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5. Presence of LCA in policies.
The cases from Thailand, China, Mexico and Brazil reinforce the results of the
status of mainstreaming condition assessment in which these countries rank in
the top four. This shows that the use of LCA in policies is possible in emerging
and rapidly growing economies.
6. Thailand with favourable LCSM/LCA mainstreaming conditions.
Of the 18 countries researched, Thailand excels in mainstreaming LCA, as it
uses LCA-based results in policies on public procurement. However, the authors
cannot conclude that LCSM is mainstream in this country. Nevertheless, the case
of Thailand demonstrates how far a country with limited resources can go when
strong political acceptance is given.
7. Countries with no conditions for mainstreaming.
Countries at the bottom of the ranking are in the position where the others were
in 2002. The fi rst step for them is to address awareness-raising events for
decision- makers from business as well as municipal and national governments,
and basic training for academia and consultants. Support from international
organizations is key to assisting these countries in paving the way for the conditions in which mainstreaming LCSM can be envisaged.
4.2 Outlook
Capacity-building programs on LCA/LCM/LCSM are needed to intensify and
deepen their activities on a greater pace and to connect them to global programs
such as CIP and SLE.
Ongoing international co-operation as well as new forms of inter-regional cooperation are key to improving the conditions for mainstreaming LCSM (UNEP/
SETAC 2015b ).
According to current experiences regarding capacity-building and capability
development trends, LCM, followed by LCA and footprinting approaches as well as
data and database management, appear to be the most sought-after areas of skills
development. While LCA appeals more to academia and consultants, LCSM is at
the core of what companies are interested in.
Echoing the refl ections of Paul Hohnen ( 2014 ), more awareness from politicians
is essential to boost implementation of LCA in developing countries. Additionally,
streamlined communication is needed at all levels. The implementation of LCSM
and the tools and data required can no longer be presented as a complicated or
expensive approach, but rather as a valuable and powerful management way toward
innovation as well smart and responsible decision-making for more sustainable consumption and production (Hohnen 2014 ).
19 Mainstreaming Life Cycle Sustainability Management in Rapidly Growing…
5. Presence of LCA in policies.
The cases from Thailand, China, Mexico and Brazil reinforce the results of the
status of mainstreaming condition assessment in which these countries rank in
the top four. This shows that the use of LCA in policies is possible in emerging
and rapidly growing economies.
6. Thailand with favourable LCSM/LCA mainstreaming conditions.
Of the 18 countries researched, Thailand excels in mainstreaming LCA, as it
uses LCA-based results in policies on public procurement. However, the authors
cannot conclude that LCSM is mainstream in this country. Nevertheless, the case
of Thailand demonstrates how far a country with limited resources can go when
strong political acceptance is given.
7. Countries with no conditions for mainstreaming.
Countries at the bottom of the ranking are in the position where the others were
in 2002. The fi rst step for them is to address awareness-raising events for
decision- makers from business as well as municipal and national governments,
and basic training for academia and consultants. Support from international
organizations is key to assisting these countries in paving the way for the conditions in which mainstreaming LCSM can be envisaged.
4.2 Outlook
Capacity-building programs on LCA/LCM/LCSM are needed to intensify and
deepen their activities on a greater pace and to connect them to global programs
such as CIP and SLE.
Ongoing international co-operation as well as new forms of inter-regional cooperation are key to improving the conditions for mainstreaming LCSM (UNEP/
SETAC 2015b ).
According to current experiences regarding capacity-building and capability
development trends, LCM, followed by LCA and footprinting approaches as well as
data and database management, appear to be the most sought-after areas of skills
development. While LCA appeals more to academia and consultants, LCSM is at
the core of what companies are interested in.
Echoing the refl ections of Paul Hohnen ( 2014 ), more awareness from politicians
is essential to boost implementation of LCA in developing countries. Additionally,
streamlined communication is needed at all levels. The implementation of LCSM
and the tools and data required can no longer be presented as a complicated or
expensive approach, but rather as a valuable and powerful management way toward
innovation as well smart and responsible decision-making for more sustainable consumption and production (Hohnen 2014 ).
19 Mainstreaming Life Cycle Sustainability Management in Rapidly Growing…