Forest Products Certification: The Business Customer Perspective

While only a handful of wood products suppliers and business customers are currently involved in manufacturing or purchasing certified wood products, the potential exists for increased industry participation. Previous empirical work on environmental certification has examined the perceptions and a titudes of consumers, with few studies examining the perceptions of corporate customers. This research examines perceptions and activities associated with environmentally certified wood products for architects, building contractors, and home center retailers. Study results indicate that industrial forest product customers are not supportive of wood products certification efforts. Even when management environmental concern exists, there is a breakdown in elevating this concern to a corporate commitment or philosophy. Additionally, the federal government was consistently found to be the organization least trusted to certify forest management practices, while independent third-party certifiers were most trusted. A willingness to pay for certification was mixed, and few respondents felt that their customers would pay a premium for certified products

Managing the Tensions at the Intersection of the Triple Bottom Line: A Paradox Theory Approach to Sustainability Management

Corporate sustainability management encompasses multiple dimensions: environmental, social, and economic. Companies are increasingly evaluated within the public sphere, and within their own organizations, according to the degree to which they are perceived to simultaneously promote this nexus of virtues. This article seeks to explore the tensions frequently faced by organizations that strive to manage these dimensions and the role of public policy in that pursuit. A multiple–case study approach is utilized in which the authors selected case organizations according to whether they were attempting to manage the three dimensions of sustainability. The authors utilize paradox theory and a typology provided by previous research to understand the nature of the tensions that emerge in the selected case study organizations. They extend this previous work by examining the role of public policy in providing the situational conditions to make these paradoxical tensions salient, and they examine organizational responses to these conditions. Directions for firms, policy makers, and future researchers are provided on the basis of this study’s findings

Managing the Tensions at the Intersection of the Triple Bottom Line: A Paradox Theory Approach to Sustainability Management

Corporate sustainability management encompasses multiple dimensions: environmental, social, and economic. Companies are increasingly evaluated within the public sphere, and within their own organizations, according to the degree to which they are perceived to simultaneously promote this nexus of virtues. This article seeks to explore the tensions frequently faced by organizations that strive to manage these dimensions and the role of public policy in that pursuit. A multiple–case study approach is utilized in which the authors selected case organizations according to whether they were attempting to manage the three dimensions of sustainability. The authors utilize paradox theory and a typology provided by previous research to understand the nature of the tensions that emerge in the selected case study organizations. They extend this previous work by examining the role of public policy in providing the situational conditions to make these paradoxical tensions salient, and they examine organizational responses to these conditions. Directions for firms, policy makers, and future researchers are provided on the basis of this study’s findings

Consumer Segments for Environmentally Marketed Wooden Household Furniture

The environment is increasingly becoming an important issue for marketers in all areas of business. The wood products industry is especially vulnerable to this trend given its reliance on the natural environment as a source of raw materials. However, little attention has actually been paid to how noneconomic buying criteria, like the environment, are evaluated by consumers and for what segments of consumers the environment is an important purchase consideration. In light of these factors, a study was conducted in the fall of 1994 to determine whether a market segment for environmentally marketed wooden household furniture exists and to profile this market segment based on demographic, socioeconomic, and psychographic variables. Two identifiable consumer segments for environmentally marketed wooden household furniture were found representing approximately 39% of the study's 1,410 respondents. Consumers in the first segment are concerned about the environmental impacts of the products they purchase, but they are also very price-conscious. They can be described as Democrats, moderately educated, with a moderate income level, and concerned about the quality of the environment. Consumers in the second segment are also concerned about environmental product attributes, but they are the least price-sensitive segment. They can be described as Democrats, members of an environmental organization, and environmentally concerned. They participate in many environmental activities, are highly educated, and have a high income level. Results of this study may be useful to academic researchers, policymakers, and the wood products industry to allow them to segment their consumers and promote and position their products in these segments

A phenomenological exploration into environmental orientation of firms in India

This paper examines the environmental issues that organisations in India consider significant, the ways they deal with these issues and the factors that propel them to address environmental concerns. Depth interviews with senior managers responsible for environmental concerns in five Indian organisations were subjected to phenomenological analysis. Results indicated that pressure from international customers and organisational culture were the main factors that lead to firms adopting an environmental orientation. Regulations, though poorly enforced, were reported to play an initial and a minimal role

A view from the bottom of the pyramid: drivers of corporate environmentalism in developing countries

Drawing on perspectives from stakeholder, resource dependence, institutional and resource based theories and using a multiple-case inductive study, this research examines the drivers of corporate environmentalism in developing countries. Based on case analysis of 11 environmentally responsive organizations in India, corporate environmentalism in this research has been operationalized as a two stage construct, involving first and second order responsiveness. First order environmental responsiveness in organizations in India was found to be driven by pressures arising out of internationalization. The drivers for second order responsiveness were found to be distinctly associated with organizational identities rooted in a history of social responsiveness

The effect of forest context on consumer preferences for environmentally certified forest products in New Zealand and Australia

The purpose of this study was to compare the effect of forest context on the relative importance of forest certification for New Zealand and Australian consumers. Surveys of New Zealand and Australian consumers were conducted to determine the relative importance of forest certification as compared to other wood product attributes in wood outdoor furniture. Using conjoint analysis, data for product attributes including price, forest certification, warranty, type of forest, and country of origin attributes from each group of consumers was analyzed. The results show that for Australian consumers, forest certification was ranked as being the second most important product attribute and for New Zealand consumers it was the third most important attribute. Forest type, with plantation sources being preferred to native forest sources, was the most important furniture attribute for Australian consumers. Region of origin was the most important attribute for New Zealand consumers and preference was given to New Zealand sources over imported sources. Warranty was ranked fourth in importance and price last by both groups. Cluster analysis shows that there are groups of consumers in each country that have similar preferences. The results also show that forest context is important; consumers in New Zealand are more likely to associate a local timber source with plantations since there is little harvesting of native forests. Australian consumers, on the other hand, expect the option of either a plantation or native forest source from domestic timber and therefore focus on forest type and forest certification

Understanding Food Waste Produced by University Students: A Social Practice Approach

We use social practice theory to explore food waste produced by university students living in shared apartments. We use qualitative techniques including observation, fridge ethnography, garbology and interviews. The most important factors that led to food waste among university students were a lack of organisation related to the practices of meal planning and shopping, where students did not make lists, plan meals or conduct a food inventory before shopping. Observation of meal preparation revealed that students were unlikely to correctly sort food waste from other sorts of waste, as they did not always have appropriate bins to enable food waste separation. Thus, food waste was not properly disposed of (e.g., composted). Fridge ethnography revealed that both fresh food and leftovers were left or lost in the fridge until no longer edible. Finally, garbology analysis confirmed that a considerable amount of avoidable foods, such as fresh foods and leftovers, were wasted by students and not properly disposed of in curbside composting bins