Regional Policy and Sustainable Supply Chains

Martin Rhisiart

Cardiff Business School

Sustainable development

Sustainable development is development that meets the need of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs

Brundtland definition

Sustainable Development and regional policy

Incorporating a medium- to long-term perspective in regional policy making, balancing and making effective use of economic, social and environmental resources

Sustainability & sustainable development

Growing importance attached to sustainable development

Multiple layers of application Global summits, e.g. Johannesburg EU, e.g. EU Sustainable Development

Strategy State Regional

Stimuli for more sustainable products

Regulatory Global EU National Regional

Consumer demands Customer companies-supply chains

Sustainable development

ENVIRONMENT

SOCIETYECONOMY

Regional policy tools & supply chains Regional policy can be a powerful way of

stimulating desired, sustainable outcomes Procurement Channelling support to programmes that

promote sustainability Associations/clusters based on

principles of sustainability Quality standards

Society

Quality of life Skills/employment Relationship with

community

Environment

Waste Use of materials Environmental

management systems, e.g. ISO14001

Company environmental policy

Economy

Best value R&D Strategic planning Intelligence NPD Skills

How can regional policy determine which supply chains are sustainable?

Complexity + Future-oriented decisions

Major challenges for policy-makers!

Technology

Social and economic trends

Non-sustainable scenario?

‘Foreign Direct Investment opportunity’

Low skill, competition on labour cost per unit

Pressure to create employment

Regional financial aid

Production starts...

…3 years later

Difficulties in marketsPressure on parent

company

Closure of production facility

Migration of facility to lower cost economy

Pressure to create employment…

www.sustainableregions.net