Drivers Of Eco-innovation Research Articles

Eco-innovation in Waste Recycling Industry in Ghana: Modeling the Upper Echelon Behavioral Drivers of Grass Root Innovation Among SEED Award Winners

Although recent, eco-innovations are increasingly adopted by businesses of all sizes including SMEs in the recycling industry. However, as compared to well-known barriers and obstacles to eco-innovate that are unique to recycling industry, the drivers or determinants are rarely explored. The focus of this study is to investigate socio-psychological drivers of eco-innovation through the combine lens of the upper echelon theory (UET), and firms internal/external factors. The empirical study was based on data obtained from 200 waste recycling entrepreneurs’ founders and co-founders in Ghana who were winner of supporting entrepreneurs for environment and development (SEED) Award from 2010 to 2019. With the implementation of a regression analysis technique, the estimation effects of multiple variables on eco-innovation was made possible. The results confirm the positive effect of regulation and market opportunity on the environmental innovation of SMEs along with two other determinants that are essential for promoting eco-innovation in the startup including; (1) top executive’s self-efficacy, level of education, and experience that reflect the socio-psychological cognitive base toward pro-environmental behavior and (2) the firm’s sustainability identity. The study is first to focus on the subjective drivers perceived by SMEs top executive in waste recycling to eco-innovation and to reveal their specificities compared to other industries. Therefore, these findings can serve as a basis for identifying individual-level characteristics crucial in supporting eco-innovation performance in the waste recycling sector.

Internationalisation and digitalisation as drivers for eco-innovation in the European Union

This article analyses the influence of internationalisation and digitalisation on eco-innovation. Advanced panel data estimation techniques are employed using data from the 27 EU Member States between 2013 and 2022. The dynamic behaviour of internationalisation, more specifically Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), is tested, accounting for the endogeneity between innovation and international economic competition. Results reveal that the relationship between eco-innovation and FDI changes over time. At first, FDI has a negative impact on eco-innovation, but this effect becomes positive after two years. However, when analysing the data for eco-innovation at a disaggregated level, a potential delay in the influence of internationalisation on investments related to green research capabilities and resource efficiency outcomes is revealed. Results also consistently demonstrate a positive influence of digitalisation on eco-innovation, supporting the twin transition proposition of the digital shift complementing the transition towards low-carbon practices. Recommendations for policymakers and managers are provided at the end.

Eco-innovation drivers really improve firm performance Sustainable performance mediating role in Mexican automotive industry

Eco-innovation drivers really improve firm performance Sustainable performance mediating role in Mexican automotive industry

Intra-family succession motivating eco-innovation: A study of family firms in the German and Italian wine sector

Despite the increasing relevance of environmentally friendly practices in the wine industry, which are mainly shaped by family firms, research has yet to examine in detail the internal drivers of eco-innovation in such firms. Intra-family succession as a driver of eco-innovation is an intriguing topic of study, as prior studies indicate that it may create new opportunities. Accordingly, a field study of 28 family firms was conducted to examine the internal drivers of eco-innovation in depth, with a specific focus on family firms and intra-family succession. The results revealed that intra-family succession encourages family firms to engage in eco-innovation, to different extents, in three ways: (i) becoming a facilitator in the community; (ii) fostering environmental consciousness; and (iii) developing environmental passion. Overall, this study widens the examination of internal factors influencing eco-innovation, improves the understanding of eco-innovation among family firms, and provides evidence of how to support next-generation members to develop their future orientation and consciousness about the importance of protecting natural resources and their responsibility towards stakeholders and the community.

What are the drivers of eco-innovation? Empirical evidence from French start-ups

The purpose of this paper is to identify the drivers of eco-innovation in start-ups. Firstly, a discriminant analysis (DA) is applied to study what is distinctive about eco-innovative start-ups as compared to non-eco-innovative start-ups. Secondly, a typology of eco-innovative start-ups is developed using a hierarchical ascendant clustering (HAC). Analyses are carried out using original data from a survey of 120 eco-innovative and non-eco-innovative French start-ups.Discriminant analyses reveal that the founders of eco-innovative start-ups are differentiated by characteristics related to their environmental education and professional experience. Furthermore, eco-innovative start-ups are distinguished from the non-eco-innovative start-ups by voluntary environmental practices, such as the adoption of corporate social responsibility policies. Finally, we show that there is a diversity of profiles of eco-innovators. In fact, firms cluster into five main profiles and exhibit different eco-innovation drivers. We highlight that the different types of eco-innovators do not face the same difficulties in accessing funds. These findings have important implications for the implementation of public policy designed to promote eco-innovative activity, and they highlight the need to design policies that take into account the distinctive character of each profile.

Drivers of eco-innovation: the role of appropriability strategies and complementary assets

Abstract How do eco-innovators protect and profit from their innovations so they have the incentive to undertake an innovation in the first place? The double externality nature of environmental innovations intricates this appropriability problem, as competitors and society might also benefit from the value created by eco-innovation. Based on David Teece’s Profiting from innovation framework, we argue that firms combine appropriability strategies such as patents, industrial secrecy, and complex design with the development of complementary assets to incentivize and secure rent appropriation from eco-innovation. We estimate that formal appropriability mechanisms increase the probability of developing an eco-innovation by 6 per cent, while informal mechanisms increase it by about 15 per cent. Our panel data regression model demonstrates that marketing capability enhances the effect of appropriability mechanisms by differentiating eco-innovation from other technologies. However, this complementarity differs as a firm increases marketing investments, especially in small and Research and Development R&D publicly financed firms.

Drivers to increase eco-efficiencies in Uruguay, Peru, and Panama

Scarce evidence postulates the drivers of eco-innovation in Latin American Countries. This paper aims to contribute empirically to the literature on drivers of eco-efficiencies in this region. We use the last year available in the new LAIS dataset -Latin American Innovation Survey- and apply multivariate probit models. Results show that drivers in this region can be divided into three groups: common, frequent, and occasional. The first one includes market and regulatory factors which affect the three countries; frequent drivers are some technological push drivers whose influence is substantial although only in some countries; and the last one refers to those drivers that have a sporadic effect on eco-efficiencies, such as training and cooperation. Differences also are found distinguishing by type of innovation -product and process, radical and incremental- and by efficiencies -energy, material, and environmental-.

High-Pressure Homogenization for Enhanced Bioactive Recovery from Tomato Processing By-Products and Improved Lycopene Bioaccessibility during In Vitro Digestion.

The principles of industrial ecology have emerged as pivotal drivers of eco-innovation, aiming to realize a "zero-waste" society where waste materials are repurposed as valuable resources. In this context, High-Pressure Homogenization (HPH) presents a promising, easily scalable micronization technology, capable of enhancing the extractability and bioaccessibility of bioactive compounds found in tomato processing by-products, which are notably abundant waste streams in the Mediterranean region. This study focuses on optimizing HPH treatment parameters to intensify the recovery of bioactive compounds from tomato pomace. Additionally, it investigates the multifaceted impacts of HPH on various aspects, including color, particle size distribution, microscopic characteristics, surface properties, bioactivity, and lycopene bioaccessibility through in vitro digestion simulations. The results demonstrate that the application of HPH under optimized conditions (80 MPa, 25 °C, 10 passes) induces a remarkable 8-fold reduction in mean particle size, reduced surface tension, improved physical stability, uniform color, increased total phenolic content (+31%), antioxidant activity (+30%), dietary fiber content (+9%), and lycopene bioaccessibility during the intestinal digestion phase compared to untreated samples. These encouraging outcomes support the proposition of integrating HPH technology into an environmentally friendly industrial process for the full valorization of tomato processing residues. By utilizing water as the sole solvent, this approach aims to yield a functional ingredient characterized by greater nutritional and health-promoting values.

Economic complexity, property rights and the judicial system as drivers of eco-innovations: An analysis of OECD countries

Rising global temperatures and the increase in natural disasters in recent years have raised concerns regarding the sustainability of economic activity. In this context, eco-innovation has become increasingly important. Nevertheless, countries are heterogeneous in terms of their eco-innovation production. Our study contributes to the understanding of the drivers of eco-innovation by analyzing the determinants of green patent production at the country level. We focus on the specific characteristics of green innovations, namely their complexity and appropriability problem, and explain how these characteristics affect firms’ incentives to produce green innovations. We then select three external dimensions related to these characteristics and examine how they affect the number of green patents produced. These three dimensions are economic complexity, protection of property rights, and effectiveness of the judicial system. Using the Furman et al. (2001) model as a starting point, this study focuses on green patent production in OECD countries for the period 2007–2016. The results show that economic complexity and intellectual property rights are key determinants of green patent production.

Exploring drivers of eco-innovation in manufacturing firms’ circular economy transition: an awareness, motivation, capability perspective

Exploring drivers of eco-innovation in manufacturing firms’ circular economy transition: an awareness, motivation, capability perspective

Eco-Innovation Drivers and Their Impact on Tourism and the Hospitality Business in Egypt

This research aims to examine the mediating effects of eco-innovation practices in the relationship between the drivers of eco-innovation and the performance of tourism and hospitality enterprises. A quantitative approach was adopted in this research using questionnaire surveys as an instrument for collecting primary data. Based on the convenience sampling technique, a total of 550 questionnaire forms were distributed to five-star hotels and travel agencies in Cairo. Out of the distributed forms, only 400 forms were filled out and returned to the researchers and thus valid for analysis, representing a response rate of 72.7%. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) using partial least squares (PLS-SEM) was employed to test the research model. The results showed the significant effect of independent variables on dependent variables through mediating variables. Multiplied path coefficients were used to measure the confidence interval (CI) for measuring the mediating relationship. The results supported the effect of eco-innovation practices as a mediating factor in the relationship between the drivers of eco-innovation and the performance of tourism and hospitality enterprises. The findings also showed that the eco-innovation drivers, which include management awareness, organizational capabilities, and environmental strategy, have a significant effect on eco-innovation practices and tourism/hospitality enterprise performance when integrating the mediating variables of eco-innovation practices. There are a few studies that have also examined a conceptual framework to examine eco-innovation practices as mediating factors in the relationship between the drivers of eco-innovation and the performance of tourism and hospitality enterprises in terms of five-star hotels and travel agencies in Egypt. Consequently, this research contributes to the literature related to tourism and hospitality management through highlighting the mediating effect of eco-innovation practices on the relationship between the drivers of eco-innovation and the performance of tourism and hospitality enterprises.

Proposal for an Eco-Innovation Concept for Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs)

Eco-innovation is an important factor not only for the competitiveness of companies in the face of the greening of markets but also as one of the primary means on the road to sustainable development. However, there is a remarkable conceptual diversity in the subject given the theoretical perspective from which eco-innovation is analyzed. Therefore, this research aims to establish an integrating concept of eco-innovation, based on elements of acceptance in the scientific literature, for its application in SMEs. To this end, 40 articles from recognized scientific databases such as ScienceDirect, Scopus and Web of Science (WoS) were reviewed, resulting in a concept that covers the economic approach, definition, dimensions and drivers of eco-innovation. It was found that the implementation of eco-innovation is dependent on the degree of formalization in each element according to the institutional context in question.

Corporate Social Responsibility and the Willingness to Eco-Innovate among Chilean Firms

Adopting social responsibility can be a key strategy for firms to mitigate the impact of production on the environment, contributing to a more sustainable business model. Based on the triple bottom line perspective, we analyze the effect of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) on the willingness to allocate resources to eco-innovation among companies in a developing country. Firm-level data from the Fifth Longitudinal Survey of Chilean Firms are used to estimate a binary probit model for the willingness to eco-innovate and a Heckman sample-selection model for total expenditures and investment in eco-innovation. Results confirm that legal regulations and R&D efforts are drivers of eco-innovation among Chilean firms. Larger-sized and export-oriented firms also exhibit a higher willingness to eco-innovate. The main findings show a positive influence of CSR policy on the willingness to eco-innovate and on the resulting resource allocation decision. Interestingly, the evidence reveals that while financial and environmental CSR dimensions only affect the probability of adopting eco-innovation, the social CSR dimension also increases the amount firms spend on eco-innovation. This result suggests that social CSR may act as a complement to other CSR dimensions. These results are robust when controlling for firm-level specific effects under sample-selection models.

Dynamic Capabilities, Environmental Management Capabilities, Stakeholder Pressure and Eco-Innovation of Chinese Manufacturing Firms: A Moderated Mediation Model

Growing social and academic concerns toward environmental sustainability are constantly driving attention toward eco-innovation as an effective solution to environmental problems. Extant studies on drivers of eco-innovation have not fully investigated the interaction mechanisms between different factors. Drawing upon the resource-based view, stakeholder theory, and environmental literature, this paper aims to explore the mechanisms of how firm capabilities and perceived stakeholder pressure interact to facilitate eco-innovation. Based on survey data collected from 169 Chinese manufacturing firms, the results of regression analysis based on bootstrap resampling method show that environmental management system (EMS) completely mediates the relationship between dynamic capabilities (including absorptive capability and reconfiguring capability) and eco-innovation (including eco-process and eco-product innovation). Furthermore, the relationship between absorptive/reconfiguring capabilities and EMS, as well as the direct and indirect relationship between absorptive capability and eco-process innovation, is contingent upon stakeholder pressure. The direct and indirect effects become stronger when managers perceive higher stakeholder pressure. This paper contributes to answering why firms undertake environmental activities beyond compliance through specifying the interaction between firm capabilities and stakeholder pressure.

How to reconcile the climate change issue with economic growth? Spatial dual mediating effects of carbon emissions and foreign investment

Climate change has steadily gained attention as the global economy has grown more quickly, preventing continued high-quality economic growth. In this context, the eco-innovation concept has recently risen to the top of the list of academic research topics since it is a crucial tool that combines reduced environmental effects with a favourable socioeconomic impact. Nevertheless, the environmental situation is not improving despite the increasing eco-innovation level. From one perspective, instead of concentrating on how eco-innovation lessens carbon emissions, this research explores the indirect effect of carbon emissions on the GDP-eco-innovation nexus. From another perspective, since FDI might lessen harmful pollution, this research analyses the indirect effect of FDI on the economic growth-eco-innovation nexus. Therefore, this paper highlights the relationship between eco-innovation and economic growth (GDP), considering the dual mediating roles of carbon emissions and FDI. First, we examine the effects of GDP on eco-innovation activities in nine MENA countries from 2000 to 2019 using the geographic Durbin model based on spatial panel data. Second, this paper analysed the dual mediating effect of carbon emissions and FDI using the spatial stepwise regression model. The findings of this paper are as follows: (i) GDP positively impacts eco-innovation activities, and (ii) carbon emissions and FDI mediate the GDP-eco-innovation nexus. Therefore, GDP, FDI, and carbon emissions are significant drivers of eco-innovation. This research represents an essential step towards a better understanding of the need to support the transition to sustainability.

Environmental pressures and eco-innovation in manufacturing SMEs: the mediating effect of environmental capabilities

PurposeAlthough environmental pressures have been covered in great detail in prior literature as the drivers of eco-innovation, there remains inconsistency in the empirical results concerning the effects of these pressures on eco-innovation behaviour. Hence, this paper aims to investigate the impact of environmental pressures, namely, regulatory pressure, green demand and competitive pressure, on eco-innovation among manufacturing SMEs. Moreover, it examined the mediating role of environmental capabilities on the environmental pressure–eco-innovation relationship.Design/methodology/approachQuantitative data were collected using an online self-reported questionnaire survey to test the hypothesised model. A total of 183 valid questionnaires were collected from managers and owners of manufacturing SMEs in Egypt.FindingsThe results of the data analysis using the Smart-PLS software package revealed that among environmental pressures, only green demand had a direct effect on eco-innovation. In addition, environmental capabilities only mediated the effect of competitive pressure on eco-innovation.Originality/valueThis study has been one of the few addressing the issue of how the drivers of eco-innovation interact. It has also provided the managers and owners of SMEs and policymakers with practical implications.

Complementarity and substitutability between antecedent conditions of eco-innovation: the case of German companies

ABSTRACT Despite extant literature on the drivers of eco-innovation, understanding the complementarity and substitutability between them is an open question. This study takes a configurational approach and examines whether antecedent conditions of eco-innovation complement each other or are interchangeable. Using data from 2049 German companies, multiple regression analysis and fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis are employed to identify relations between eco-innovation and its antecedents, as well as configurations that consistently lead to eco-innovation. The results show that several combinations of conditions can lead to eco-innovation, allowing the identification of complementarities among the antecedent conditions and also some conditions that can be considered substitutes. However, some form of market pull is likely to be present when companies engage in eco-innovation, namely, the willingness to improve the reputation of the company or to reduce the cost of energy, water or materials. The present study’s insights provide guidance for future policy design. The results show that mandatory regulations are possibly more effective in large companies and suggest that regulations could provide a better policy instrument than taxes for promoting eco-innovation. Policy-makers should be aware of specific configurations that are associated to eco-innovation and government policies may emphasise the strategic importance of building companies’ engagement in eco-innovation for their reputation.

Evaluation of Eco-Innovation and Green Economy in EU Countries

A businesses with a green label is associated with resources that are sustainable. This business is linked to the green economy, which can be described as a form of economy that is responsible in relation to the environment and economic growth, and thus complementary. In this type of economy, viable products are created, but also solutions and practices that take the environment into account. It is well known that eco-innovation activities are closely linked to the development of an eco-business. The research sample consisted of 10 countries, namely the Slovak Republic, the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Austria, Germany, France, Italy, Sweden, and Finland, which were selected by purposive sampling. In this article, we look at eco innovations in selected countries, specifically ranking them, where we have divided countries into different levels, from countries that are at the super eco-innovation level, to countries that are in the middle zone, to countries that are significantly lagging in this trend. To classify countries into each level, we looked at the following variables: eco-innovation inputs, eco-innovation activities, environmental outcomes, socio-economic outcomes, and the eco-innovation index itself. Taking these sub-results into account, we determined where countries are, in other words, which level they have reached. We found that there are significant differences between countries. As we conclude, there are several reasons for this, but one of them is the lack of communication, coordination, and synergy between institutions, government, and SMEs, which are the drivers of eco-innovation. The supporting quantitative data collection method was data collection and structured observation, which is more precise and therefore provides more detailed information about the reality under study. For the purpose of this thesis, data were obtained from the Statistical Office of the European Union, that is, Eurostat, which is responsible for publishing pan-European statistics and indicators that allowed us to compare countries. In the survey, we compared the five most recent years for which Eurostat data were available, namely 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021. The overall score of a European Union member state is calculated as the unweighted average of 16 sub-indicators. It shows how well each Member State performs in terms of eco-innovation compared to the European Union average of 100.

Drivers of eco-innovation in North Africa: empirical evidence from the Tunisian manufacturing sector

Drivers of eco-innovation in North Africa: empirical evidence from the Tunisian manufacturing sector

Drivers for eco-innovation in the agro-industrial sector: the case of olive oil

Drivers for eco-innovation in the agro-industrial sector: the case of olive oil