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Circular Economy and Sustainability
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Circular Economy and Sustainability

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Economic and Business Aspects of Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2025 | Viewed by 3533

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Viktor Koval

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Guest Editor
Department of Business and Tourism Management, Izmail State University of Humanities, 68600 Izmail, Ukraine
Interests: circular economy; sustainability; resource management; enviromental economics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Jairo González-Bueno

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Economics and Business, Universidad Autónoma de Bucaramanga, Bucaramanga, Colombia
Interests: portfolio management; financial markets; ethical investment; valuation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Rima Tamošiūnienė

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Business Management, Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, Sauletekio Ave.11, Vilnius, Lithuania
Interests: investment; sustainability; socially responsible business; risk management

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The circular economy has emerged as a vital strategy for enhancing sustainability and resource efficiency. This Special Issue will bring together pioneering research on circular economy policy-making, focusing on developing, implementing, and assessing policies that promote sustainability through circular economy practices. Topics include policy development and assessment, economic incentives, financial mechanisms, green finance, technological innovations, stakeholder engagement, public participation, and impact measurement. The purpose of this Special Issue is to provide a comprehensive understanding of current circular economy policies and their potential to drive sustainable development by highlighting effective strategies, identifying challenges, and proposing solutions.

This Special Issue will bridge the gap between theoretical frameworks and practical applications in policy-making. It will supplement the existing literature by providing in-depth analyses of policy processes, evaluating their effectiveness, and exploring innovative approaches to overcome policy-related challenges. By contributing, authors will advance the discourse on integrating circular economy practices and green finance into sustainable development, offering insights that are both academically rigorous and practically relevant. This Special Issue will, thus, play a crucial role in shaping the future of sustainable resource management through informed and effective policy-making.

Prof. Dr. Viktor Koval
Dr. Jairo González-Bueno
Prof. Dr. Rima Tamošiūnienė
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • built environment
  • circular business models
  • circular economy
  • eco-design
  • eco-friendly technologies
  • environmental economics
  • green economy
  • green finance
  • green human resource management
  • lifecycle assessment
  • liveable cities
  • policy innovation
  • renewable resources
  • resource management
  • sustainable development
  • waste reduction

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

24 pages, 532 KiB  
Article
Green Credit, Digital Economy and Enterprise Pollution Reduction
by Shi Wang
Sustainability 2025, 17(9), 3791; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17093791 - 23 Apr 2025
Abstract
Green credit is an important practical exploration to reduce the environmental pollution of enterprises through the allocation of financial resources. Based on the panel data for the Chinese enterprises, this research constructs a difference-in-differences (DID) model to explore the influence of green credit [...] Read more.
Green credit is an important practical exploration to reduce the environmental pollution of enterprises through the allocation of financial resources. Based on the panel data for the Chinese enterprises, this research constructs a difference-in-differences (DID) model to explore the influence of green credit policy (GCP) on the enterprise’s pollution emission and discusses the moderation effect of digital economy. The results show that the GCP can reduce the enterprise pollution emission. Specifically, the implementation of the GCP has reduced the sulfur dioxide emission intensity of enterprises by 1.53 kg/thousand yuan. The pollution reduction effect of GCP on different enterprises shows significant asymmetry: the implementation effect is better on enterprises with stronger financing constraints and state-owned enterprises, while enterprises in capital-intensive industries inhibit the effect of the policy. Specifically, the implementation of the GCP has reduced the sulfur dioxide emission intensity of state-owned and non-state-owned enterprises by 1.72 and 0.977 kg/thousand yuan, respectively, and reduced that for enterprises in capital-intensive and non-capital-intensive industries by 0.719 and 1.437 kg/thousand yuan, respectively. The development of digital economy will promote the pollution reduction effect of GCP, and the two will work together to reduce pollution emissions. Finally, some policy suggestions are put forward to optimize the current green credit policies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Circular Economy and Sustainability)
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18 pages, 1058 KiB  
Article
Fostering Technology Adoption and Management Advancements in Environmental Performance: Mediation of Circular Economy and Sustainability-Oriented Innovation
by Viktor Koval, Nikola Abramović, Sandra Đurović, Dejana Crvenica and I Wayan Edi Arsawan
Sustainability 2025, 17(5), 1848; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17051848 - 21 Feb 2025
Viewed by 598
Abstract
This study aims to address a research gap by analyzing the role of technology adoption as a determinant of the circular economy in relation to sustainability-oriented innovation and environmental performance. This study uses an advanced structural equation modeling (SEM-PLS) approach to address methodological [...] Read more.
This study aims to address a research gap by analyzing the role of technology adoption as a determinant of the circular economy in relation to sustainability-oriented innovation and environmental performance. This study uses an advanced structural equation modeling (SEM-PLS) approach to address methodological rigor issues, including multigroup analysis and bootstrap methods to ensure reliability and validity. Data were collected from 201 Indonesian SMEs, and 603 responses were collected and analyzed using structural equation modeling. The findings indicate that technology adoption contributes significantly to the circular economy and sustainability-oriented innovation but is insignificant to environmental performance. Furthermore, the circular economy and sustainability-oriented innovation are key to improving environmental performance. This study presents an advanced mediation model using serial mediation analysis with bias-corrected confidence intervals to ensure methodological robustness. This study develops a theoretical framework by integrating the natural resource-based view (NRBV), environmental concern theory, and stakeholder theory in the context of SMEs, providing a more comprehensive overview for understanding the mechanisms of environmental conservation. The results also highlighted the role of the circular economy and sustainability-oriented innovation as serial mediators in the relationship between technology adoption and environmental performance. In terms of theoretical implications, this study incorporates the natural resource-based view, environmental concern theory, and stakeholder theory to improve our understanding of environmental conservation. In terms of managerial contribution, the main implication for SME managers is to invest in sustainable practices by focusing on circular practices and improving the understanding of efforts to improve environmental performance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Circular Economy and Sustainability)
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23 pages, 2622 KiB  
Article
The Interconnection of Double Materiality Assessment, Circularity Practices Disclosure and Business Development in the Fast Fashion Industry
by Victoria Bogdan, Luminița Rus and Diana Elisabeta Matica
Sustainability 2025, 17(4), 1619; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17041619 - 15 Feb 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 810
Abstract
This qualitative study aimed to explore double materiality reporting practices and their impact and financial materiality relevance as well as the disclosure of circularity practices in connection with financial and ESG reporting in the fast fashion industry. Thematic deductive content analysis (TDCA) was [...] Read more.
This qualitative study aimed to explore double materiality reporting practices and their impact and financial materiality relevance as well as the disclosure of circularity practices in connection with financial and ESG reporting in the fast fashion industry. Thematic deductive content analysis (TDCA) was performed in five steps on sustainability reports of iconic fast fashion companies, with the aim of identifying recurring disclosure themes and patterns with the help of the NVivo 14 software. The results reveal that strongly addressed topics in the reporting of double materiality are the sustainable and environmentally friendly use of resources and involvement in the community, while the least addressed is employee wellbeing. A strong positive association between double materiality assessment and resource efficiency was found, proving that the efficient use of resources significantly improves environmental performance. Also, circularity innovation shows high correlations with the assessment of environmental impact materiality and governance, highlighting the role of innovation in enhancing overall sustainability. Integrating circular practices into corporate strategies shows that companies performing very well in circularity are most likely to have higher ESG performance in the future. The integrated approach of double materiality and corporate circularity disclosure analysis is highlighted by the connectivity analysis on material financial and ESG reporting and circularity disclosure. Assessing double materiality information requires professional judgment, and mapping the sustainability aspects related to disclosure requirements requires a unitary methodology and a customized list of impact, risks, and opportunities. The study’s implications aim to improve sustainability information reporting and materiality matrix analysis but can also be extended to circular economy regulations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Circular Economy and Sustainability)
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18 pages, 292 KiB  
Article
Assessing the Impact of Green Environmental Policy Stringency on Eco-Innovation and Green Finance in Pakistan: A Quantile Autoregressive Distributed Lag (QARDL) Analysis for Sustainability
by Agha Amad Nabi, Farhan Ahmed, Fayaz Hussain Tunio, Muhammad Hafeez and Daniela Haluza
Sustainability 2025, 17(3), 1021; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17031021 - 27 Jan 2025
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1393
Abstract
Environmental policy stringency, eco-innovation, and green finance play key roles in advancing sustainability, particularly in low- and middle-income countries such as Pakistan. Using annual data from 1990 to 2020, this study employs a quantile autoregressive distributed lag (QARDL) approach to explore the effects [...] Read more.
Environmental policy stringency, eco-innovation, and green finance play key roles in advancing sustainability, particularly in low- and middle-income countries such as Pakistan. Using annual data from 1990 to 2020, this study employs a quantile autoregressive distributed lag (QARDL) approach to explore the effects across different quantiles. The results reveal a generally negative, quantile-specific relationship between eco-innovation and ecological footprints. At lower quantiles, a 1% increase in green finance is associated with a reduction in ecological footprints ranging from 1% to 4%, demonstrating a beneficial, albeit asymmetric, relationship. As the quantiles increase, the effect of green finance strengthens, with reductions in ecological footprints reaching up to 7% at higher quantiles. Furthermore, stringent environmental policies show a more pronounced impact at higher quantiles, where a 1% increase in policy stringency leads to a reduction in ecological footprints of 5% to 8%. These findings underscore the significance of robust environmental policies, eco-innovation, and green finance as effective mechanisms for reducing ecological impacts and promoting sustainability. This study provides valuable insights for policymakers to strategize on enhancing investments in green financing and implementing stringent environmental regulations, particularly targeting industries and sectors with substantial ecological impacts. Such measures can effectively mitigate environmental degradation by adopting eco-innovation and encouraging sustainable practices, especially in areas provoking acute ecological pressures. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Circular Economy and Sustainability)
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