Management of Environmental Quality An International Journal

Wang, Yongming; Villanthenkodath, Muhammed Ashiq; Haseeb, Mohammad

2023 Management of Environmental Quality An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/meq-05-2022-0136

The eco-innovation is considered one of the possible ways to tackle climate change. However, the conflicting empirical evidence related to the role of eco-innovation on environmental quality becomes a motivation to explore the effect of eco-innovation on environmental degradation proxied by ecological footprint. Besides, it controls economic growth, remittance inflows, trade openness and total energy consumption in the environmental degradation function.Design/methodology/approachUses the Augmented Auto Regressive Distributed Lag (AARDL) approach to examine the cointegration relation among the series during the period ranging from 1975 to 2017 for India within the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) framework.FindingsThe result suggests that eco-innovation can mitigate climate change by reducing the ecological footprint. Similarly, economic growth reduces the ecological footprint in the short- and long-run. However, the square of economic growth is positive and significant. Thus, it shows evidence against the conventional EKC hypothesis. The results also reveal that remittance inflows have an insignificant negative role on the ecological footprint, while total energy consumption and trade openness harm the environment by enhancing the ecological footprint.Practical implicationsThis study provides important implications for climate change mitigation. Thus, the government should promote eco-innovation to mitigate climate change by offering a favorable legal environment to the firms to adopt the same in their production and consumption activities. It also suggests that initiatives like green strategies should give serious attention while incurring research expenditure.Originality/valueNo prior studies assess the impact of eco-innovation on the ecological footprint for the period of 1975–2017 in India.

Rakhmawati, Tri; Damayanti, Sih; Jati, Rahmi Kartika; Astrini, Nidya Judhi

2023 Management of Environmental Quality An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/meq-11-2022-0309

This research investigates factors affecting the intention to sort waste. Specifically, this research aims to develop a waste-sorting intention model by extending the theory of planned behavior (TPB) model and to test the model to ensure the model's goodness-of-fit, validity and reliability.Design/methodology/approachThis research used a quantitative research methodology. Data were collected from 460 respondents using an online questionnaire. Some statistical analyses were performed to analyze the data: descriptive statistics, factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis-structural equation modeling (CFA-SEM), SEM and Cronbach's alpha analysis.FindingsThe result shows that the intention to sort waste was directly affected by attitude, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control (PBC), moral obligation and facility support. Environmental concerns, waste-sorting knowledge and time availability indirectly influenced the intention to sort waste. The testing indicated that the proposed model was fit, valid and reliable.Practical implicationsThe model provides a more comprehensive understanding of waste-sorting intention. The central and local governments can use the results to encourage waste-sorting intention in the community.Originality/valueThis research is believed to be the first study to develop and test the waste-sorting intention model that extends the TPB model by incorporating moral obligation, facility support, policy and regulation support, environmental concerns, waste-sorting knowledge and time availability into the traditional TPB model.

Al Amin, Md.; Ahad Mia, Md. Abdul; Bala, Tapas; Iqbal, Mohammed Masum; Alam, Md. Shariful

2023 Management of Environmental Quality An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/meq-09-2022-0257

The study aims to examine the green finance customers' post-usage continuance behavior based on an extended social support theory (SST). Remarkably, this study explores five indirect predictors of green finance continuance behavior (GFCB) (i.e. environmental consciousness (EC), green bank marketing initiatives (GBMI), informational supports, emotional supports (EST) and psychological reactance) and a mediator (i.e. customer satisfaction).Design/methodology/approachIn this study data were collected from 362 respondents from Bangladesh using a purposive sampling method with a structured self-administrative questionnaire and analyzed by partial least square structural equation and modeling using SMART PLS 3.0 software.FindingsThe results depict that the five predictors, i.e. information supports (ß = 0.367, t-statistics = 2.463, p < 0.001), EST (ß = 0.206, t-statistics = 2.315, p < 0.000), EC (ß = 0.324, t-statistics = 3.484, p < 0.000), GBMI (ß = 0.288, t-statistics = 2.028, p < 0.000), psychological reactance (ß = 0.126, t-statistics = 0.969, p < 0.052) influence GFCB while satisfaction is predicted by four predictors except psychological reactance (ß = 0.126, t-statistics = 0.969, p < 0.052). In addition, customer satisfaction (ß = 0.638, t-statistics = 6.317, p < 0.005) also has an impact on continuance behavior. Besides, the study understood that four predictors indirectly influence GFCB through satisfaction except psychological reactance ((ß = 0.080, t-statistics = 964, z = 0.958p < 0.338). Finally, the coefficient of determinations (R2) indicates that the five predictors explained 65.3% of changes in satisfaction, whereas 72.8% of changes are described by the five predictors and customer satisfactions.Practical implicationsFinally, this study highlights the social and managerial implications for the implementers of the green finance industry. It is recommended to emphasize green finance practice as it plays a crucial role in promoting environmental protection, ensuring social equity and driving economic growth. The green banking service providers, industry analysts, green consumers and respective government authorities can generalize green finance activities as an essential aspect of sustainable development to equalize the economic growth with a view to protecting environmental collapse and promoting renewable energy, energy efficiency, sustainable agriculture and other environmentally friendly activities.Originality/valueThe study will enormously contribute to the existing literature validating the proposed holistic framework applying SST along with EC, GBMI and psychological reactance in green finance continuance behavior.

Adekunle, Ibrahim Ayoade; Maku, Olukayode; Williams, Tolulope; Gbagidi, Judith; Ajike, Emmanuel O.

2023 Management of Environmental Quality An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/meq-10-2020-0241

With heterogeneous findings dominating the growth and natural resources relations, there is a need to explain the variances in Africa's growth process as induced by robust measures of factor endowments. This study used a comprehensive set of data from the updated database of the World Bank to capture the heterogeneous dimensions of natural resource endowments on growth with a particular focus on establishing complementary evidence on the resource curse hypothesis in energy and environmental economics literature in Africa. These comprehensive data on oil rent, coal rent and forest rent could provide new and insightful evidence on obscure relations on the subject matter.Design/methodology/approachThis paper considers the panel vector error correction model (PVECM) procedure to explain changes in economic growth outcomes as induced by oil rent, coal rent and forest rent. The consideration of the PVECM was premised on the panel unit root process that returns series that were cointegrated at the first-order differentials.FindingsThe paper found positive relations between oil rent, coal rent and economic development in Africa. Forest rent, on the other hand, is inversely related to economic growth in Africa. Trade and human capital are positively related to economic growth in Africa, while population growth is negatively associated with economic growth in Africa.Research limitations/implicationsShort-run policies should be tailored towards the stability of fiscal expenditure such that the objective of fiscal policy, which is to maintain the condition of full employment and economic stability and stabilise the rate of growth, can be optimised and sustained. By this, the resource curse will be averted and productive capacity will increase, leading to sustainable growth and development in Africa, where conditions for growth and development remain inadequately met.Originality/valueThe originality of this paper can be viewed from the strength of its arguments and methods adopted to address the questions raised in this paper. This study further illuminated age-long obscure relations in the literature of natural resource endowment and economic growth by taking a disaggregated approach to the component-by-component analysis of natural resources factors (the oil rent, coal rent and forest rent) and their corresponding influence on economic growth in Africa. This pattern remains underexplored mainly in previous literature on the subject. Many African countries are blessed with an abundance of these different natural resources in varying proportions. The misuse and mismanagement of these resources along various dimensions have been the core of the inclination towards the resource curse hypothesis in Africa. Knowing how growth conditions respond to changes in the depth of forest resources, oil resources and coal resources could be useful pointers in Africa's overall energy use and management. This study contributed to the literature on natural resource-induced growth dynamics by offering a generalisable conclusion as to why natural resource-abundance economies are prone to poor economic performance. This study further asks if mineral deposits are a source or reflection of ill growth and underdevelopment in African countries.

Jain, Neha; Mohapatra, Geetilaxmi

2023 Management of Environmental Quality An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/meq-12-2022-0330

The present study aims to construct and compare Composite Environmental Sustainability Index (CESI) for 20 emerging countries for the period 1990–2020.Design/methodology/approachThe study constructs CESI using the principal component analysis (PCA). Furthermore, for the preparation of index weights, varimax rotation is used to get component loadings.FindingsThe study finds that the overall CESI values lies between 2 and 4.8 for the 20 emerging countries considered in the study. This study depicts a diverse picture of environmental sustainability among emerging countries. The study also shows the trend of CESI values from 1990 to 2020. The bottom three countries whose CESI is very low compared to others are Iran, South Africa and Saudi Arabia. However, Brazil, Columbia and Chile are top three highest scorers in 2020.Originality/valueThe study contributes to the literature by constructing a composite index comprising of three sub-indices to measure the environmental sustainability of an economy. These sub-indices include seven indicators that are more inclusive and comprehensive. To the authors' knowledge, this is a pioneering attempt in the construction of the index for emerging countries.

Maldonado-Guzmán, Gonzalo; Garza-Reyes, Jose Arturo

2023 Management of Environmental Quality An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/meq-11-2022-0324

The need to improve sustainability in manufacturing firms, which would allow them to reduce the emission of pollutants and the generation of industrial waste, has stimulated the adoption of circular economy (CE) alongside lean manufacturing (LM) practices to significantly improve the sustainable performance of organizations. However, empirical evidence provided in previous studies and that has related the practices of LM, CE and sustainable performance do not allow establishing an interconnection between these three concepts. Therefore, this paper fills this gap in the literature by exploring the relationship between these three concepts.Design/methodology/approachA quantitative study in which data were collected from 460 managers working in the automotive industry in Mexico was conducted. The data allowed the testing and validation of four hypotheses through the use of partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS SEM).FindingsThe results obtained suggest that LM practices have a significant positive influence both on sustainable performance and CE. In turn, the results also demonstrate the existence of a significant positive relationship between CE and the sustainable performance of manufacturing firms in the automotive industry as well as that CE has a positive role in mediating the interconnection between LM practices and sustainable performance.Practical implicationsThe results obtained from the present study will allow entrepreneurs in the automotive industry and industry professionals as well as government authorities to formulate more effective policies and strategies to support the improvement of environmental sustainability performance in the manufacturing sector.Originality/valueThis is one of the first studies that have investigated the relationship between LM, CE and sustainable performance, particularly, in the automotive sector.

Elhidaoui, Sana; Kota, Srinivas

2023 Management of Environmental Quality An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/meq-12-2022-0344

This research aims to comprehensively analyse the Agri-food supply chain, by identifying the barriers, and considering effective pathways towards a green supply chain. To the best of our knowledge, in the research area of supply chain, the majority of the research is oriented towards the evaluation of barriers and pathways or drivers to the implementation of green supply chain management in the manufacturing industry. The field of Agri-food is among the sectors of concern due to the quantum and basic necessity of the industry.Design/methodology/approachThe contribution of this paper is to develop and evaluate a general framework of the most relevant barriers and possible pathways towards the green Agri-food supply chain, with the help of a hybrid approach combining both the ANP and ELECTRE I methods, via a case study of the fish canning industry.FindingsFurthermore, the study findings will help both academicians and practitioners in developing and evaluating green supply chain frameworks in this area of study.Originality/valueThe results of this study show that the cost of greening the supply in terms of implementing sustainability standard, or advanced technology are the most relevant barriers, and that the social and operational pathways family is among the best effectives pathways.

Shobande, Olatunji; Asongu, Simplice

2023 Management of Environmental Quality An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/meq-01-2023-0025

The study examines the role of natural resources (NRs) and energy consumption in managing the climate crisis in Africa, using annual series data from the World Bank from 1980 to 2019.Design/methodology/approachThe empirical strategy is based on the second-generation panel techniques that account for cross-sectional dependency in the series. Specifically, the empirical evidence is based on the Westerlund (2017) panel cointegration test, panel augmented mean group, common correlated effects mean group and the vector autoregressive (VAR)-vector error correction (VEC) approaches.FindingsEvidence from the panel analysis confirmed the existence of Carbon Kuznets Curve (CKC) U-shaped nexus in Africa, but the country-level results are mixed. Furthermore, results using the VAR-vector correction model indicate possible convergence among the variables across the African countries. NR unidirectionally Granger-causes carbon emissions. The authors suggest the consideration of environmental factors in the utilisation of NRs. Similarly, energy efficiency is crucial to decouple carbon from energy usage.Originality/valueThe study complements the extant literature by assessing the role of NRs and energy consumption in managing climate crisis in Africa.

Masron, Tajul Ariffin; Subramaniam, Yogeeswari; Loganathan, Nanthakumar

2023 Management of Environmental Quality An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/meq-08-2022-0221

Nanotechnology's rapid development worldwide is a significant measure for countries to strengthen the building of energy security. Thus, to empirically investigate the underlying effect of nanotechnology on energy poverty alleviation, the authors of this study assess the impact of nanotechnology on alleviating energy poverty in developing countries.Design/methodology/approachThe paper used panel data for 56 developing countries over the period 2012–2019, by employing dynamic generalised method of moments (GMM) analysis.FindingsThe findings showed that the emergence of nanotechnology has a significant trend in increasing energy poverty in developing countries. This suggests that whilst nanotechnology may be a promising solution for addressing energy poverty in certain contexts, nanotechnology may not be the most viable option for reducing poverty in developing countries. The findings have added credence as the findings are robust to the inclusion of alternative energy poverty measures and additional controlled variables.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough this study results show unpromising outcomes in addressing energy poverty in developing countries, the authors believe that this may be a short-term phenomenon. In the long run, policies and programs must be put in place to support the development and deployment of nanotechnology to reduce energy poverty.Originality/valueThe authors believe this is the first attempt to examine the dynamic influence of nanotechnology development on energy poverty in developing countries. From the standpoint of nanotechnology development, this can help policymakers develop rules and regulations to tackle energy poverty.

Eberle, Luciene; Milan, Gabriel Sperandio; Graciola, Ana Paula; Borchardt, Miriam; Pereira, Giancarlo Medeiros

2023 Management of Environmental Quality An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/meq-10-2022-0277

The present research had the objectives of proposing, testing and validating a theoretical model that includes ecological awareness, healthy consumption, consumer attitude and price awareness as determinants of the purchase intention of organic foods and analyzing the moderating effect of gender, educational level and income of families in the relationship between price awareness and purchase intention.Design/methodology/approachA survey research was implemented with 382 Brazilians who consume organic foods from a non-probabilistic sample for convenience. For data analysis, structural equation modeling was used to test the proposed theoretical model and its respective relationships.FindingsThe results showed that ecological awareness, healthy consumption, consumer attitude and price awareness are determinants of the purchase intention of organic foods 79.1% of the variance of purchase intention of organic foods could be explained by such determinants. Another relevant result is that gender and family income has a positive moderating effect on the relationship between price awareness and the intention to purchase organic food.Originality/valueEnvironmental problems and their adverse impacts on humans have become an important issue to be analyzed by academics (researchers), governments and organizations, and their managers, especially when organic foods are considered.

Panigrahi, Swayam Sampurna; Bahinipati, Bikram Kumar; Sarmah, Sarada Prasad

2023 Management of Environmental Quality An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/meq-02-2023-0036

The Indian micro small and medium scale enterprises (MSMEs) are potential suppliers to the original equipment manufacturers (OEM). The implementation of sustainable supply chain practices (SSCPs) enhances the chances of developing a long-term partnership with these OEMs.Design/methodology/approachA hybrid framework of analytical network process (ANP) and fuzzy logic (FL) is developed for implementing SSCPs in Indian MSMEs. This model has been validated through a case study.FindingsThe study has identified several critical success factors (CSFs) for the implementation of SSCPs in MSMEs. This study has observed that Government regulation is the most important CSF for the implementation of SSCP in Indian MSMEs followed by management support and policy framework.Originality/valueThe article presents a mechanism, i.e. an adaptability test that enables the OEM decision-makers to assess the suitability of an MSME for a long-term partnership.

Zaw, Aung Kyaw; Charoenratana, Sayamol

2023 Management of Environmental Quality An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/meq-11-2022-0300

The central dry zone of Myanmar is a climatic risk area in which the inhabitants are experiencing food insecurity, demonstrating the link between water scarcity and climate risk in agricultural production. Households in the region face the challenge of developing adaptation strategies to cope with the impact of climate change on food security. This study aims to seek an effective climate change solution and analyse its impact on Myanmar's food security and household adaptation.Design/methodology/approachThe authors draw on insights from mixed-method research using a qualitative method followed by quantitative methods. In the qualitative phase, the authors used purposive sampling with two focus group discussions and three stakeholder interviews. In the quantitative phase, data were collected from 102 face-to-face interviews with members of households selected from Pauk Township, Pakokku District, Magway Region, Myanmar. The household food insecurity access scale (HFIAS) was used in the analysis.FindingsThe HFIAS indicated that 13% of households have adapted to climate change. The study illustrates that climate change adaptation strategies in production activities are related to food insecurity. The results further demonstrated the effect of climate change on crops, which impacts debt, access to food, selling assets and urban migration. The findings also suggest that climate change adaptation to improve food security has played an important role in providing outside support, which leads to household food insecurity.Originality/valueTo the authors' best knowledge, the study is one of the first to use mixed-method research to investigate climate change, food security and household adaptation in the central dry zone of Myanmar.

Echefaj, Khadija; Charkaoui, Abdelkabir; Cherrafi, Anass; Garza-Reyes, Jose Arturo; Khan, Syed Abdul Rehman; Chaouni Benabdellah, Abla

2023 Management of Environmental Quality An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/meq-02-2023-0037

Selecting the optimal supplier is a challenging managerial decision that involves several dimensions that vary over time. Despite the considerable attention devoted to this issue, knowledge is required to be updated and analyzed in this field. This paper reveals new opportunities to advance supplier selection (SS) research from a multidimensional perspective. Moreover, this study aims to formalise SS knowledge to enable the appropriate selection of sustainable, resilient and circular criteria.Design/methodology/approachThis study is developed in two stages: first, a systematic literature review is conducted to select relevant papers. Descriptive and thematic analyses are employed to analyze criteria, solving approaches and case studies. Second, a criterion knowledge-based framework is developed and validated by experts to be implemented as ontology using Protégé software.FindingsEvaluating the viability of suppliers need further studies to integrate other criteria and to align SS objectives with research advancement. Artificial intelligence tools are needed to revolutionize and optimize the traditional techniques used to solve this problem. Literature lucks frameworks for specific sectors. The proposed ontology provides a consistent criteria knowledge base.Practical implicationsFor academics, the results of this study highlight opportunities to improve the viable SS process. From a managerial perspective, the proposed ontology can assist managers in selecting the appropriate criteria. Future works can enrich the proposed ontology and integrate this knowledge base into an information system.Originality/valueThis study contributes to promoting knowledge about viable SS. Capitalizing the knowledge base of criteria in a computer-interpretable manner supports the digitalization of this critical decision.