Corporate social responsibility and environmental performance : the mediating role of environmental strategy and green innovation.

Abstract This paper explores the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and government. CSR is often viewed as self-regulation, devoid of government. We attribute the scholarly neglect of the variety of CSR-government relations to the inadequate attention paid to the important differences in the way in which CSR has ‘travelled’ (or diffused), and has been mediated by the national governance systems, and the insufficient emphasis given to the role of the government (or government agency) in the CSR domain. We go on to identify a number of different types of CSR-government configurations, and by following empirically the CSR development trajectories in Western Europe and East Asia in a comparative historical perspective, we derive a set of propositions on the changing dynamics of CSR-government configurations. In particular, we highlight the varied role that the governments can play in order to promote CSR in the context of the wider national governance systems.

The Government of Self-Regulation: On the Comparative Dynamics of Corporate Social Responsibility

Thinking about policy mixes is at the forefront of current research work in the policy sciences and raises many significant questions with respect to policy tools and instruments, processes of policy formulation, and the evolution of tool choices over time. Not least among these is how to assess the potential for multiple policy tools to achieve policy goals in an efficient and effective way. Previous conceptual work on policy mixes has highlighted evaluative criteria such as "consistency" (the ability of multiple policy tools to reinforce rather than undermine each other in the pursuit of individual policy goals), "coherence" (or the ability of multiple policy goals to co-exist with each other in a logical fashion), and "congruence" (or the ability of multiple goals and instruments to work together in a uni-directional or mutually supportive fashion) as important design principles and measures of optimality in policy mixes. And previous empirical work on the evolution of existing policy mixes has highlighted how these three criteria are often lacking in mixes which have evolved over time as well as those which have otherwise been consciously designed. This article revisits this early design work in order to more clearly assess the reasons why many existing policy mixes are sub-optimal and the consequences this has for thinking about policy formulation processes and the practices of policy design.

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Patching vs Packaging in Policy Formulation: Assessing Policy Portfolio Design

A roadmap for ‘new policy design’ studies now exists in the orientation which has emerged in recent years towards the formulation of complex policy mixes. The new design orientation focuses on bundles or portfolios of tools and the interactive effects which occur when multiple tools are used over time in policy packages designed to address multiple goals, and upon more complex multi-policy and multi-level design contexts. This review article examines the differences between the ‘old’ instrument orientation and the ‘new’ design one, setting out the current research agenda in this field and its rationale.

https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3776&context=soss_research

From tools to toolkits in policy design studies: The new design orientation towards policy formulation research

The number of spent LiFePO4 batteries has increased with the rapid development of the electric vehicle industry in China. Recycling of spent LiFePO4 batteries is important not only for the treatment of waste but also for the recovery of useful resources. However, the treatment of spent LiFePO4 batteries is challenging because LiFePO4 batteries do not contain any precious metals, treatment is complex using traditional recycling process, and the number of spent batteries recovered from the public has been very small recently. Therefore, it is necessary to summarize the existing problems and propose a proper recycling route for spent LiFePO4 batteries. In this paper, the current status of spent LiFePO4 batteries recycling in China is introduced, and the environmental benefits of recycling are analyzed. The state of the art in preprocessing of End-of-Life LiFePO4 batteries and the final batteries recovery is discussed in detail. Based on the review, optimizing the recycling mode, increasing the precious metals recovery efficiency, and decreasing the chemical reagents consumption by effective materials liberation and separation are proposed as potential improvement strategies to make the recycling chain more environmentally friendly.

An overview of recycling and treatment of spent LiFePO4 batteries in China

Moving beyond the “patchwork:” a review of strategies to promote consistency for extended producer responsibility policy in the U.S.

Summary
This article analyzes the policy choices and programmatic elements of extended producer responsibility (EPR) as implemented in the United States and Canada. The article traces the historical development of EPR in each country and defines common features of EPR in each nation. The U.S. states and the Canadian provinces have assumed the primary role, rather than the federal governments, for enacting producer responsibility requirements in their respective countries. However, the paths taken demonstrate several fundamental differences, including the prevalence of individual versus collective responsibility and the financing mechanisms implemented for EPR. Given the deepening experience with EPR and the breadth of its application to a widening array of products in the United States, the Canadian model for EPR is starting to receive more examination from policy makers in the United States, indicating that the policy and programmatic differences between the two nations may eventually be narrowing.

The comparative policy analysis is illustrated through the lens of EPR regulatory efforts for waste electronics, with particular profiles of the programs in the State of Minnesota and Province of Ontario. Both approaches broadly reflect many of the policy considerations and governance and programmatic themes that dominate EPR programs in each country.

Finally, the article offers recommendations for collaborative work between the United States and Canada to explore consistency between programs and other complementary strategies to support producer responsibility activities.

Comparative Analysis of Extended Producer Responsibility Policy in the United States and Canada

Extended producer responsibility seeks to integrate environmental impacts into the product lifecycle and achieve greater economic efficiencies in the management of products at end of life. For such integration to be actualized, however, producers may need to be accorded greater programmatic authority and flexibility than is often in some EPR policies that stipulate defined roles for other entities along the product chain. The proper allocation of responsibility among the parties and, in particular, the roles of the producers and local authorities remains a principal component of EPR policy construction. The analysis outlines four broad categories of financial and programmatic responsibility that currently reside within EPR programs in North America. The article concludes with recommendations for a research agenda to further define the governance characteristics that result in effective and efficient EPR programs.

An examination of governance within extended producer responsibility policy regimes in North America

The paper examines how extended producer responsibility (EPR) as an environmental policy approach and, more broadly, product management strategies are characterized within corporate social responsibility (CSR). The author summarizes the key concepts and arguments for sustainable product management strategies with an emphasis on the collection of discarded products at end of life, and identifies primary tools for recognizing and advancing product management strategies within CSR such as sustainability reporting and product standard and certification programs. The article analyzes 121 CSR reports for references to EPR and, more broadly, end-of-life management strategies for discarded products. It concludes with recommendations as to how CSR practices can more effectively recognize product management strategies as well as how EPR policy can be enhanced to further embed product end-of-life management strategies and activities within the CSR activities of firms. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment

Garth T. Hickle

Papers

Moving beyond the “patchwork:” a review of strategies to promote consistency for extended producer responsibility policy in the U.S.

Comparative Analysis of Extended Producer Responsibility Policy in the United States and Canada

An examination of governance within extended producer responsibility policy regimes in North America

Extending the Boundaries: An Assessment of the Integration of Extended Producer Responsibility Within Corporate Social Responsibility

Promoting product stewardship with eco‐labels, certification programs, and product standards