Business Model Innovation and Climate Change

Dear Colleagues,

Climate changes are challenging the global economy and society, thus requiring changes in the current political and industrial dynamics. The impact of extreme climate events is growing, both in terms of financial impact (i.e., losses of industrial production, and value of physical and social damage) and in terms of environmental degradation (i.e., air, water and soil pollution, water stress, biodiversity loss and deforestation).

The ongoing climate events’ trend is predicted to increase the incidence of droughts, floods and storms, and increase temperatures, the sea level, water stress, loss of biodiversity, desertification, habitat destruction and resource scarcity. All of these effects have dramatic impacts on society and the economy, with particular severity for agriculture (i.e., farms and agrifood supply chains), public administrations (physical infrastructures damages, functionality and safety), and tourism (loss of environmental value).

In fact, the last seven years have been the warmest ever recorded, the rate of sea level rise has doubled since 1993, and the concentration of greenhouse gases hit a new global high in 2020 (World Meteorological Organization, 2022). In the European Union alone, between 1980 and 2017, the direct physical economic damage caused by climate events reached EUR 557 billion, and human-induced climate changes will increase in frequency and intensity with higher economic losses if no reversal measures are implemented.

In this scenario, the number of investors and customers increased about seven times from 2021 to 2022 as relates to both the financing of climate-friendly companies’ innovations, and the demand for climate-friendly products and services, showing a growing awareness and responsibility with regard to climate changes.

Consumers perceive and recognize the value of climate-friendly products, companies, production processes and supply chains, enacting more responsible consumer behaviors (e.g., choices, habits, perceptions, value drivers, purchases). Companies are also realizing that purposeful business model innovations that are able to exploit digital technologies (and other complementary technologies) can add climate value to their products and services. Climate-related information, data, performances of products and processes, production plants, supply chains, and whole industries are new and emerging dimensions of value for customers; business model innovations can bring climate value into products and services by conveying the companies’ climate-friendly innovations and performance.

Indeed, from a theoretical standpoint, the business model (BM) is a conceptual model of the logic a business employs to exploit technology and make profits, representing a blueprint of how a network of organizations cooperates in creating and capturing value from technological innovation (Chesbrough and Rosenbloom, 2002; Wirtz, 2019).

BM innovation aims to create and capture value in a novel way (Amit and Zott, 2001; Demil and Lecocq, 2010; Frankenberger et al., 2013; Teece, 2010), allowing companies to meet unsatisfied customer needs and values (Osterwalder and Pigneur, 2010).

Despite this observation of society’s needs and the business opportunities associated with these, a comprehensive understanding of climate-friendly business model innovations, with regard to both the process and the outcome, is urgently needed.

Climate changes are threatening economies, welfare and global sustainability. Companies and customers are aware of a rising dimension of products/services value: the climate value. A key enabler of climate-value products and services is the company’s business model.

This Special Issue aims to explore an updated overview of the developments in the research area of business model innovation (both process and outcome) from the perspective of climate-friendly products and services.

For this, scholarly contributions (original research articles and reviews) that address one or more of (but not limited to) the following themes are encouraged and welcome:

• Critical or Systematic literature reviews (Felicetti et al., 2021) of the existing studies encompassing business models innovations and climate change;
• Literature reviews addressing the state of the art on climate-friendly business model innovation (Massa & Tucci, 2014; Rosenstock et al., 2020);
• Case studies exploring successful or unsuccessful implementations of BM innovations (Wirtz, 2019; Wirtz & Daiser, 2018);
• Methodologies, tools, approaches, and theories suited to support and assist climate-friendly business model innovation (Ammirato, Linzalone, et al., 2021b; C. Zott & Amit, 2007);
• Empirical papers and explorative papers shedding light on the correlations, patterns, relations, and behaviors of and between business models’ components and variables (Bucherer & Uckelmann, 2011; Osterwalder & Pigneur, 2002)
• Climate-friendly business model innovation drivers (Ammirato, Linzalone, et al., 2021a);
• Business model innovation strategies (Pucihar et al., 2019; Christoph Zott & Amit, 2017);
• Critical business model elements, including value proposition, channels, customer relationships, key resources, key partners, and cost structure (Ammirato, Felicetti, et al., 2021).
• Digital platforms enabling technologies (Internet of Things, smart sensors, big data, artificial intelligence, smart infographic, etc.) that underpin climate-friendly

I look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Roberto Linzalone
Guest Editor

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• climate change
• business model innovation
• climate-friendly innovation
• digital platform