Tavri, Purva (2020) Is collaborative re-use a solution to help reduce waste production while maintaining economic growth? The organisational level study in the UK. (PhD thesis), Kingston University, .
Abstract
The current dominant waste management techniques (recycling, recovery and disposal), which are ‘science first’ solutions, are failing to achieve a middle ground between conventional economic growth and decreasing wastefulness. This thesis, therefore, focuses on exploring re-use, a ‘human action’ solution. The overall aim is to investigate perceptions of re-use among UK corporations and their re-use supply chains, and the factors facilitating and preventing the re-use of materials becoming normal practice. The study focuses on those organisations that are regarded as leaders in the field of waste management. To carry out this investigation, the research uses a sequential mixed-methods approach, wherein the findings provided by the content analysis are utilised to develop the semi-structured interview questions. In doing so, a pro-environmental framework, CEBA (Communication, Engagement/action, Behavioural maintenance, and Avoidance of the value action gap), is used as an analytical tool. The research findings show that there are ways in which organisations can collaborate to deliver re-use activities that can play a role in achieving a middle ground between conventional economic growth and decreasing wastefulness where third sector organisations (TSOs) are identified as key facilitators. These findings are presented in the form of collaborative re-use models. Conversely, findings also indicate that there are two key reasons behind corporations’ lack of engagement in re-use behaviour. Firstly, there are ambiguities and variations in the understanding of re-use. Secondly, corporations’ primary motivation is to increase profitability, which supersedes any social benefits that are attained through re-use practices. The research concludes that, depending on the type of organisation and the type of materials, engagement in and perceptions of re-use varies. This further indicates that re-use is a complex phenomenon which is in its nascent stages of development, and still far from becoming a norm. The research recommends exploring re-use longevity for future studies.
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