch family-owned corporate fashion textile company, acts as a case for exemplifying successful implementation of circular economy principles as a marketing strategy in a sector that struggles with finding solutions to the ethical challenges of producing and marketing textile fashion. The textile industry has, for many years, been accused of production that is based on environmentally harmful processes and conditions that are not socially fair. Circular economy principles provide a range of suggestions to address the ethical challenges occurring from covering the human needs of having clothes to wear. Yet, implementing circular economy principles is not a panacea. It is not only a question of delivering a technological quick fix but also a question of managing the new processes and human mindset guiding the actions in the value chain. This chapter, therefore, outlines reasons for a different perspective on the traditional linear value chain and related implications managers face when undertaking a journey from sustainability based on a reductionist approach to a closed-loop approach. It is argued that implementing circular economy principles by pro-actively managing the value chain processes based on eco-centric dynamic capabilities can provide even more radical changes than the incremental reductionist approach often associated with being a green sustainable company.

Details

Creating a Sustainable Competitive Position: Ethical Challenges for International Firms
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80455-252-0

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 3 September 2020

Manlio Del Giudice, Roberto Chierici, Alice Mazzucchelli and Fabio Fiano

This paper analyzes the effect of circular economy practices on firm performance for a circular supply chain and explores the moderating role that big-data-driven supply chain…

20029

Abstract

Purpose

This paper analyzes the effect of circular economy practices on firm performance for a circular supply chain and explores the moderating role that big-data-driven supply chain plays within these relationships.

Design/methodology/approach

This study uses data collected through an online survey distributed to managers of 378 Italian firms that have adopted circular economy principles. The data are processed using multiple regression analysis.

Findings

The results indicate that the three categories of circular economy practices investigated – namely circular economy supply chain management design, circular economy supply chain relationship management and circular economy HR management – play a crucial role in enhancing firm performance from a circular economy perspective. A big-data-driven supply chain acts as a moderator of the relationship between circular economy HR management and firm performance for a circular economy supply chain.

Originality/value

This study makes a number of original contributions to research on circular economy practices in a big-data-driven supply chain and provides useful insights for practitioners. First, it answers the call to capture digital transformation trends and to extend research on sustainability in supply chain management. Second, it enhances the literature by investigating the relationships between three different kinds of circular economy supply chain practices and firm performance. Finally, it clarifies the moderating role of big data in making decisions and implementing circular supply chain solutions to achieve better environmental, social and economic benefits.

Details

The International Journal of Logistics Management, vol. 32 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0957-4093

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 19 October 2022

Nancy Bocken and Jan Konietzko

To meet their ambitious targets for a circular economy, multinationals need to speed up their innovation efforts. This requires experimentation capability. But it is not clear…

2409

Abstract

Purpose

To meet their ambitious targets for a circular economy, multinationals need to speed up their innovation efforts. This requires experimentation capability. But it is not clear what this capability entails, and how companies can build it. The purpose of this paper is to give companies guidance on how they might develop experimentation capability for the circular economy.

Design/methodology/approach

We conduct in-depth interviews with innovators in frontrunner multinationals, H&M, IKEA and Philips. We use the Gioia method to analyse our data.

Findings

This article identifies novel institutional, strategic, and operational actions that build experimentation capability for a circular economy.

Practical implications

The identified actions help innovation managers experiment and speed up their innovation efforts for a circular economy.

Social implications

To reverse environmental degradation, multinationals need to transform their dominant linear take-make-waste business models. This research provides actions that help them organize this transformation.

Originality/value

This article is based on extensive research with leading multinationals and reveals novel insights on how to innovate for a circular economy.

Details

Journal of Business Strategy, vol. 44 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0275-6668

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 19 December 2023

Selena Aureli, Eleonora Foschi and Angelo Paletta

This study investigates the implementation of a sustainable circular business model from an accounting perspective. Its goal is to understand if and how decision- makers use…

1043

Abstract

Purpose

This study investigates the implementation of a sustainable circular business model from an accounting perspective. Its goal is to understand if and how decision- makers use management accounting systems, and what changes are needed if these systems are to support the transition toward a circular economy.

Design/methodology/approach

Dialogic accounting theory frames the case study of six companies that built a value network to develop and implement an innovative packaging solution consistent with circular economy principles. Content analysis was utilised to investigate the accounting tools used.

Findings

The findings indicate that circular solutions generate new organisational configurations based on value networks. Interestingly, managers’ decision-making process largely bypassed the accounting function; they relied on informal accounting and life cycle analysis, which stimulated a multi-stakeholder dialogue in a life cycle perspective.

Research limitations/implications

The research provides theoretical and practical insights into the capability of management accounting systems to support companies seeking circular solutions.

Practical implications

The authors offer implications for accounting practice, chief financial officers (CFOs) and accounting educators, suggesting that a dialogic approach may support value retention of resources, materials and products, as required by the circular economy.

Social implications

The research contributes to the debate about the role of accounting in sustainability, specifically the need for connecting for resource efficiency at the corporate level with the rationalisation of resource use within planetary boundaries.

Originality/value

The study contributes to the limited research into the role of management accounting in a company’s transition to circular business models. Dialogic accounting theory frames exploration of how accounting may evolve to help businesses become accountable to all stakeholders, including the environment.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 21 March 2024

Osamudiamen Kenneth Otasowie, Clinton Ohis Aigbavboa, Ayodeji Emmanuel Oke and Peter Adekunle

The circular economy business models (CEBMs) provide ways for firms operating in the construction industry to move from a linear to a circular approach. Thus, this study aims to…

Abstract

Purpose

The circular economy business models (CEBMs) provide ways for firms operating in the construction industry to move from a linear to a circular approach. Thus, this study aims to explore CEBM research within the construction sector to show the focus area of studies, highlighting new areas that require attention.

Design/methodology/approach

This study adopted a bibliometric approach, using the Scopus database as the data source. The keywords used for paper extraction from the database were “circular economy business” OR “circular business” AND “model” OR “models” AND “construction industry” OR “building industry”. The VOSviewer software was then used to prepare a co-occurrence and co-authorship map based on the bibliographic data gathered.

Findings

The study’s findings reveal five research clusters in the construction industry. These clusters include circular construction intelligence, modular business modelling, eco-construction, sustainable construction economics and smart energy-efficient buildings. The two most cited scholars had two publications each, while the top journals are the Journal of Cleaner Production and Sustainable Production and Consumption. This study concludes that there is a need for research within the construction sector to focus on CEBMs’ archetypes and frameworks. This will enable a smooth transition from linear to circular business models in the sector.

Research limitations/implications

The information was gathered from a single database, Scopus; hence, using other databases, including Web of Science, Google Scholar and Dimensions, might produce more articles for examination and, consequently, different findings on the subject under investigation.

Practical implications

These findings would assist researchers in considering the areas mentioned, which are yet to receive attention, and, by extension, enhance economic development while maintaining environmental sustainability.

Originality/value

This paper made a significant contribution to the body of knowledge by identifying scholars and platforms that have been instrumental in advancing CEBM research and highlighting new areas that require attention in the construction sector.

Details

Journal of Engineering, Design and Technology , vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1726-0531

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 30 August 2023

Chiara Luisa Cantu and Annalisa Tunisini

The research question is how can a company implement a circular innovation in a supply network context? Leveraging the main conceptual and interpretative models of the industrial…

1141

Abstract

Purpose

The research question is how can a company implement a circular innovation in a supply network context? Leveraging the main conceptual and interpretative models of the industrial marketing and purchasing thinking, this study aims to investigate the interplay between the process of circular innovation development and the changes in the structure and dynamics of the supply network in which innovation takes place.

Design/methodology/approach

This research applies a case study design focusing on participant interaction dynamics. The case relates to an industrial company producing an innovative coating solution for compostable packaging. The data used to develop the case study came from multiple sources but primarily from semistructured interviews that cover the implementation of the circular innovation and the configuration of the circular network.

Findings

The dynamics of interconnected relationships can configure a circular network that interconnects business and non business actors through vertical, horizontal and heterogeneous relationships. The network configuration is supported by the new mobilizer actor that facilitates the sharing of circular knowledge within the circular network, together with the sharing of a market orientation and entrepreneurial orientation within the supply network, through the educational learning path.

Originality/value

This paper aims to contribute to a new understanding of how circular innovation can be developed, adopted and diffused. In a network, when circular innovation takes place, the focal issue is not the new product or technology in itself but how such innovation is developed and implemented by and through the reconfiguration of the business and non-business relationships into circular network.

Details

Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, vol. 38 no. 13
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0885-8624

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 13 December 2019

Alfonso Vargas-Sánchez

The purpose of this paper is to reflect on the evolution of the tourism ecosystem within a circular economy, considering relevant factors that influence the transition towards the…

3511

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to reflect on the evolution of the tourism ecosystem within a circular economy, considering relevant factors that influence the transition towards the circular economy model.

Design/methodology/approach

This reflection is carried out from an organisational perspective and employs a strategic management approach combined with a neo-institutional theoretical lens.

Findings

Four scenarios are identified after selecting several pertinent internal and external dimensions, which will help to understand the form and pace of the expected transition towards a tourism circular economy.

Research limitations/implications

Other variables could have been used for the scenario creation aim, which can be deemed a limitation.

Practical implications

Tourism operators can position themselves within this framework to analyse their conditions in order to address this unavoidable strategic change.

Originality/value

To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first academic work written in this line of research.

Details

Journal of Tourism Futures, vol. 7 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2055-5911

Keywords

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