The publication reports on a study of blockchain in the maritime sector with a focus on three value chains, namely container transport, fishing and processing of fish and shellfish, and plastic recycling. The publication describes different ways of using blockchain in the form of different types of companies, and with this as a starting point, the publication discusses the prerequisites for blockchain to be used in the analyzed value chains.
Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) requires a spatially explicit framework for decision-making, and on that background the overall objective of BONUS BASMATI is to develop integrated and innovative solutions for MSP from the local to the Baltic Sea Region scale. This is to be realised through multi-level governance structures and interactive information technology aiming at developing an ecologically and socio-economically sound network of protected marine areas covering the Baltic Sea. Based on the results of former MSP projects, the BONUS BASMATI project sets out to analyse governance systems and their information needs regarding MSP in the Baltic Sea region in order to develop an operational, transnational model for MSP, while maintaining compliance with existing governance systems. It also develops methods and tools for assessments of different plan-proposals, while including spatially explicit pressures and effects on maritime ecosystem services in order to create the Baltic Explorer, which is a spatial decision support system (SDSS) for the Baltic Sea region to facilitate broad access to information. During the project running until 2020, new data will be produced and tested in assessments corresponding to policy goals. The data will support the combined analysis of the three elements of the concept of ecosystem services: the capacity, flow and benefit of provisioning, regulating and cultural services. A central aim of the project is to facilitate cross-border collaboration, and the project is carried out in close cooperation with relevant stakeholders in the BSR. The impact of the project will be facilitated and assessed in transnational case studies, where integrated solutions are required. The local scale will consist of case study areas in the South-West Baltic, the Latvian territorial and EEZ waters including open part of the Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Riga, and across the region, a pan-Baltic case study will be performed.
In this study, we investigate the barriers and enablers companies face when they seek to establish a fully decarbonized supply chain from the ground up. While recent research on sustainable supply chain management has advanced our understanding of how existing supply chains can become more sustainable, there is less research on fully decarbonized supply chains that are designed carbon neutral to produce carbon neutral products. This research aims to expand that frontier by investigating the case of the emerging supply chain delivering fossil-neutral e- methanol to the shipping industry.
In this article, we examine the relations between global value chain governance and environmental upgrading in maritime shipping. Drawing from interviews with global shipping companies and major buyers of shipping services (cargo-owners), we reveal the key issues and challenges faced in improving the environmental performance of maritime transportation. Contributing to the Global Value Chain (GVC) literature, we compare and analyze the influence of three main external drivers on environmental upgrading in the tanker, bulk and container shipping segments: regulation, cooperation and buyer demands. Our findings suggest that environmental upgrading is more likely to occur when global value chains are characterized by unipolar governance and where the lead firms are consumer-facing companies with reputational risks. Furthermore, environmental upgrading in shipping is not likely to materialize without clear and enforceable global regulation and stronger alignment between regulation and voluntary sustainability initiatives.
Around 70% of our planet is covered by water. Just as human activities on land require planning, planning is also needed at sea. How can the space at sea be allocated to activities for use and protection in a space-saving way? How can we think across the different sectors so that marine planning is more coherent? These are questions that I am working to answer in my Ph.D. at Aalborg University, Copenhagen.
The global society faces an existential threat if it fails to meet current and future material needs of its populations, while staying within the carrying capacity of our planet. An approach that has been put forwards to address this complex challenge is to aim to close our society's material flows through introduction of a Circular Economy (CE). This paper provides an extensive literature review to understand the evolution of material circularity concepts and strategies, and their potential for increasing material efficiency and reduce environmental impacts towards meeting the material needs of our societies in an environmentally sustainable manner. Based on the review it can be concluded that CE may have a strong potential to help address the challenge. However, this requires broadening the focus of CE from technical and economical to political and socio-cultural dimensions, adopting a whole-systems approach, aiming to redesign economic and social relations to not just reduce the impact humanity has on the environment but actually achieve a balance in human-nature relations with a planetary boundary thinking. Pursuing purely technical and economic avenues to implement CE for increasing material circulation and sustainable growth on the foundation of our current linear economic system, will not achieve its full potential. It will not be sustainable but continue to produce the challenges that we currently have.
Reverse Logistics (RL) of end-of-use/end-of-life products has become a vital part of circular economy practices for manufacturers. However, significant quantities of resources are still landfilled instead of being recovered. With mounting pressure on businesses to address the sustainability crises (resources, climate change, waste, toxicity) on account of the take-make-dispose-based linear economy, companies today realise the importance of RL but face several barriers to implementing it, including a lack of knowledge. Although several studies have investigated different aspects of RL in various industries in different country settings, less attention has been devoted to developing a systematic and holistic approach for designing and implementing RL. To address these gaps, this paper reviews 116 scholarly articles published between 2011 and 2021 to identify attributes related to the design and implementation of RL systems. Based on a systematic literature review, a conceptual framework is presented covering the key activities, drivers and barriers, stakeholder engagement and performance management in RL. Such a framework can support companies evaluate different approaches and strategies, as well as the opportunities and challenges of designing and implementing RL and transitioning towards a Circular Economy.
Coastal communities have ideas and plans on how to redirect the blue economy to
support thriving societies, but how can EU Member States better support bottom-up
transitions?
This is a policy brief included in D5.3 of EmpowerUs.
Reduction of carbon emissions is a societal challenge that demands concerted efforts. The maritime industry is no exception. This paper takes an ecosystem perspective and considers the question of how to enact the green transition of the maritime industry and explore the barriers and enablers of that goal. To this end, we conduct an exploratory case-study to investigate the maritime value chain by focusing on 9 major stakeholders and conducting more than 20 interviews. Our study reveals four continuous enablers and two essential enablers to establishing a functional green maritime ecosystem.