| 1. |
- Arvidsson, Rickard, 1984, et al.
(author)
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A method for human health impact assessment in social LCA: lessons from three case studies
- 2018
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In: International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1614-7502 .- 0948-3349. ; 23:3, s. 690-699
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose Improving human health is a long-lasting endeavour of mankind. In the field of social life cycle assessment (SLCA), the importance of human health is often highlighted, and further development of impact assessment methods has been recommended. The purpose of this article is to present a method for assessing human health impacts within SLCA. Methods By using a systematic combining approach, knowledge and experience about assessing human health impacts were obtained from three previously conducted case studies. The first case study was about an airbag system, the second about a catalytic converter and the third about gold jewellery. The disability-adjusted life years (DALY) indicator was used for impact assessment in all three case studies. Results and discussion Both positive and negative human health impacts associated with the products were identified and assessed in the three case studies. For the airbag system, avoided health impacts in the use phase outweighed health impacts during production. For the catalytic converter, whether health impacts avoided exceeded health impacts caused or not depended on which time perspective regarding impacts was employed. Gold jewellery does not help avoiding any health impacts but caused considerable health impacts when produced at a certain location. Based on experience from these case studies, a generic human health impact assessment method was developed, and a life cycle human health typology for products was developed based on the method. The method provides a basis for analysis and interpretation of health impacts along product life cycles, and it is therefore important to report both positive and negative health impacts separately for different actors. Conclusions The developed human health impact assessment method involves the assessment and comparison of both positive and negative human health impacts along product life cycles. In addition to the products assessed in the three case studies, we suggest additional products that could be particularly interesting to assess with the developed method, including medicines, seat belts, other conflict minerals, alcoholic beverages and products with a high chemical impact.
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| 2. |
- Arvidsson, Rickard, 1984, et al.
(author)
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Is there a scientific justification for the current use of child labour and working hours in social LCA?
- 2014
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In: Proceedings of the 4th International seminar in social LCA.
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In the social life cycle assessment (SLCA) literature, child labour and working hours are frequently suggested and used as indicators for assessment of social impacts. This use is mainly motivated by compliance with political documents. However, indicators should also have a scientific foundation. We therefore review the scientific literature in order to investigate whether the contemporary use of child labour and working hours is scientifically justified. We found that although working hours is used somewhat differently in different SLCA studies, most SLCA studies suggest that fewer working hours are socially beneficial. Yet the non-SLCA scientific literature rather suggests a delicate balance between working too much, and being underemployed. The risk of unemployment is also stressed, not only for society as a whole but also for individual workers. Although excessive (and hard) working may be more common in so-called developing countries, and therefore more severe, adverse social impacts from working too little with subsequent loss of income is typically also more severe in those countries. For child labour, the SLCA literature regards it as socially adverse in unison. However, the non-SLCA scientific literature gives a broader view. Although many cases of harmful child labour have been reported, it is also clear that some forms of child labour may be less harmful, perhaps even socially beneficial. Such beneficial child labour could correspond to a part-time job, working during holidays, or helping parents at their farm. In general, the non-SLCA literature thus does not provide complete scientific justification for the contemporary use of working hours and child labour in the SLCA literature.
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| 3. |
- Arvidsson, Rickard, 1984, et al.
(author)
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On the scientific justification of the use of working hours, child labour and property rights in social life cycle assessment: Three topical reviews
- 2015
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In: International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1614-7502 .- 0948-3349. ; 20:2, s. 161-173
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Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- PurposeWorking hours, child labour and property rights have been suggested as topics to assess in social life cycle assessment (SLCA). The purpose of this study is to investigate the scientific justification of the current use of these topics. The long-term aim is to contribute to the future development of SLCA.MethodsA literature review was conducted for each of the three topics. One thousand scientific articles were analysed for each topic, and relevant articles were selected. The articles were analysed based on whether the topics facilitated or obstructed beneficial social values, and whether they facilitated or obstructed adverse social values.Results and discussionThe results show that the three topics both facilitate and obstruct beneficial social values. They also show that the topics both facilitate and obstruct adverse social values. Considering the complex and ambiguous nature of these topics reported in the scientific literature, the current use of these topics in the SLCA literature is found not to be completely scientifically justified.ConclusionsBased on this study, the current use of working hours, child labour and property rights in SLCA studies should be questioned. We suggest that the fields of social science and economics may be fruitfully considered when seeking scientific justification for topics to assess in SLCA.
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| 4. |
- Baumann, Henrikke, 1964, et al.
(author)
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Populating the life cycle perspective: methods for analyzing social and organizational dimensions of product chains for management studies
- 2015
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In: International Society for Industrial Ecology Biennial Conference, 7-10 July, Surry, United Kingdom..
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Conference paper (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The strength of the life cycle perspective is that it takes the whole product chain into account so that the shifting of environmental problems along the chain can be avoided. A weakness with conventional life cycle analysis is that its enviro-technical analysis does not easily identify actors and their scope of action. By replacing the focus on technical processes with a focus on actors and their organization of the product flow, another understanding of the sustainability issues of the product chain becomes possible. The outcome of a decade of research is a portfolio of life cycle methods for the management sciences: actor-LCA, social issue LCA, study of product chain organization, study of a production and consumption system, and organizational study of a flow node in a product chain. The theoretical reasoning leading to this developed rests on an application of actor‐network‐theories for a constructive combination of both social and material actants. It consists in part of an analysis of the problem with 'flow' and in part, the problem with 'organization'. The different methods focus on actors and organization in a product life cycle in different ways. The positioning of the methods relative to each other is presented and their application to management and governance problems is discussed.
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| 5. |
- Brunklaus, Birgit, 1970, et al.
(author)
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Eco-innovative measures in large Swedish companies: An inventory based on company reports
- 2012
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Journal article (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The project creates a detailed picture through a survey of eco-innovative measures among Sweden's 100 largest companies from 11 industries. Data from latest corporate annual reports was gathered in 2012 and analyzed using a range of criteria that show what types of measures companies pursue in order to tackle environmental issues. These criteria range from internal measures, such as developing new products and processes, to measures that include the value chain and other public/private partners that can help boost eco-innovation. The study shows that the majority of companies see themselves as proactive and that most reported are internal measures, with an emphasis on energy efficiency and renewable energy and materials. Examples for energy efficiency measures are effective lightning, insulation and lean production. Examples for renewable measures regarding energy are green electricity based on wind, biomass and solar. Examples for renewable measures regarding materials are bio and organic based products, or biomass based production. Among the interesting eco-innovation examples there are biopharmaceuticals (Astra), ZERO mission (Skanska), “one tone life” (ICA), dinner parties “rest dating”(Landmännen), smart homes and cars (Semcon), smart application of technologies (ABB and Ericsson), smart grips to link homes, vehicles and users (Toyota), regenerative braking system (SJ), “Zee-weed” technologies (ITT), biomass-based fuels of their own process (SCA), light-weight materials (SSAB). Measures including the value chain focus on procurement and measures including the consumer are rarely mentioned. Drivers for these measures are ranging from business opportunities to cost and legislation. Companies in the construction and consultancy/service sector have taken up environmental issues as their business opportunity. Companies in general mention legislation, such as REACH, as well as consumer demands as driver, while companies in the automotive and transport sector seldom mention drivers. The study also shows that annual reports are sufficient for gathering general information on product development and production processes, while information regarding R&D is not always presented and needs to be complemented with questionnaires and interviews. The project provides a starting point for further research on eco-innovation regarding the value chain, the consumers and the role of networks.
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| 6. |
- Brunklaus, Birgit, 1970, et al.
(author)
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Eco-innovative measures in large Swedish Companies - An inventory based on company reports
- 2013
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Reports (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The project examines eco-innovative measures among 100 large companies from 11industries in Sweden. Data from corporate annual reports was gathered and analysedusing a range of criteria that show what types of measures companies pursue in order totackle environmental issues. These criteria range from internal measures, such asdeveloping new products and processes, to measures that include the value chain andpublic/private partners that can help boost eco-innovation.The study shows that the majority of companies see themselves as proactive and thattheir main focus vis-à-vis eco-innovation is on internal measures, with an emphasis onenergy efficiency and renewable energy and materials. Examples of measures that focuson energy efficiency include effective lighting, insulation and lean production. Examplesof measures that focus on renewable energy measures include sourcing electricitybased on wind, biomass and solar power. Examples of measures that focus on renewablematerials include bio- and organic-based products, or biomass-based production.The study highlights various eco-innovation measures that have the potential to bringabout meaningful change, including “ZERO mission” (Skanska), the “One tonne life”project to create a climate smart household (ICA as partner), launch of a “left overdating” matchmaker service to find “dinner partners” with supplementary ingredients(Lantmännen), smart homes and cars (Semcon), smart application of technologies (ABBand Ericsson), smart grids to link homes, vehicles and users (Toyota), regenerativebraking systems (SJ), “Zee-weed” membrane techniques for water treatment (ITT),biomass-based fuels of their own process (SCA), and light-weight materials (SSAB).The study finds some evidence that drivers of eco-innovation range from businessopportunities to costs and legislation. Companies in the construction and consultancy/service groups, for instance, see environmental issues as a business opportunity. Generally,companies note the importance of legislation such as REACH, and consumerdemands as drivers of eco-innovation. However other companies in our sample rarelymention drivers. The study also shows that annual reports are sufficient for gatheringgeneral information on product development and production processes, while informationregarding R&D is not always presented and needs to be supplemented withquestionnaires and interviews. The project provides a starting point for further researchon eco-innovation regarding the value chain, the consumers and the role of networks.
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| 7. |
- Ciroth, Andreas, et al.
(author)
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Life cycle costing
- 2015
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In: Sustainability Assessment of Renewables-Based Products: Methods and Case Studies. - Chichester, UK : John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. - 9781118933916 ; , s. 215-228
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Book chapter (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Life cycle costing (LCC) is applied as an assessment tool to estimate the entire cost of typically large-scale assets, for example, buildings and infrastructure objects with a considerably long serviceable life. LCC needs to consider and accumulate all types of cost, and since these occur at different times they are typically discounted to a common point in time. Environmental LCC is a specific type of LCC, which was designed to be aligned with the ISO 14040 standard for Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and shares some key components with Environmental LCA to allow a consistent combination of both in one assessment. Societal LCC is another type of LCC, which includes externalities and attempts to provide a holistic assessment, thereby covering both economic and environmental aspects. For renewables, aspects such as feed-in tariffs and subsidies need to be considered in an LCC model. A case study for a combined heat and power plant is used to illustrate the application of Environmental LCC.
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| 8. |
- Gremyr, Ida, 1975, et al.
(author)
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A Framework for Developing and Assessing Eco-innovations
- 2014
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In: Greening of Industry Networks Studies. - Cham : Springer International Publishing. - 2543-0254 .- 2543-0246. ; 2, s. 55-79
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Book chapter (other academic/artistic)abstract
- This chapter presents a framework entitled “ECORE,” which aims to assist in developing and assessing radical eco-innovations. Our proposed framework seeks to address theoretical gaps and unresolved problems from three research fields – eco-innovation, quality management, and life cycle assessment. ECORE synthesizes ideas and concepts from these three fields into a set of key principles and practices that can further integrate sustainability into business practices. These key principles are based on the idea that stakeholder interactions should form the basis of eco-innovation, that a life cycle perspective should be adopted in the design stage of eco-innovation, and that stakeholder needs must be translated into eco-innovation characteristics throughout the design process. We illustrate our framework with a hypothetical example that focuses on reducing the environmental impacts of carbonated beverage consumption. The chapter concludes by presenting the views of practitioners that were invited to provide feedback on our proposals.
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| 9. |
- Hildenbrand, Jutta, 1969, et al.
(author)
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Applying tools for end of use outlook in design for recirculation
- 2021
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In: Procedia CIRP. - : Elsevier BV. - 2212-8271. ; 100, s. 85-90
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Circular economy is widely embraced as one major path towards sustainability goals by contributing to resource efficiency and reaching climate targets. The research need at hand lies in how to implement changes. To achieve a circular system, design for recirculation is advised when introducing new products and production processes. However, in practical applications it is a challenge to foresee the complex nature of a real circular production system with many stakeholders in a system in transition. Product systems are embedded in a use context, where the user is a key stakeholder. Collection and systematization of experience and ideas from the field is here a key. This research draws on the experiences of assessing and improve circulation in industrial practice deploying the Recirculation Strategies Decision Tree and the Eco-design-strategy-wheel. Through two case studies, practitioners have been supported in action to evaluate their products and production processes in term of circularity. Cases showed a process from current status and recirculation challenges to a more circular future state in production and end of life was scrutinized. As a result, emphasis differed between the two tools. The Eco strategy wheel supported product design phase with an engineering perspective, The Recirculation Strategies Decision Tree on end-of-life phase with a market perspective. Common for both tools was the dependency on user or operator's handling. Outcome from this study is to emphasise the importance on social dimension in CE/user role in a circular product system. The interactive, user centered research with manufacturing companies is suggested for development to effectively close product loops.
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