Emerging concerns in sustainability reporting: Disclosure of tertiary effects in the home appliance industry
Home appliances like refrigerators, washers, and dryers have grown rapidly worldwide, contributing to significant ecological impacts across their life cycle. Part of the corporate response to ecological concerns has been to better document and report impacts via Sustainability Reporting (SR), which...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2024-12-01
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| Series: | Cleaner and Responsible Consumption |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666784324000688 |
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| author | Utkuhan Genc Kendrick Hardaway Nancy E. Landrum John Mulrow |
| author_facet | Utkuhan Genc Kendrick Hardaway Nancy E. Landrum John Mulrow |
| author_sort | Utkuhan Genc |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Home appliances like refrigerators, washers, and dryers have grown rapidly worldwide, contributing to significant ecological impacts across their life cycle. Part of the corporate response to ecological concerns has been to better document and report impacts via Sustainability Reporting (SR), which follows various global standards but often lacks specificity, particularly in capturing beyond direct (tertiary) effects. Our review asks how well and to what extent sustainability reporting covers these emerging “tertiary effects”, in home appliance industry. We assess all 26 available SRs from 254 major home appliance brands (representing 50 conglomerate companies), to assess how well they cover tertiary effects including: measurement of Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions, attention to the nine planetary boundaries, and estimation and discussion of potential rebound effects. Only 23% of reports mention rebound effects, often framed as beneficial due to increased product demand, without addressing the negative implications of expanded resource use. Just one report covers all nine planetary boundaries, and relevant Scope 3 emissions, such as emissions from product use, are mentioned in less than half of the reports. The findings point to many opportunities for companies to disclose tertiary impacts. We draw on existing SR literature and examples from the reviewed SR reports to suggest ways for corporate self-reporting to better reflect ecological realities further afield from direct production operations. To improve SR, companies should acknowledge potential rebound effects from efficiency gains and follow guidelines to address a wider range of planetary boundary impacts and Scope 3 emissions beyond climate and freshwater concerns. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-e604379fa8394f6f8239d567ca01fea3 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2666-7843 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Cleaner and Responsible Consumption |
| spelling | doaj-art-e604379fa8394f6f8239d567ca01fea32024-12-19T11:01:03ZengElsevierCleaner and Responsible Consumption2666-78432024-12-0115100235Emerging concerns in sustainability reporting: Disclosure of tertiary effects in the home appliance industryUtkuhan Genc0Kendrick Hardaway1Nancy E. Landrum2John Mulrow3School of Industrial Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, United States; Corresponding author. 315 N. Grant St, West Lafayette, IN, 47907, United States.School of Industrial Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, United States; Environmental & Ecological Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, United StatesMunich Business School, Munich, Germany; Les Roches Global School of Hospitality Education, Crans Montana, SwitzerlandEnvironmental & Ecological Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, United States; Degrowth Institute, Chicago, United StatesHome appliances like refrigerators, washers, and dryers have grown rapidly worldwide, contributing to significant ecological impacts across their life cycle. Part of the corporate response to ecological concerns has been to better document and report impacts via Sustainability Reporting (SR), which follows various global standards but often lacks specificity, particularly in capturing beyond direct (tertiary) effects. Our review asks how well and to what extent sustainability reporting covers these emerging “tertiary effects”, in home appliance industry. We assess all 26 available SRs from 254 major home appliance brands (representing 50 conglomerate companies), to assess how well they cover tertiary effects including: measurement of Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions, attention to the nine planetary boundaries, and estimation and discussion of potential rebound effects. Only 23% of reports mention rebound effects, often framed as beneficial due to increased product demand, without addressing the negative implications of expanded resource use. Just one report covers all nine planetary boundaries, and relevant Scope 3 emissions, such as emissions from product use, are mentioned in less than half of the reports. The findings point to many opportunities for companies to disclose tertiary impacts. We draw on existing SR literature and examples from the reviewed SR reports to suggest ways for corporate self-reporting to better reflect ecological realities further afield from direct production operations. To improve SR, companies should acknowledge potential rebound effects from efficiency gains and follow guidelines to address a wider range of planetary boundary impacts and Scope 3 emissions beyond climate and freshwater concerns.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666784324000688Home appliancesEfficiencySustainability reportsPlanetary boundariesRebound effects |
| spellingShingle | Utkuhan Genc Kendrick Hardaway Nancy E. Landrum John Mulrow Emerging concerns in sustainability reporting: Disclosure of tertiary effects in the home appliance industry Cleaner and Responsible Consumption Home appliances Efficiency Sustainability reports Planetary boundaries Rebound effects |
| title | Emerging concerns in sustainability reporting: Disclosure of tertiary effects in the home appliance industry |
| title_full | Emerging concerns in sustainability reporting: Disclosure of tertiary effects in the home appliance industry |
| title_fullStr | Emerging concerns in sustainability reporting: Disclosure of tertiary effects in the home appliance industry |
| title_full_unstemmed | Emerging concerns in sustainability reporting: Disclosure of tertiary effects in the home appliance industry |
| title_short | Emerging concerns in sustainability reporting: Disclosure of tertiary effects in the home appliance industry |
| title_sort | emerging concerns in sustainability reporting disclosure of tertiary effects in the home appliance industry |
| topic | Home appliances Efficiency Sustainability reports Planetary boundaries Rebound effects |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666784324000688 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT utkuhangenc emergingconcernsinsustainabilityreportingdisclosureoftertiaryeffectsinthehomeapplianceindustry AT kendrickhardaway emergingconcernsinsustainabilityreportingdisclosureoftertiaryeffectsinthehomeapplianceindustry AT nancyelandrum emergingconcernsinsustainabilityreportingdisclosureoftertiaryeffectsinthehomeapplianceindustry AT johnmulrow emergingconcernsinsustainabilityreportingdisclosureoftertiaryeffectsinthehomeapplianceindustry |