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Sustainability starts with consumers: Transforming last mile logistics.

Accounting concepten in de circulaire economie

We zitten momenteel in een transitie-periode waarin we van een lineaire economie op basis van bestaande business modellen gericht op economische waarde maximalisatie toegaan naar een circulaire economie, waar business modellen streven naar waarde behoud. De volgende stap is de overgang naar een regeneratieve of restauratieve economie, waarin niet alleen economische waarde, maar ook ecologische en sociale waarde wordt gecreëerd (meervoudige waardecreatie). Vanuit accounting perspectief is een parallelle ontwikkeling zichtbaar. Ons huidige accounting systeem is met name gericht op economische waarde. Als gevolg van de transitie van een lineaire economie naar een circulaire economie, zijn er accounting modellen en frameworks in ontwikkeling gericht op meervoudige waardecreatie. De auteurs zijn echter van mening dat in de literatuur een cruciale gap bestaat tussen de ontwikkeling van accounting en meervoudige waardecreatie, en dat huidige modellen en frameworks gericht op meervoudige waarde vooral leiden tot ‘greenwashing’. In deze bijdrage gaan wij na in hoeverre de vigerende concepten van accounting bruikbaar zijn om te sturen op meervoudige waarde. Onder sturen wordt in dit kader bedoeld het bepalen, meten en waarderen. Dit doen wij aan de hand van een conceptuele analyse waarbij we de toepassing van de vigerende accounting concepten ten aanzien van profit vergelijken met mogelijke toepassing van deze concepten in relatie tot people en planet. Wij concluderen dat deze concepten over het algemeen niet toepasbaar zijn voor people en planet. Wij stellen daarom een alternatieve benadering voor, waarbij wij menen dat vigerende accounting concepten grotendeels toepasbaar zijn op people en planet. Dit is gebaseerd op een aanpak waarin het huidige ontologische uitgangspunt van accounting wordt verlaten en waarin we een aangepast ontologisch uitgangspunt verder uitwerken aan de hand van de Triple Depreciation Line (TDL) van Rambaud & Richard (2015). Tenslotte hebben we kritiekpunten geformuleerd op de TDL systematiek en stellen we een alternatieve TDL systematiek voor. Hiermee beoogt dit paper een bijdrage te leveren aan het inzichtelijk maken van de praktische en conceptuele problemen bij de toepassing van vigerende accounting concepten in een circulaire economie, om vervolgens mogelijke oplossingsrichtingen aan te reiken, gericht op bescherming, herstel en regeneratie van natuurlijk en sociaal kapitaal.

The impact of multiple value creation on management control systems

We are currently in a transition moving from a linear economy grounded on economic value maximization based on material transformation to a circular economy. Core of this transition is organising value preservation from various yet interlinked perspectives. The underlying fundamental shift is to move away from mere financial value maximization towards multiple value creation (WCED, 1987; Jonker, 2014; Raworth, 2017). This implies moving from mere economic value creation, to simultaneously and in a balanced way creating ecological and social value. A parallel development supporting this transition can be observed in accounting & control. Elkington (1994) introduced the triple bottom line (TBL) concept, referring to the economic, ecological and social impact of companies. The TBL should be seen more as a conceptual way of thinking, rather than a practical innovative accounting tool to monitor and control sustainable value (Rambaud & Richard, 2015). However, it has inspired accounting & control practitioners to develop accounting tools that not only aim at economic value (‘single capital’ accounting) but also at multiple forms of capital (‘multi capital’ accounting or integrated reporting). This has led to a variety of integrated reporting platforms such as Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), International Integrated Reporting Framework (IIRC), Dow Jones Sustainable Indexes (DJSI), True Costing, Reporting 3.0, etc. These integrated reporting platforms and corresponding accounting concepts, can be seen as a fundament for management control systems focussing on multiple value creation. This leads to the following research question: How are management control systems designed in practice to drive multiple value creation?

Study protocol of the quasi-experimental evaluation of “KEIGAAF"

Background: The environment affects children’s energy balance-related behaviors to a considerable extent. A context-based physical activity and nutrition school- and family-based intervention, named KEIGAAF, is being implemented in low socio-economic neighborhoods in Eindhoven, The Netherlands. The aim of this study was to investigate: 1) the effectiveness of the KEIGAAF intervention on BMI z-score, waist circumference, physical activity, sedentary behavior, nutrition behavior, and physical fitness of primary school children, and 2) the process related to the implementation of the intervention. Methods: A quasi-experimental, controlled study with eight intervention schools and three control schools was conducted. The KEIGAAF intervention consists of a combined top-down and bottom-up school intervention: a steering committee developed the general KEIGAAF principles (top-down), and in accordance with these principles, KEIGAAF working groups subsequently develop and implement the intervention in their local context (bottom-up). Parents are also invited to participate in a family-based parenting program, i.e., Triple P Lifestyle. Children aged 7 to 10 years old (grades 4 to 6 in the Netherlands) are included in the study. Effect evaluation data is collected at baseline, after one year, and after two years by using a child questionnaire, accelerometers, anthropometry, a physical fitness test, and a parent questionnaire. A mixed methods approach is applied for the process evaluation: quantitative (checklists, questionnaires) and qualitative methods (observations, interviews) are used. To analyze intervention effectiveness, multilevel regression analyses will be conducted. Content analyses will be conducted on the qualitative process data. Discussion: Two important environmental settings, the school environment and the family environment, are simultaneously targeted in the KEIGAAF intervention. The combined top-down and bottom-up approach is expected to make the intervention an effective and sustainable version of the Health Promoting Schools framework. An elaborate process evaluation will be conducted alongside an effect evaluation in which multiple data collection sources (both qualitative and quantitative) are used.

The balancing act of optimised value creation

In BOP ventures the notion of “selling to the poor” has steadily been replaced by business approaches that suggest sustainable value creation. This has certain implications, in particular the development of strategies that serve triple bottom-line goals. These include economic, social and environmental benefits, in other words, the well known goals of people-planet-profit. However to optimise value-creation one ideally needs to follow a strategy that is based on some form of conceptual model that can serve as a frame of reference. This paper proposes such a conceptual model. The research was undertaken in 8 BOP projects involving multinational information and communication technology companies in Africa. ICT is relevant here because of frequently high expectations that it contributes positively to development goals. A study of the BOP literature reveals that several elements need consideration when trying to create value in developing areas. In addition it emerges that these elements are somehow interdependent. Using information found in the literature as guide a study of 8 cases was undertaken. The research approach was the case study method and the data was analysed for emerging patterns. Primary and secondary data was collected through interviews as well as a close study of archival and other sources. The analysis revealed three high level factors that may need to be aligned in order to ensure optimised value creation of BOP ventures. These three factors are BOP strategy, partnerships, and products & services development. It is also confirmed that neither BOP strategy nor partnerships nor products/service development can be synthesised independently from the rest. There is a delicate balance and interaction between the three where all three are interdependent and mutually influence each other.

Speaking of transition

We are confronted with increasingly pressing questions about economic and social transition. Things have to change, but how? We believe that this change is concerned with three closely related challenges, which we call the triple transition—climate, energy, and...