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Purpose
Despite the growing interest in the field of supply chain sustainability (SCS), little exploration of new theories exists. Therefore, this paper aims to introduce practice theories to SCS studies through a practice turn.


Design/methodology/approach
This is a conceptual paper in nature. Hence, based on theoretical arguments, the authors elaborate on how the practice turn can arise in the SCS field.


Findings
The theoretical elaboration is rooted in the understanding that sustainability is not limited to the materiality of environmental and social issues, as often observed. Instead, there is a need to include immaterial, emotional and intangible elements to better comprehend SCS practice. The authors argue that a continuum exists for a practice turn, including practice-based view, practice-based studies and critical practice theory.


Research limitations/implications
The authors provide a research agenda with a comprehensive perspective of understanding the application and implications of practice theories to SCS.


Practical implications
The practice turn in SCS studies can support managers to better understand their practices not only through recognizing explicit activities but also mainly by reflecting on hidden elements that affect their performance.


Social implications
SCS studies can better engage with grand challenges through a practice turn, which helps increase its contribution to solving social problems.


Originality/value
Unlike previous literature, the paper elaborates on how practice theories are powerful in supporting both scholars and practitioners in moving away from an extremely economic focus to genuinely embrace sustainability practice. In doing so, the practice turn appears as an important phase for SCS field maturity.

Purpose
The majority of the supply chain sustainability (SCS) literature is based on research perspectives and findings from studies conducted in developed countries. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the current Latin American publications on SCS (2007–2016) to explore whether another perspective exists.


Design/methodology/approach
As part of a structured literature review, 123 peer-reviewed articles published in four Latin American databases were scanned. This literature review was combined with a qualitative content analysis using an inductive and deductive approach to move away from top–down approaches and to illuminate the Latin American perspective on SCS.


Findings
The analysis of the scientific literature demonstrates that the traditional three pillars of sustainability are not enough to understand the specificities of the region. This review shows that cultural and institutional dimensions enhance the understanding of SCS locally. In addition, three major triggers for SCS in Latin American economies were found: green supply chain management practices, local development and stakeholder engagement.


Research limitations/implications
A deeper understanding of the Latin American perspective can support scholars worldwide in developing the field of SCS in relevant directions and in comprehending the specificities of their own countries by infusing cultural and institutional elements into their conceptualisations of SCS.


Originality/value
This paper provides an unexplored perspective on SCS because it analyses Latin American publications and presents a mapping of current SCS issues and research gaps that offers insights to guide future research in the field.

As mídias sociais possibilitam aos usuários manifestar sua compreensão da sociedade, incluindo seu engajamento com movimentos sociais, como o feminismo. Nesse contexto, este estudo objetiva compreender como o perfil de usuárias feministas apresenta o "Eu estendido digital" em relação ao feminismo no Facebook. Para tanto, foi realizada uma pesquisa qualitativa-exploratória a partir de entrevistas com usuários do Facebook que se consideram feministas e documentos gerados a partir de seus perfis. Por meio da análise de conteúdo dos dados coletados, foram identificadas duas categorias: (1) Ações Feministas (Envolvimento; Práticas e Influência do Facebook); e (2) "Eu estendido digital" (Identificação, Diferenciação, Centralização, Perda e Derivação). Os resultados demonstram que para usuárias que se autodeclaram feministas, o Facebook ajudou-as a obter uma identidade feminista mais forte. Para a maioria delas, o seu perfil faz parte de quem são. Estas usuárias também acreditam que derivam um pouco de suas identidades pelo Facebook e que esta mídia pode ser a porta de entrada para o feminismo. Assim, compreende-se que os perfis construídos no Facebook estendem digitalmente o "Eu" para os indivíduos pesquisados. Este estudo busca aprofundamento nas pesquisas relacionadas aos movimentos sociais no contexto virtual e a prática do feminismo no tipo de mídia estudado.

PurposeTo better understand the supplier's role in promoting supply chain sustainability (SCS), the authors investigated the learning process as it relates to sustainability knowledge. Through the lens of the knowledge-based view, they understand the shift of sustainability knowledge from rhetoric to common knowledge existent between suppliers and buyers.Design/methodology/approachA case study method was employed to study sustainability knowledge learning between a key global coffee supplier and its geographically dispersed buyers. The research was developed with data collected from 2019 through 2021. Interviews and secondary data were analyzed using both deductive and inductive approaches.FindingsResults were organized to demonstrate how the supplier developed and transferred its own sustainability knowledge within supplier–buyer dyads. The authors uncovered that buyer selection was a vital strategy used to appropriate the value created to ensure SCS learning. Four learning stages were analyzed, and while the results indicated that all buyers acquired knowledge, they also showed that only four distributed it. Moreover, different levels of interpretation were identified, two of which were associated with a low level of understanding of the meaning of sustainability knowledge. In addition, the data provided little evidence of organizational memory. All links were guided by common sustainability knowledge learned through multiple learning loops between the supplier's knowledge management and buyers' SCS learning, thus boosting sustainability in the coffee supply chain.Practical implicationsA greater understanding of how sustainability knowledge is learned in supply chains helps managers develop better SCS strategies.Originality/valueUnlike previous research, this paper illustrates that common sustainability knowledge is key to SCS implementation, which is made possible by carefully selecting buyers and by facilitating sustainability knowledge learning through two-way interactions.

PurposeAlthough the number of studies that investigate supply chain sustainability learning has increased, little is known about the way sub-suppliers build knowledge and learn sustainability practices. Thus, moving beyond merely investigating the accumulation of knowledge, this research explores sub-suppliers' knowing that supports the learning of sustainability practices in a multi-tiered food supply chain.Design/methodology/approachIn the conduct of this interpretive research in South Brazil, two ethnographies were completed during 74 days of observations to understand similarities and differences between certified and non-certified sub-suppliers with respect to sustainability practices. As part of our research conducted in the context of poultry production, secondary data and data gathered through semi-structured interviews with representatives of the buyer and first-tier supplier firms were used to provide a better comprehension of the multi-tiered supply chain context. Then, we executed an interpretive textual analysis.FindingsOur investigation explored six vignettes to reveal ways of learning sustainability practices in terms of waste management, biosecurity and animal welfare. Although the buyer firm requested these practices, we noted that the first-tier supplier was responsible for translating the practices to sub-suppliers. Moreover, we found that sustainability learning was shaped by the sub-supplier context embodied in knowledge through knowing. The ways of learning were related to sharing knowledge between experts and novices with the support of material practices; however, knowledge was also gained by unlearning some knowledge shared by the supplier. Sustainability practice learning, thus, was performed in a space of learning via knowledge creation among practitioners.Practical implicationsRecognising how sustainability learning happens in a multi-tiered supply chain context can help managers to develop plans to implement sustainability practices that will broaden their sustainability knowledge.Originality/valueUnlike previous studies on supply chain sustainability learning, we reveal ways that sustainability practices emerge from knowledge that results from sub-suppliers' knowing. We also explain how unlearning can consciously occur in several situations of sustainability learning.

PurposeThis article investigates how micro-foundations of sustainability can build supply chain resilience (SCRes). Specifically, by defining supply chains as social-ecological systems, this article explores how sustainability as a supplier capability leads to the transformative development of SCRes capabilities.Design/methodology/approachLongitudinal multi-case studies were developed over the first year of the COVID-19 outbreak. A total of 52 interviews were conducted with managers and employees of 12 global supplier firms as well as associated local cooperative and consultancy managers. Secondary data were also used for triangulation. An inductive approach was used for data analysis to elaborate theory through a metaphor.FindingsNine micro-foundations of sustainability were identified and categorised using the dynamic capabilities steps: sensing, seizing and reconfiguring. They were found to move together with the preparing, responding and transforming steps of SCRes, respectively, and thus to perform as dance partners using our dance performance metaphor. Moreover, ten supplier cases were found to be adopting a transformative social-ecological perspective as they performed all key stages of our dance performance metaphor. The transformations all resulted from either institutional or social sustainability, and the associated micro-foundations generated six main SCRes capabilities, most commonly linking visibility and organisation with institutional and social sustainability respectively.Practical implicationsA deeper understanding of sustainability micro-foundations is provided for supply chain managers to enhance the development of SCRes strategies in preparation for future sustainability-related crises.Originality/valueUnlike previous research, this article explores an intertwined understanding of SCRes and sustainability during a crisis. Through the micro-foundations of sustainability we explain how sustainability capability builds transformative SCRes using a supplier perspective.

PurposeWhile various supply chain (SC) sustainability investigations exist, their connection to supply chain resilience (SCRes) remains largely unexplored. To fill this gap, the authors answer the question: "How do firms' sustainability actions affect their SCs' resilience and sustainability trajectories in turbulent environments?" by exploring the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.Design/methodology/approachThe authors conducted 10 case studies in five industries located in six European countries. A total of 19 semi-structured interviews and relevant secondary data were collected and analyzed in reference to SC sustainability learning and the literature on SCRes approaches (i.e. engineering, ecological and social-ecological).Findings31 SC actions referring to different sustainability dimensions were identified to map SCRes learning through a temporal, spatial and functional scale analysis. While five cases are related to an engineering approach focused on "bouncing back" to pre-pandemic goals, three cases were focused on "bouncing forward" as part of an ecological approach. Moreover, the authors identified the existence of two social-ecological resilience cases which developed long-term actions, updating functional set-ups transcending the SC level. The results furthermore illustrate an influence of the SCRes approaches on SC sustainability learning, generating three different paths: flat, flat ascending and ascending SC sustainability trajectories.Research limitations/implicationsThe study develops an overview of the adoption of SCRes approaches due to temporal, spatial and functional scales, and their effect on SC sustainability trajectories through exploitation and exploration capabilities. Future research should elaborate on potential moderators in the proposed relationships.Practical implicationsA better understanding of the link between SC sustainability actions and SCRes will help practitioners to make better informed decisions in turbulent environments.Originality/valueUnlike previous research, this paper provides empirical evidence on engineering, ecological and social-ecological SCRes approaches, as well as SC sustainability trajectories.

PurposeThis paper explores how organizational capabilities and path dependence affect the implementation of supply chain (SC) sustainability initiatives. Through the lenses of contingency and evolutionary theory, the paper addresses the underexplored supply chain dynamics that enhance or inhibit sustainability trajectories.Design/methodology/approachUsing in-depth multi-case studies for theory elaboration, five supply chains were studied through open-ended interviews with SC members, secondary data collection and site visit observation. The design consists of a combination of deductive and inductive approaches to elaborate theory on supply chain dynamics and enhanced sustainability trajectories.FindingsThe empirical study shows that learning is a fundamental condition for supply chains as they implement sustainability initiatives, and that exploitation capabilities are more frequently used than exploration capabilities. Path dependence plays a role in the outcomes of supply chain sustainability initiatives, which are influenced by both path dependence and contingencies of the contexts in which these systems operate.Research limitations/implicationsThis paper puts forward five propositions that emerge from the literature and from the field study results. Although this is an exploratory research bounded by geographical limitations and the limited number of SC cases, the goal of elaborating theory may open up several promising avenues for future large-scale and longitudinal research studies.Practical implicationsBy enhancing our understanding of the dynamics of supply chain sustainability trajectories, decision-makers, scholars and policy-makers can better understand how supply chains learn, how they employ SC member capabilities and how they deal with stakeholder resistance.Originality/valueThis paper extends supply chain sustainability theory by addressing the knowledge gap that exists with regard to understanding the dynamics of evolving supply chain sustainability trajectories. This paper sheds additional light on this important topic and contributes in multiple ways to the sustainable supply chain management literature.

Purpose
This paper aims to investigate how the extant literature on sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) empirically explores the perspective of emerging economy suppliers operating in global supply chains (GSCs). It thereby explains the role of emerging economy suppliers in determining the success of SSCM.


Design/methodology/approach
A systematic literature review of 41 empirical papers (published between 2007 and 2021) was conducted, involving both descriptive and thematic analyses.


Findings
The findings demonstrate that emerging economy suppliers have a key role in SSCM, given their use of positive feedback loops to proactively create remedies to surpass barriers using their collaboration mechanisms, and exploit authentic sustainability outcomes as reinforcements to drive further sustainability initiatives. The authors also demonstrate that suppliers are particularly focused on the cultural and institutional dimensions of sustainability. Finally, the authors provide an explanatory analytical framework to reduce the institutional distance between buyers and their global suppliers.


Research limitations/implications
This review identifies avenues for future research on the role of emerging economy suppliers in SSCM.


Practical implications
Recognising remedies to surpass barriers and reinforcements to drive new actions can aid SSCM in GSCs and improve understanding between buyers and suppliers.


Social implications
The valorisation of cultural and institutional issues can lead to more responsible supplier interactions and improved sustainability outcomes in emerging economies.


Originality/value
This review only analyses the viewpoint of emerging economy suppliers, whereas prior SSCM reviews have focused on the buyer perspective. Thus, the authors reduce supplier invisibility and institutional distance between GSC participants.