A Bibliometric Analysis on Cooperatives in Circular Economy and Eco-Innovation Studies

Abstract

Cooperatives address societal challenges embracing values beyond mere profit-oriented production. Considering the ongoing shift to achieve efficient use of resources and increased circularity, cooperatives should be better equipped to incorporate circular economy (CE) and eco-innovation (EI) into their strategies (compared to regular enterprises). This paper reviews the scholarly literature focusing on the application of CE and EI within cooperative studies with the aim to understand the relationships between these topics, identify the existing scholarly communities, and to observe salient research themes. This study refined the method of van den Hoven and Rubalcaba (2016) to conduct a two-step bibliographic review of documents: a thematic analysis of citation data from Scopus (including a manual review of 16 papers) was followed by a bibliometric analysis of 101 documents from Web of Science (using R-Studio’s Biblioshiny). Our results identified three intellectual clusters of cooperative studies focusing on the downstream of CE: (1) industrial ecology; (2) recycling; and (3) waste management. Our study also revealed an emerging scholarly field focused on cooperatives and CE, and with little attention to EI. These findings aim at catalyzing the integration of cooperatives more effectively into scholarly discussions, suggesting that environmental sustainability should be recognized as an additional principle of the cooperative identity—providing a wider perspective that enhances interest in the research of these topics and their interconnections.

Study Trends and Core Content Trends of Research on Enhancing Computational Thinking: An Incorporated Bibliometric and Content Analysis Based on the Scopus Database

“…The bib file was downloaded to be used for data analysis by applying Biblioshiny from R-Studio with version 4.1.1 on 10 August 2021. Before uploading the data to Biblioshiny, the data were merged into a single bib file for using R-Studio, a development environment integrated with the R language [57]. Following this, the shiny application Biblioshiny, which provides a web interface for the bibliometric R-package [55], was utilized for data analysis.…”

Navigating the Eco-Design Paradox: Criteria and Methods for Sustainable Eco-Innovation Assessment in Early Development Stages

“…In addition to the eco-innovation guidance, the Défi-Ino experiment shows that, from the early stage of project development, it is possible for FITs to screen projects to finance those that seem most economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable. Nevertheless, the auditor's knowledge and skills are crucial in accurately and effectively assessing eco-innovation, as highlighted in the literature [2,39,53]. Therefore, it is important to have strict criteria when selecting experts for the eco-innovation diagnostic process, whatever the method is for assessing eco-innovation.…”

Exploring the Landscape of Eco-Innovation: A Bibliometric Analysis of Concepts and Trends in the Manufacturing and Shipbuilding Industries

“…Mart-inho and Mourao [17] delved into the concept of circular economy, recognizing the role of EI in achieving sustainable economic development and suggesting exploring the concept in business linkage networks and transition measurement mechanisms. Chaparro-Banegas et al [18], Guerreschi and Lopez [19], Sumakaris et al [20], and Sanni and Verdolini [21] studied EI relating to regional and national innovation systems, open eco-innovation, and eco-innovation in cooperative enterprises. These bibliometric explorations of EI examined the benefits in the regional economy, changes in policies to develop models of social and economic transition, the mode of technological acquisition and knowledge by small-and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in open innovation processes, the existing relationship between social reasons and organizational visions for the adoption of EI, and the interaction among economic actors that allows the creation and development of EI.…”