Development of a holistic framework for sustainability measurement: A case study of the tea sector

Managing organisational sustainability is complex, with multiple aspects including decarbonisation, sustainable finance, management of material flows and waste, to reduce harmful impacts and integrate sustainable approaches into business strategy. To improve sustainability, organisations must measur...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: D. Nayanee Silva, Walter Wehrmeyer, Richard Murphy
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2024-12-01
Series:Cleaner Production Letters
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666791624000186
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850247354405355520
author D. Nayanee Silva
Walter Wehrmeyer
Richard Murphy
author_facet D. Nayanee Silva
Walter Wehrmeyer
Richard Murphy
author_sort D. Nayanee Silva
collection DOAJ
description Managing organisational sustainability is complex, with multiple aspects including decarbonisation, sustainable finance, management of material flows and waste, to reduce harmful impacts and integrate sustainable approaches into business strategy. To improve sustainability, organisations must measure and manage the impacts of operations on the environment and society. This empirical study featuring case studies in the UK and Sri Lanka, examines the economic, environmental and social activities of company operations in the tea sector to evaluate and compare sustainability performance. The Triple Bottom Line (TBL) approach is expanded through a holistic sustainability framework proposed in this study, to support organisational sustainability measurement. We propose a ‘7E’ sustainability model that measures activities across seven operational areas of the organisation to create an overall sustainability score for benchmarking that aids sustainability improvements with an interconnected approach. The model supports organisations to identify savings, explore greener materials and energy choices through detailed insights and allows for ranking and comparison of companies using a sustainability index. A mixed methods approach is used to provide an analysis that offers granularity and comparability for sustainability strategy. Best practices from case studies, insights arising from the analysis of company surveys, interviews and employee surveys provide useful information on sustainability performance and decarbonisation progress. This research demonstrates the use of the 7E model as a practical tool for managers and organisations to improve sustainability management.
format Article
id doaj-art-9dcf0587cdfa4ac7aadc5f1195bd79ce
institution OA Journals
issn 2666-7916
language English
publishDate 2024-12-01
publisher Elsevier
record_format Article
series Cleaner Production Letters
spelling doaj-art-9dcf0587cdfa4ac7aadc5f1195bd79ce2025-08-20T01:58:56ZengElsevierCleaner Production Letters2666-79162024-12-01710007210.1016/j.clpl.2024.100072Development of a holistic framework for sustainability measurement: A case study of the tea sectorD. Nayanee Silva0Walter Wehrmeyer1Richard Murphy2Corresponding author.; Centre for Environment and Sustainability, School of Sustainability Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey, GU2 7XH, United KingdomCentre for Environment and Sustainability, School of Sustainability Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey, GU2 7XH, United KingdomCentre for Environment and Sustainability, School of Sustainability Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey, GU2 7XH, United KingdomManaging organisational sustainability is complex, with multiple aspects including decarbonisation, sustainable finance, management of material flows and waste, to reduce harmful impacts and integrate sustainable approaches into business strategy. To improve sustainability, organisations must measure and manage the impacts of operations on the environment and society. This empirical study featuring case studies in the UK and Sri Lanka, examines the economic, environmental and social activities of company operations in the tea sector to evaluate and compare sustainability performance. The Triple Bottom Line (TBL) approach is expanded through a holistic sustainability framework proposed in this study, to support organisational sustainability measurement. We propose a ‘7E’ sustainability model that measures activities across seven operational areas of the organisation to create an overall sustainability score for benchmarking that aids sustainability improvements with an interconnected approach. The model supports organisations to identify savings, explore greener materials and energy choices through detailed insights and allows for ranking and comparison of companies using a sustainability index. A mixed methods approach is used to provide an analysis that offers granularity and comparability for sustainability strategy. Best practices from case studies, insights arising from the analysis of company surveys, interviews and employee surveys provide useful information on sustainability performance and decarbonisation progress. This research demonstrates the use of the 7E model as a practical tool for managers and organisations to improve sustainability management.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666791624000186Organisational sustainabilityDecarbonisation7E modelSustainable developmentSustainability managementTea sector
spellingShingle D. Nayanee Silva
Walter Wehrmeyer
Richard Murphy
Development of a holistic framework for sustainability measurement: A case study of the tea sector
Cleaner Production Letters
Organisational sustainability
Decarbonisation
7E model
Sustainable development
Sustainability management
Tea sector
title Development of a holistic framework for sustainability measurement: A case study of the tea sector
title_full Development of a holistic framework for sustainability measurement: A case study of the tea sector
title_fullStr Development of a holistic framework for sustainability measurement: A case study of the tea sector
title_full_unstemmed Development of a holistic framework for sustainability measurement: A case study of the tea sector
title_short Development of a holistic framework for sustainability measurement: A case study of the tea sector
title_sort development of a holistic framework for sustainability measurement a case study of the tea sector
topic Organisational sustainability
Decarbonisation
7E model
Sustainable development
Sustainability management
Tea sector
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666791624000186
work_keys_str_mv AT dnayaneesilva developmentofaholisticframeworkforsustainabilitymeasurementacasestudyoftheteasector
AT walterwehrmeyer developmentofaholisticframeworkforsustainabilitymeasurementacasestudyoftheteasector
AT richardmurphy developmentofaholisticframeworkforsustainabilitymeasurementacasestudyoftheteasector