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A. Chari et al.
dye a kg of fabric), dyestuff and other effluents contained in the waste water (Cid
et al. 2005; Luo et al. 2018), large transportation related fuel emissions in the supply
chain and high energy consumption (Choudhury 2014). These negative effects of the
textile industry along with their predominantly linear (“take-make-dispose”) model,
threaten the limited resources available in our natural ecosystem with a tremendous impact on environmental and societal levels (Ellen MacArthur Foundation
2016). Hence, there is an urgent need for these industries to decouple economic
growth from resource utilization and find a balance between the social, economic
and environmental dimensions of sustainability through radical innovations.
Sustainable development is a normative and contested concept (Hedenus et al.
2015; Stubbs and Cocklin 2008), one that takes place with varying vested interests and
values of the encompassing actors within a defined system. Sustainability transition
typically involves this broad network of actors who are dynamically interacting
between the different sub-systems.
Research in this field has gained increased traction over the past decade with
a number of studies analysing socio-technical transformations into a sustainable
economy (Van Den Bergh et al. 2011) from a systems perspective. Various frameworks have also been conceptualized in order to understand these sustainability
transitions (Turnheim 2019), namely: the multi-level perspective (Geels 2017; Rip
and René 1997; Geels 2002), transition management approach (Loorbach 2010),
innovation systems approach (Hekkert et al. 2007; Franco 2002), dialectic issue lifecycle model (Penna and Geels 2012), strategic niche management (Rip and René
1997) among many others. However, many of these models have been criticized
for not paying enough attention to the underlying interests of the various stakeholders involved in the transformation process. Farla et al. (2012) in their special
issue paper addressed dynamic actor interactions from a systems perspective. They
focused on capabilities and strategies that organizations and individuals need to
inherently possess in order for successful sustainability transitions to take place.
Several studies have analysed that the complexities arising from stakeholder involvement and management commitment have been barriers to the sustainability agenda
in domains such as green building and construction (Mok et al. 2018; Hongyang
et al. 2019; Pham et al. 2019; Williams and Dair 2007), urban freight transport
(Van Duin et al. 2017), facilities management (Elmualim et al. 2010), manufacturing (Moldavska 2016; Orji 2019), circular economy (Houston et al. 2018) and
environmental management (Geels 2017; Reed 2008) to name a few.
Epstein and Buhovac (2010) explain that although some organizations address
sustainability as part of their business agenda in addition to gains in financial
performance, the long-term advantages and opportunities of creating sustainable
value for the organization have still been heavily underestimated. Along with
developing the Corporate Sustainability Model to measure the drivers of sustainability, they identified the following key challenges of implementing sustainability
in organizations:
(a) Setting clear and measurable goals;
(b) Financial incentive pressures;
A. Chari et al.
dye a kg of fabric), dyestuff and other effluents contained in the waste water (Cid
et al. 2005; Luo et al. 2018), large transportation related fuel emissions in the supply
chain and high energy consumption (Choudhury 2014). These negative effects of the
textile industry along with their predominantly linear (“take-make-dispose”) model,
threaten the limited resources available in our natural ecosystem with a tremendous impact on environmental and societal levels (Ellen MacArthur Foundation
2016). Hence, there is an urgent need for these industries to decouple economic
growth from resource utilization and find a balance between the social, economic
and environmental dimensions of sustainability through radical innovations.
Sustainable development is a normative and contested concept (Hedenus et al.
2015; Stubbs and Cocklin 2008), one that takes place with varying vested interests and
values of the encompassing actors within a defined system. Sustainability transition
typically involves this broad network of actors who are dynamically interacting
between the different sub-systems.
Research in this field has gained increased traction over the past decade with
a number of studies analysing socio-technical transformations into a sustainable
economy (Van Den Bergh et al. 2011) from a systems perspective. Various frameworks have also been conceptualized in order to understand these sustainability
transitions (Turnheim 2019), namely: the multi-level perspective (Geels 2017; Rip
and René 1997; Geels 2002), transition management approach (Loorbach 2010),
innovation systems approach (Hekkert et al. 2007; Franco 2002), dialectic issue lifecycle model (Penna and Geels 2012), strategic niche management (Rip and René
1997) among many others. However, many of these models have been criticized
for not paying enough attention to the underlying interests of the various stakeholders involved in the transformation process. Farla et al. (2012) in their special
issue paper addressed dynamic actor interactions from a systems perspective. They
focused on capabilities and strategies that organizations and individuals need to
inherently possess in order for successful sustainability transitions to take place.
Several studies have analysed that the complexities arising from stakeholder involvement and management commitment have been barriers to the sustainability agenda
in domains such as green building and construction (Mok et al. 2018; Hongyang
et al. 2019; Pham et al. 2019; Williams and Dair 2007), urban freight transport
(Van Duin et al. 2017), facilities management (Elmualim et al. 2010), manufacturing (Moldavska 2016; Orji 2019), circular economy (Houston et al. 2018) and
environmental management (Geels 2017; Reed 2008) to name a few.
Epstein and Buhovac (2010) explain that although some organizations address
sustainability as part of their business agenda in addition to gains in financial
performance, the long-term advantages and opportunities of creating sustainable
value for the organization have still been heavily underestimated. Along with
developing the Corporate Sustainability Model to measure the drivers of sustainability, they identified the following key challenges of implementing sustainability
in organizations:
(a) Setting clear and measurable goals;
(b) Financial incentive pressures;