IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/jbuset/v198y2025i3d10.1007_s10551-024-05808-7.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Innovation Responds to Climate Change Proposals

Author

Listed:
  • Greg Tindall

    (Palm Beach Atlantic University)

  • Rebel A. Cole

    (Florida Atlantic University)

  • David Javakhadze

    (Florida Atlantic University)

Abstract

Climate change is an ethical and moral challenge of a global scale due to its potentially catastrophic implications for human welfare. Understanding forces that drive corporate adaptation to climate change is an important research topic in business ethics. In this paper, we propose that shareholder climate-related proposals could be a catalyst for corporate innovations in technologies mitigating climate change. Our results, based on the analysis of US firms, indicate that corporations respond positively to these proposals by producing more climate-related patents and citations. We also uncover potential casual channels of influence. Further, we find that corporate governance moderates the documented effects. These proposals lead to a more efficient and valuable innovation output, but lower firm performance in the short term. The real effect that shareholder proposals have on innovation gains clarity in the context of climate change, contributing to the discussion of investor “voice.”

Suggested Citation

  • Greg Tindall & Rebel A. Cole & David Javakhadze, 2025. "Innovation Responds to Climate Change Proposals," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 198(3), pages 509-536, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:198:y:2025:i:3:d:10.1007_s10551-024-05808-7
    DOI: 10.1007/s10551-024-05808-7
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10551-024-05808-7
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10551-024-05808-7?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.

    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:kap:jbuset:v:198:y:2025:i:3:d:10.1007_s10551-024-05808-7. 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.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using 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: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    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.