IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/eurman/v34y2016i4p414-423.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Reverse logistics and informal valorisation at the Base of the Pyramid: A case study on sustainability synergies and trade-offs

Author

Listed:
  • Brix-Asala, Carolin
  • Hahn, Rüdiger
  • Seuring, Stefan

Abstract

Despite a growing body of research on business with and for the Base of the Pyramid (BoP), ecological aspects of such businesses have not been considered adequately in the literature. We take a holistic view on the social and environmental consequences of a specific case of a BoP business. Water sold in plastic sachets in Africa is a typical BoP product with potentially negative ecological impact caused by littering. Reverse logistics activities could mitigate these consequences. At the same time, such activities provide opportunities for poor people to make a living from collecting waste. This in-depth single case study sheds light on the opportunities and disadvantages of informal valorisation in reverse logistics activities from both social and environmental perspectives. The case offers insights into the potential and actual trade-offs in BoP activities in different pillars of sustainability, which are otherwise rarely discussed in academic literature.

Suggested Citation

  • Brix-Asala, Carolin & Hahn, Rüdiger & Seuring, Stefan, 2016. "Reverse logistics and informal valorisation at the Base of the Pyramid: A case study on sustainability synergies and trade-offs," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 34(4), pages 414-423.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:eurman:v:34:y:2016:i:4:p:414-423
    DOI: 10.1016/j.emj.2016.01.004
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0263237316000062
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.emj.2016.01.004?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Canice Prendergast, 1999. "The Provision of Incentives in Firms," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 37(1), pages 7-63, March.
    2. Gold, Stefan & Hahn, Rüdiger & Seuring, Stefan, 2013. "Sustainable supply chain management in “Base of the Pyramid” food projects—A path to triple bottom line approaches for multinationals?," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(5), pages 784-799.
    3. Pagell, Mark & Wu, Zhaohui & Murthy, Nagesh N., 2007. "The supply chain implications of recycling," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 50(2), pages 133-143.
    4. Yujiro Hayami & A. K. Dikshit & S. N. Mishra, 2006. "Waste pickers and collectors in Delhi: Poverty and environment in an urban informal sector," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 42(1), pages 41-69.
    5. Erik Simanis & Stuart Hart & Duncan Duke, 2008. "The Base of the Pyramid Protocol: Beyond "Basic Needs" Business Strategies," Innovations: Technology, Governance, Globalization, MIT Press, vol. 3(1), pages 57-84, January.
    6. V. Daniel R. Guide & Terry P. Harrison & Luk N. Van Wassenhove, 2003. "The Challenge of Closed-Loop Supply Chains," Interfaces, INFORMS, vol. 33(6), pages 3-6, December.
    7. Sodhi, ManMohan S. & Tang, Christopher S., 2011. "Social enterprises as supply-chain enablers for the poor," Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 45(4), pages 146-153, December.
    8. Reiner, Gerald & Gold, Stefan & Hahn, Rüdiger, 2015. "Wealth and health at the Base of the Pyramid: Modelling trade-offs and complementarities for fast moving dairy product case," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 170(PB), pages 413-421.
    9. Sicular, Daniel T., 1991. "Pockets of peasants in Indonesian cities: The case of scavengers," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 19(2-3), pages 137-161.
    10. Andrew M. King & Stuart C. Burgess & Winnie Ijomah & Chris A. McMahon, 2006. "Reducing waste: repair, recondition, remanufacture or recycle?," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 14(4), pages 257-267.
    11. Rüdiger Hahn, 2009. "The Ethical Rational of Business for the Poor – Integrating the Concepts Bottom of the Pyramid, Sustainable Development, and Corporate Citizenship," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 84(3), pages 313-324, February.
    12. Birkbeck, Chris, 1978. "Self-employed Proletarians in an informal factory: The case of Cali's garbage dump," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 6(9-10), pages 1173-1185.
    13. Tobias Hahn & Jonatan Pinkse & Lutz Preuss & Frank Figge, 2015. "Tensions in Corporate Sustainability: Towards an Integrative Framework," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 127(2), pages 297-316, March.
    14. Tobias Hahn & Frank Figge & Jonatan Pinkse & Lutz Preuss, 2010. "Trade‐offs in corporate sustainability: you can't have your cake and eat it," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 19(4), pages 217-229, May.
    15. Harriss-White, Barbara, 2010. "Work and Wellbeing in Informal Economies: The Regulative Roles of Institutions of Identity and the State," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 38(2), pages 170-183, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Svitlana Khalatur & Svitlana Khaminich & Oksana Budko & Olesia Dubovych & Oleksandr Karamushka, 2020. "Multiple system of innovation-investment decisions adoption with synergetic approach usage," Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Issues, VsI Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Center, vol. 7(4), pages 2745-2763, June.
    2. Andreas Falke & Nadine Schröder & Claudia Hofmann, 2022. "The influence of values in sustainable consumption among millennials," Journal of Business Economics, Springer, vol. 92(6), pages 899-928, August.
    3. Mark Alan Heuer & Usman Khalid & Stefan Seuring, 2020. "Bottoms up: Delivering sustainable value in the base of the pyramid," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(3), pages 1605-1616, March.
    4. Kumar, V.N.S.A. & Kumar, V. & Brady, M. & Garza-Reyes, Jose Arturo & Simpson, M., 2017. "Resolving forward-reverse logistics multi-period model using evolutionary algorithms," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 183(PB), pages 458-469.
    5. Matthias Klumpp, 2017. "Do Forwarders Improve Sustainability Efficiency? Evidence from a European DEA Malmquist Index Calculation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(5), pages 1-33, May.
    6. Aman, Sadaf & Seuring, Stefan, 2022. "Interestingly it's innovation: Reviewing sustainability performance management in the base of the pyramid (BoP)," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 112(C).
    7. Tim Gruchmann & Annika Mies & Thomas Neukirchen & Stefan Gold, 2021. "Tensions in sustainable warehousing: including the blue-collar perspective on automation and ergonomic workplace design," Journal of Business Economics, Springer, vol. 91(2), pages 151-178, March.
    8. Matthias Klumpp, 2018. "How to Achieve Supply Chain Sustainability Efficiently? Taming the Triple Bottom Line Split Business Cycle," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(2), pages 1-23, February.
    9. Schöll, Michaela, 2017. "Three Essays on Sustainable Supply Chain Management – Towards Sustainable Supplier Selection and Sustainable Sourcing," EconStor Theses, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, number 172463, July.
    10. Raja Usman Khalid & Stefan Seuring, 2019. "Analyzing Base-of-the-Pyramid Research from a (Sustainable) Supply Chain Perspective," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 155(3), pages 663-686, March.
    11. Rosca, Eugenia & Bendul, Julia C., 2019. "Value chain integration of base of the pyramid consumers: An empirical study of drivers and performance outcomes," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 28(1), pages 162-176.
    12. Zviemurwi J. Chihambakwe & Sara S. (Saartjie) Grobbelaar & Stephen Matope, 2021. "Creating Shared Value in BoP Communities with Micro-Manufacturing Factories: A Systematized Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(18), pages 1-22, September.
    13. Vitor William Batista Martins & Denilson Ricardo de Lucena Nunes & André Cristiano Silva Melo & Rayra Brandão & Antônio Erlindo Braga Júnior & Verônica de Menezes Nascimento Nagata, 2022. "Analysis of the Activities That Make Up the Reverse Logistics Processes and Their Importance for the Future of Logistics Networks: An Exploratory Study Using the TOPSIS Technique," Logistics, MDPI, vol. 6(3), pages 1-17, August.
    14. Varsha Khandker, 2023. "Two decades of the bottom of the pyramid research: identifying the influencers, structure, and the evolution of the concept," Management Review Quarterly, Springer, vol. 73(3), pages 1151-1178, September.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Anton Shevchenko & Xiaodan Pan & Goran Calic, 2020. "Exploring the effect of environmental orientation on financial decisions of businesses at the bottom of the pyramid: Evidence from the microlending context," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(5), pages 1876-1886, July.
    2. Reiner, Gerald & Gold, Stefan & Hahn, Rüdiger, 2015. "Wealth and health at the Base of the Pyramid: Modelling trade-offs and complementarities for fast moving dairy product case," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 170(PB), pages 413-421.
    3. Rosca, Eugenia & Bendul, Julia C., 2019. "Value chain integration of base of the pyramid consumers: An empirical study of drivers and performance outcomes," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 28(1), pages 162-176.
    4. Gold, Stefan & Hahn, Rüdiger & Seuring, Stefan, 2013. "Sustainable supply chain management in “Base of the Pyramid” food projects—A path to triple bottom line approaches for multinationals?," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(5), pages 784-799.
    5. Raja Usman Khalid & Stefan Seuring, 2019. "Analyzing Base-of-the-Pyramid Research from a (Sustainable) Supply Chain Perspective," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 155(3), pages 663-686, March.
    6. Hahn, Rüdiger & Gold, Stefan, 2014. "Resources and governance in “base of the pyramid”-partnerships: Assessing collaborations between businesses and non-business actors," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 67(7), pages 1321-1333.
    7. Simone Carmine & Valentina De Marchi, 2023. "Reviewing Paradox Theory in Corporate Sustainability Toward a Systems Perspective," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 184(1), pages 139-158, April.
    8. Catherine Le Roux & Marius Pretorius, 2016. "Conceptualizing the Limiting Issues Inhibiting Sustainability Embeddedness," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(4), pages 1-22, April.
    9. Kirsti Iivonen, 2018. "Defensive Responses to Strategic Sustainability Paradoxes: Have Your Coke and Drink It Too!," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 148(2), pages 309-327, March.
    10. Sasaki, Shunsuke & Araki, Tetsuya & Tambunan, Armansyah Halomoan & Prasadja, Heru, 2014. "Household income, living and working conditions of dumpsite waste pickers in Bantar Gebang: Toward integrated waste management in Indonesia," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 89(C), pages 11-21.
    11. Joern Hoppmann & Alice Sakhel & Marcel Richert, 2018. "With a little help from a stranger: The impact of external change agents on corporate sustainability investments," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(7), pages 1052-1066, November.
    12. Ozgur Isil & Michael T. Hernke, 2017. "The Triple Bottom Line: A Critical Review from a Transdisciplinary Perspective," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(8), pages 1235-1251, December.
    13. Karthik Balasubramanian & David F. Drake, 2015. "Service Quality, Inventory and Competition: An Empirical Analysis of Mobile Money Agents in Africa," Harvard Business School Working Papers 15-059, Harvard Business School, revised Oct 2015.
    14. Annina Lattu & Yuzhuo Cai, 2020. "Tensions in the Sustainability of Higher Education—The Case of Finnish Universities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(5), pages 1-15, March.
    15. Juan Abello-Romero & Claudio Mancilla & Walter Sáez & Francisco Ganga-Contreras & Ivette Durán-Seguel, 2023. "Sustainable Development and Corporate Sustainability of Chilean State Universities: Evidence from Their Strategic Elements," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(14), pages 1-16, July.
    16. Morgan X. Yang & Ji Li & Irina Y. Yu & Kevin J. Zeng & Jian‐Min (James) Sun, 2019. "Environmentally sustainable or economically sustainable? The effect of Chinese manufacturing firms' corporate sustainable strategy on their green performances," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(6), pages 989-997, September.
    17. Mael Sommer, 2016. "Systèmes de management collectifs et durabilité des petites entreprises : une approche fondée sur les paradoxes," Post-Print hal-02739868, HAL.
    18. Lin Wu & Nachiappan Subramanian & Angappa Gunasekaran & Muhammad Dan‐Asabe Abdulrahman & Kulwant Singh Pawar & Des Doran, 2018. "A two‐dimensional, two‐level framework for achieving corporate sustainable development: Assessing the return on sustainability initiatives," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(8), pages 1117-1130, December.
    19. Zviemurwi J. Chihambakwe & Sara S. (Saartjie) Grobbelaar & Stephen Matope, 2021. "Creating Shared Value in BoP Communities with Micro-Manufacturing Factories: A Systematized Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(18), pages 1-22, September.
    20. Jaakko Siltaloppi & Risto Rajala & Henri Hietala, 2021. "Integrating CSR with Business Strategy: A Tension Management Perspective," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 174(3), pages 507-527, December.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:eurman:v:34:y:2016:i:4:p:414-423. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/115/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.