Leveraging the Entrepreneurial Method as a Tool for the Circular Economy: The Case of Wood Waste

Saskia de Klerk, Mohammad Reza Ghaffariyan and Morgan Miles
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Saskia de Klerk: School of Business and Creative Industries, University of the Sunshine Coast, Maroochydore, QLD 4558, Australia
Mohammad Reza Ghaffariyan: Forest Industries Research Centre, University of the Sunshine Coast, Maroochydore, QLD 4558, Australia
Morgan Miles: School of Agriculture and Food Science, University of Queensland, Gatton, QLD 4343, Australia

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 3, 1-10

Abstract: New global and domestic policy and regulatory initiatives promoting a circular economy have renewed interest in the beneficial repurposing of commercial waste streams. Likewise, consumer trends and customers’ increased understanding of what they purchase, where it comes from, and what happens to it post-consumption have forced firms to consider reducing and reusing their production waste streams. The forest products industry is an exemplar of becoming more adept at reorganising and exploiting repurposed waste streams for beneficial reuse. This paper explores three case studies from the Australian forestry sector that illustrate how wood waste is being profitably repurposed as an input into other products. We use the lens of the entrepreneurial method to explore how firms recognise, strategically access, and exploit the sustainable opportunities that can range from sustainably sourced inputs to environmental-, social-, and governance-driven consumption and investments. Effectual logic allows the reconceptualisation of forestry waste streams into inputs for use in creating new commercial products and provides a theoretical framework. While the repurposing of wood waste is profitable for the forestry firm, we found that social and economic gains reach far beyond the region in which these activities occur. Innovations often stimulate other innovations, resulting in a virtuous cycle within regional Australia’s emerging circular economy.

Keywords: innovation; forest sustainability; entrepreneurial method; sustainability; circular economy; effectuation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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