Stakeholders and their interactions are important to accelerate circular economy and sustainability transitions. To better understand this phenomenon, Anil Engez explored various stakeholders and their activities in an urban living lab, in a company that produces healthy foods and beverages, and in an educational setting that uses different methods to promote circular economy and sustainability.
There are many methods through which various stakeholders can contribute to innovation for circular economy and sustainability. One of these methods is urban living labs where different types of stakeholders gather in sustainability projects and come up with solutions for different challenges with a special focus on users. The dissertation explores urban living labs’ role in innovation development and urban sustainability.
“Living labs and the projects involved act as innovation platforms to cooperate and co-create innovations. The key is to create a platform where different actors can share their ideas and collaborate. This could be within a company, through a concept such as a living lab, or in an educational setting”, Engez points out.
The dissertation also reveals different circular economy innovations including product, service, process, and business model innovations.
“By looking at these circular economy innovation examples, companies can understand better what type of innovations they want to focus on developing, the value of their innovations, and the sustainability issues that these innovations address”, Engez says.
The goal of the dissertation is to understand the type of stakeholders involved and their activities when organizations aim to develop innovations for sustainability and circular economy. The dissertation identifies key stakeholders and their activities in different innovation settings, shedding light on how they can contribute to the development of regions, innovations, and economic activity while prioritizing Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Public defence on Friday 26 January
The doctoral dissertation of M.Sc. (Tech) Anil Engez in the field of industrial engineering and management titled Stakeholder Contributions to Innovation Development: Studies in the Circular Economy and Sustainability Fields will be publicly examined at the Faculty of Management and Business of Tampere University at 12 o’clock on Friday 26 January 2024 at Hervanta campus, Festia, Pieni Sali 1 (Korkeakoulunkatu 8, Tampere). The Opponent will be Professor Anna-Greta Nyström from Åbo Akademi University. The Custos will be Professor Leena Aarikka-Stenroos from the Faculty of Management and Business.
The doctoral dissertation is available online.
The public defence can be followed via a remote connection.
Photograph: Jussi Valta