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A tragedy of intangible commons: Riding the socioecological wave

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  • Meisinger, Norman

Abstract

The socioecological discourse has recently gained strong attention. Suddenly, most firms now try to engage quickly with precarious issues because consumers demand an attitude toward our grand challenges, not merely products anymore. Starting from neo‐institutionalist critiques, which dominate the corporate green and socialwashing discourse, this essay argues from a largely neglected perspective by drawing attention to the impacts on the longstanding pioneers of socioecologically valuable business practices. Almost no research to date has illuminated the phenomenon whereby pioneering firms lose their unique selling propositions because others are ‘riding the wave’ and reaping where they have not sown. By applying a resource-based argumentation, the idea of a tragedy of intangible commons is unfolded to explain what made this phenomenon possible and why it could even occur.

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  • Meisinger, Norman, 2022. "A tragedy of intangible commons: Riding the socioecological wave," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 193(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolec:v:193:y:2022:i:c:s0921800921003578
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2021.107298
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    1. Rub?n Dar?o Sep?lveda Vargas & Mar?a Alejandra Taborda Caro & Deivi David Fuentes Doria & Carlos Eduardo Maldonado Casta?eda & Iv?n Dar?o Sep?lveda Calderin, 2023. "Socioecological practices and community resilience strategies for sustainable agriculture in lower Sinú, Colombia," Economia agro-alimentare, FrancoAngeli Editore, vol. 25(1), pages 65-91.
    2. Mathieu Gomes & Sylvain Marsat & Jonathan Peillex & Guillaume Pijourlet, 2023. "Does religiosity influence corporate greenwashing behavior?," Papers 2312.14515, arXiv.org.
    3. Vargas, Rubén Darío Sepúlveda & Caro, María Alejandra Taborda & Doria, Deivi David Fuentes & Castañeda, Carlos Eduardo Maldonado & Calderin, Ivan Darío Sepúlveda, 2023. "Socioecological practices and community resilience strategies for sustainable agriculture in lower Sinú, Colombia," Economia agro-alimentare / Food Economy, Italian Society of Agri-food Economics/Società Italiana di Economia Agro-Alimentare (SIEA), vol. 25(1), May.

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