CHAPTER1 INTRODUCTION Consideringthattheworldisfacinggrandchallengesthatrequirecoordinatedandsustained efforttosolve,policymakersareactivelysearchingforwaystoresolvethem(Moreaetal., 2021).Oneoftheproblemsmentionedisclimatechange.Georgeetal.(2016)characterized climatechangeasa‘superwicked’grandchallengeduetothe‘scale,scope,andtimehorizon overwhichmitigationeffortsmusttakeplace,withoutcentralauthority’.Healsoarguesthatthis isanurgentissueforbusinessesasoneofthemaincontributorstothechallengeandthatthey mustcollaboratewithotherexternalactorstomaketheirvisionsforclimatechangecometo fruition. Developingcountries,inparticular,havealwaysgottentheshortendofthestickregarding climatechange'simpact.Theyhaverapidlygrowingeconomiesandofferbusinesseslucrative opportunitiesformarketexpansion,whilealsobeingsomeofthemostimpactedstakeholders environmental-wise(Visser,2009).Thisphenomenonisattributabletotheoffshoringof productiontodevelopingcountriesbydevelopedcountriesduetoeconomicreasonssuchas cheaperlabor,governance,andtransportationcosts.Thefashionindustry,particularlyfast fashion,isamongtheindustriesmostnotoriouslyknownforthephenomenonofoffshoringto countrieswithoutredressingtheenvironmentaldamageithascausedtoitshostcountriesdueto poorwastemanagement(Nguyenetal.,2020). Thisiswherecorporatesocialresponsibility(hereafterreferredtoasCSR)comesintoplayinthe contextofdevelopingcountries.CSRindevelopingcountriesischaracterizedbyimplicitsocial obligationsintheirrespectiveindustriestiedtoculturalnormsaboutcitizenship(Mattenand Moon,2008ascitedinJamali&Karam,2016).ThechallengesforCSRindevelopingcountries maydifferfromthoseindevelopedcountries(Jamali&Karam,2016;Visser,2009).Theformof CSRthattakesplaceisusuallyintheformofcharity,philanthropy,orcommunityservice (Carroll,2016),whichsometimestakesonarolethegovernmentisnotabletoprovide(Visser, 2009). 5 Corporatesocialresponsibilityalone,however,isnotenoughtoaccountforthedamagesthat developingcountrieshavesuffered.Thisiswheretheconceptofcirculareconomy(CE)comes intoplay.Circulareconomyiseconomicsystemthatisastepawayfromthefamiliarlinear economythatassumesinfiniteresourcesbyreducing,reusing,recyclingandrecoveringmaterials inallstagesoftheproductionprocessatvariouslevelssuchrangingfromproducts,companies, consumers,eco-industrialparks,city,region,nationandbeyond,withtheaimtooperationalizes thegoalofsustainabledevelopmentintoimplementablesteps(Kirchherretal.,2017)forthe currentandfuturegenerations.Unfortunately,thelinkbetweenthosetwoconceptshavenotbeen madeclearinliteratureasGeissdoerferclaims(2017,ascitedinKirchherretal.,2017).Some researchershaveputforthworksthattrytorelatecorporatesocialresponsibilitythroughthelens ofcirculareconomysuchasinthemultinationalcosmeticsindustry(Moreaetal.,2021), healthcare(Daúetal.,2019),andagricultureindustry(Fortunatietal.,2020).Therearealready tworeviewarticlesoncirculareconomyandCSRbyDelBaldo&D’Anghela(2020)and Opferkuchetal.(2021)thatcanhelpserveasatheoreticalbasisinthisfield.However,thereis notyetanyresearchthatlinksupcirculareconomybased-CSRwiththefashionindustryin developingcountriesandthoseaforementionedstudiestakeplaceindevelopedcountries. Thisresearchaimstoshedlightontheconnectionbetweencorporatesocialresponsibilityand thecirculareconomyinthecontextofthesustainablefashionindustryoperatingindeveloping countriesthroughfirst-handinsightsandanalysisofprimaryinterviewdata.Theoutcomeofthe researchisaconceptualmodelonhowsustainablefashioncompaniesindevelopingcountries executeCSRpracticesthatalignwiththecirculareconomythatservesasaguidelineforother fashioncompaniestoreplicateinthefuture.Itishopedthatthisresearchcanfillinthegapsin theliteraturebycontributingtomulti-methodresearchonCSRindevelopingcountriesthatonly makeup2.8%oftheliterature(Jamali&Karam,2016).Moreover,itishopedthatthisresearch canoperationalizesustainabledevelopmentintermsofcirculareconomybasedCSRmodelsand haveageneralizablemodelthatisimplementableinvariousindustries.Therefore,thisresearch aimstoanswerthefollowingquestions:(1)thetheoreticallinkbetweentheconceptofCSRand CE;and(2)howfashionfirmsindevelopingcountriesimplementCSRpracticesandits connectionswiththecirculareconomy. 6 CHAPTER2 LITERATUREREVIEW 2.1.Corporatesocialresponsibility(CSR) 2.1.1CSRingeneral CSRisanaspectofdoingbusinessthatcanbetracedbacktoahundredyearsago(Carrolletal. 2012ascitedCarroll,2016)buthasbeengainingtractionsincethe1950s(Carroll,2016).Much literatureexplicatingtheconceptofCSRoriginatesfromtheUnitedStates,althoughits applicationsarefoundinmanyotherpartsoftheworld.Thebookthatwascalledthestartofthe ‘moderneraofCSR’isSocialResponsibilitiesoftheBusinessman1953.Inthe1960smore writersexploredtheconceptanditsapplicationfollowinglandmarksocialmovementshappening intheUnitedStates.Oneofthemostwell-knownmodelsofCSRisCarroll’sCSRPyramid (Visser,2006ascitedinCarroll,2016).Carroll’searlierworksfrom197and1991statethe definitionofCSRtobeasfollows:“corporatesocialresponsibilityencompassestheeconomic, legal,ethical,anddiscretionary(philanthropic)expectationsthatsocietyhasoforganizationsata givenpointintime”.Anumberofempiricalstudieshaveconfirmedthisdefinition’susefulness inresearch(Carroll,2016). TherearefourtiersofthepyramidinCarroll’smodelthatheclarifiesinhislaterworkin2016.It isshapedintheformofapyramidwitheconomicresponsibilityatthebottombecauseit’sthe foundationofallbusinesses.Fromthenupward,therearelegalresponsibility,ethical responsibility,andphilanthropicresponsibility.Businesseshaveaneconomicresponsibilityto societybecausesocietyiswhatsustainsthem.Thiseconomicexpectationcanbethoughtofasa socialresponsibilitybecausesocietyexpectsbusinessestosustainthemselvesbybeingprofitable toincentivizeshareholderstocontinueinvestingandsustaintheiroperations.Legal responsibilityisthelawsandregulationsbusinessesareexpectedtooperateunder.Theselaws andregulationscomefromaplaceofethicalnormsthatarecodifiedandreflectswhatconstitutes fairbusinesspracticesaccordingtolawmakers.Ethicalresponsibilityextendsbeyondlegalones, statingthatbusinessesshouldfollowethicalnorms,standards,andpracticeseventhoughtheyare notexplicitlystatedinthelaw. 7 Thismeansthatbusinessesareexpectedto‘followthespiritofthelaw,notjusttheletterofthe law.Lastly,companieshavephilanthropicresponsibilitieswhicharenotreallyaresponsibility butarepartofsociety’sexpectationstowardsbusinesses.Thesecantaketheformofgiving thingssuchasproductsandservicesdonations,money,communitydevelopment,andmanyother discretionarycontributionstothecommunity. However,differentresearchersarguethatdifferentregionsplacedifferingimportanceonthe pyramidrankings.CraneandMatten(ascitedinCarroll,2016)arguethatalllevelsofCarroll’s pyramidarerelevantinEuropethoughwithdifferentsignificance,andareinterconnected differently.Visser(2009)statesthatthelayersaredifferentfromwhatCarrollwrote.Hecontends thateachregion,country,orcommunityhasdifferentfactorsthatdriveCSR,whichwillbe explainedfurtherinsection1.2. TherearemanywaystoclassifyCSRliterature.Visser(2009)dividesitintothreecategories: CSRliteratureaccordingtotheircontentthemes,analysislevels,andknowledgetypes.With contenttheme,therearefourmaindominantthemesofCSR,whicharesocial,environmental, ethics,andstakeholders,whicharealsothesameclassificationsthatareusedbyLockettetal. (2006).Lockettetal.(2006)alsoclassifyCSRpapersintotheoreticalandempiricalresearch applicabletotheliteratureonCSRindevelopingcountries.However,theynotethatthelatter tendstobeempiricalandqualitativework.Intermsofanalysislevel,CSRliteratureinaglobal andregionalcontextexaminescontinentssuchasAsia,Africa,andLatinAmerica. 8 AccordingtoJamali&Karam(2016),manyofthecomparativeCSRframeworkshavebeen derivedfromInstitutionalTheoriesandWhitley’sNationalBusinessSystem(NBS)which connectsCSRtoabroadercontextofthegovernmentandthemarket,aswellasanalyzing relationshipsbetweenfirmsandinstitutions.CSRcanalsobeclassifiedintotwotypesdrawing fromtheNBStheory.ExplicitCSRisfoundineconomiesliketheUSAwhichcanbeidentified byitslessregulation,moreinitiativetoadoptsocialroles,andformalizedapproachsuchasCSR reporting.ImplicitCSRcanbefoundinsomepartsofEuropeandmaybeapparentindeveloping countriesaswellbecauseitincludes‘perceivedmandatoryand/ortakenforgrantedsocial obligationsresultinginrequirementsforcorporationstoaddressrelevantissuesintheirparticular environments,oftenstemmingfromculturalnormsaboutcitizenshiporstewardship,whichmay besalientindevelopingcountries’(MattenandMoon,2008ascitedinJamali&Karam,2016). However,thereisaquestionofwhetherthepreviousframeworksaresufficienttoexplainorare eventransferabletothecontextofdevelopingcountries.Thisisbecausetheirapplicabilityis rootedinthecontextofdevelopedcountrieswithcoherentinstitutions,functionalmarkets,and stronglaborinstitutions.ThisisconfirmedbyVisser(2009),Jamali&Karam(2016),and Nguyenetal.(2020)sayingthatthechallengesforCSRindevelopingcountriesdifferfrom thoseindevelopedcountries.ThefollowingsectionwilldelvedeeperintoCSRindeveloping countriescontext. 2.1.2CSRindevelopingcountries Intheirpreviouswork,Visseretal.(2007fromVisser,2009)defineCSRindevelopingcountries tomean‘theformalandinformalwaysinwhichbusinessmakesacontributiontoimprovingthe governance,social,ethical,laborandenvironmentalconditionsofthedevelopingcountriesin whichtheyoperate,whileremainingsensitivetoprevailingreligious,historical,andcultural contexts’.However,thedefinitionofdevelopingcountriesitselfissomethingthatishighly debatable.Inthiscontext,Visser(2009)classifiesdevelopingcountriesasnationswithrelatively lowerpercapitaincomesandrelativelylessindustrialized.Inthisresearch,thefollowing definitionsofdevelopingcountriesareusedfromtheUnitedNations(2014). 9 Visser(2009)examinestendriversforCSRindevelopingcountries.Thosedriversareclassified intointernalandexternaldrivers.Internaldriversindicatepressurescomingfromwithinthe country,andexternaldrivershaveglobalorigins.Internaldriversconsistofculturaltradition, politicalreforms,socio-economicpriorities,governancegaps,crisisresponse,andmarketaccess. Externaldriversconsistofinternationalstandardization,investmentincentives,stakeholder activism,andsupplychain. TheliteratureonCSRindevelopingcountriesisrapidlyexpandingasprovenbytheyearin whichnewarticlesarechurnedout.ThefirstnoticeablesurgeofliteratureinCSRindeveloping countrieshappenedduring2005and2009inwhich40%ofthearticlesanalyzedbyJamali& Karam(2016)werepublishedinthisperiod.54%ofthosearticleswerepublishedbetween2010 and2015.Thereare51%focusingonorganizationallevel,13%oninstitutionallevel,9%on individuallevelwhiletherestfocusonmorethanonelevelofanalysis.70%ofthepapers analyzedusesempiricalresearchwith37%qualitative,29%quantitative,and4%mixed methods.Therestareconceptualresearchandreviewarticles. CSRindevelopingcountriestendtobelessformalizedasopposedtodevelopedcountriesthat standardizetheirreporting,exceptforsomehigh-profilemultinationalcompanies.Developing countriescommonlyassociatetheideaofCSRwithphilanthropy,charity,orcommunityservice intheirrespectiveindustriesorfields.Thus,manycorporationstakeonthetasksinwhich governmentsareunabletoprovideforexampleprovidinginfrastructureorschools.CSR practicesarealsoreflectiveofthecollectivistandreligiousvaluesthatmanydeveloping countriesholddear(Visser,2009). 10 2.2.Circulareconomy 2.2.1Circulareconomyingeneral Thecirculareconomyhasgainedmomentumrecentlyamongbothscholarsandpractitioners alike,butthisconceptmaymeandifferentthingstodifferentpeople.Kirchherretal.(2017) dividethecirculareconomyintotwoschoolsofthought:theRframeworksandthesystem perspective.The3RframeworkisamongthemostprominentoftheRframeworkwhichconsists of‘reduce’,‘reuse’,and‘recycle’.TheEuropeanUnionusesthe4RframeworkfortheirWaste FrameworkDirective,adding‘recover’asthefourthR(EuropeanCommission,2008).Other researchershavedevelopedRframeworksbeyond4R,including6R(SihvonenandRitola,2015 dari3CE)andthemostnuanced9R(Pottingetal.,2017). Thesystemperspectivearguesthatacirculareconomynecessitatesafundamentalshiftinthe systeminsteadofincrementalchangeshereandthereinthecurrentsystem.Jacksonetal.(2014) statethatthetransitiontoacirculareconomyneedstohappenatthreelevels:themacro,the meso,andthemicrosystem. Kirchherretal.(2017,p.225-226)proposethefollowingdefinitionofcirculareconomy: “Acirculareconomydescribesaneconomicsystem`thatisbasedonbusinessmodels whichreplacethe‘end-of-life’conceptwithreducing,alternativelyreusing,recycling andrecoveringmaterialsinproduction/distributionandconsumptionprocesses,thus operatingatthemicro-level(products,companies,consumers),meso-level (eco-industrialparks)andmacro-level(city,region,nationandbeyond),withtheaimto accomplishsustainabledevelopment,whichimpliescreatingenvironmentalquality, economicprosperityandsocialequity,tothebenefitofcurrentandfuturegenerations.” 2.2.2Circulareconomy,sustainabledevelopment,andsustainability Therelationshipbetweencirculareconomyandsustainabledevelopmentisthatcircular economyisseenasaconcretewaytooperationalizetheconceptofsustainabledevelopment. Sustainabledevelopmenthasthreepillars:environmentalquality,economicprosperity,and socialequity.However,asGeissdoerferclaimsinhiswork(2017,ascitedinKirchherretal., 11 2017),therelationshipbetweenthosetwoconceptshasnotbeenmadeclearinmanyworksof literature.ThisisconsistentwithKirchherretal.(2017)findingsthatonly13%of114 definitionsofthecirculareconomyrefertoallpillarsofsustainabledevelopment.Thisisnot idealbecauseitmayresultinanunsustainableimplementationofthecirculareconomythatis primarilyusedtopursueeconomicprosperity. TheresearchbyWalkeretal.(2021)isoneofthelatestthattriestoinvestigatehowcompanies engagedincirculareconomypracticeslinkcirculareconomywithsustainabilityconcepts.The resultsshowthatthecirculareconomyisviewedasoneofthepathwaystosustainable developmentintermsoftheenvironment.However,respondentsstillhavedoubtsaboutwhether ornotfirmsbenefiteconomicallyandsociallyfromtheuseofacirculareconomy.Fromthe interviewresults,respondentsagreethatsustainabilityistheoverarchingconceptofcircularity. However,manystillconsiderthedistinction,definition,andoperationalizationofsustainability andcircularityinbusinessoperationsfutile(Walkeretal.,2021). 2.3TheintersectionbetweenCSRandcirculareconomyinliterature:aconceptual framework OnlyahandfulofliteraturetriestolinktheconceptofCSRtothecirculareconomy.Oneofthe mostrecentisbyMoreaetal.(2021)whichfocusesonthemultinationalcosmeticindustry.The researchersusethedefinitionofCSRthatsays‘improvementsineconomicperformance, operationalefficiency,higherquality,innovation,andcompetitivenesswhichmakesbusinesses sociallyandenvironmentallyresponsiblewithoutsacrificingprofit’,adefinitionthattheyargue hasbroughtCSRtogetherwithsustainabilityandenvironmentalissuesandthuscircular economybyvirtue.Theyusedthe9RmodelbyPottingetal.,(2017)forthecirculareconomy concept.Theirfindingsreportthatsevenmultinationalcosmeticcompaniesshowsimilarityin theirCSRstrategiesandare‘onaverageorientedtowardscircularity’eventhoughonlylessthan halfareconsideringchangingtheirtraditionalbusinessmodel.Thegeneralizabilityofthestudy isinquestionbecauseitsfindingsmaybelimitedtocosmeticcompaniessincethelensthatis usedtoanalyzeCSRreportsisspecificallyforcosmeticproduction. 12 Someresearchershaveputforthworksthattrytorelatecorporatesocialresponsibilitythrough thelensofcirculareconomysuchasinthemultinationalcosmeticsindustry(Moreaetal.,2021), healthcare(Daúetal.,2019),andagricultureindustry(Fortunatietal.,2020).Therearealready tworeviewarticlesoncirculareconomyandCSRbyDelBaldo&D’Anghela(2020)and Opferkuchetal.(2021)thatcanhelpserveasatheoreticalbasisinthisfield. AccordingtoDelBaldo&D’Anghela(2020),previouscontributionshavenotinvestigatedthe relationshipbetweentheconceptofCE,GreenEconomyandBioeconomicinrelationtoCSR. BothD’Amatoetal.(2017)andKirchherretal.(2017)alsopointedoutaweakframeofsocietal aspectswithintheCEandotherconcepts.ThisiswhereCSRcancomeinandcontributetothe conceptofCEsothatitbecomesmoresociallyrelevant. ThefigureabovedepictsaconceptualframeworkforthisresearchCSR,circulareconomy, sustainabledevelopment,andsustainability.Circulareconomyisanattempttomoveawayfrom lineareconomy,whichischaracterizedbyproducing,using,anddismissingmaterials.Thefigure alsoexpandsontheconceptofcirculareconomythatKirchherretal.(2017)haveclarifiedin theirwork,whichistodividethedefinitionofcirculareconomyintotheRperspectiveandthe 13 systemsperspective,andlinkscirculareconomyasmeanstoreachsustainabledevelopmentas theendgoal.Thefiguredepictssustainabledevelopmentasthetheoreticalbridgebetweenthe conceptofCSRandcirculareconomybecausebothareconceptsthatleadtosustainable development(Ebner&Baumgartner,2006). 14 CHAPTER3 METHODOLOGY 3.1.DataCollection Thesubjectofthisresearcharecompaniesinthefashionindustry.Thereisatrendgoingonin thefashionindustryeversincethelate20thcentury,whichistooffshoreproductionto developingcountries.Thistrendmayhavehadpotentialbenefitsforeitherpartyinvolved:it bringsjobopportunitiestodevelopingcountrieswhilealsoservingasameansofcutting companycosts.However,thiscomesatcostsnotexpressedeconomically,suchasthreatening workers’livelihoodduetopoorworkingconditions,laborissuesinvolvingchildlaborandlow wages,andtheenvironmentalimpactsthatcomefrompoorwastemanagement,growingcotton withpesticides,andexcessivewaterusage(Nguyenetal.,2020).Thus,thereisincreasing momentumforresearchthatmayresultinunderstandinghowthefashionindustrycouldbe transformed. Thesamplingselectionfollowsthenon-probabilityorpurposivesamplingwhichmeans choosingsamplesthatfitcertainresearchcriteria.Thechosenapproachofpurposivesamplingis heterogeneousormaximumvariationsamplinginordertoidentify“centralthemeswhichcut acrossthevarietyofcasesorpeople”(Maruster,2013).Pastresearchservesastheguidetohow manysamplesareideal.Moreaetal.(2021)analyzedsecondarydataofsevencompanies’CSR reports.Esken,Franco-García,&Fisscher(2018)interviewedthreecompanies,althoughthe interviewservedasawaytocomplementtheirquantitativefindings.Ahundredfashion companiesfromvariousdevelopingcountriesarecontactedthroughmeanslikeemail, WhatsApp,Instagram,andLinkedIn.Belowisatabledepictingtherespondents. 15 Thematicinterviewrepresentsaso-calledsemi-structuredinterviewmethod.Ithas characteristicsfrombothopen-endedandstructuredinterviews.Semi-structuredinterviews enableacasualandinformalatmospherewhilestillincludingtheelementofexhaustivenessand beingsystematic.Thethemesoftheinterviewaredecidedinadvanceandarebasedoncareful familiarizationofthestudytopic.Thesituationaimstobeconversational,andtheconversation shouldflowasfreelyaspossible.Thecomprehensivenessisenabledbyaskingopen-ended questions,usuallystartingwithwords‘what’and‘how’.Asthefocusofthethematicinterview ismoreonthefreeconversationaboutthepre-decidedthemes,theinterviewscanhavevariations betweeneachother.Forinstance,theorderofthequestionsineachthemecanchangebetween interviews.Inaddition,thedepthofreflectionofeachthememayvaryaccordingtothe responsesoftheinterviewees(Maruster,2013).Alloftheinterviewswereconductedviathe internetandaudiorecorded.TheresultsarehandledwithAtlas.tisoftwareafteritistranscribed. 3.2.Dataanalysis 16 Thisthesisadoptsacombinationofinductiveanddeductivemethodsforanalyzingtheinterview data.Aconceptualframeworklinkingthekeyconceptsandthepresumedrelationshiphasbeen establishedinsection2.3whichalsoactsasabaselineincreatingacodingframeworkasshown intable2thatisdevelopedbothdeductivelyfromthepreliminaryliteraturereviewinchapter2 andinductivelyalongthecourseoftheanalysis.Developinganapriorilistofcodesisalsothe 17 approachthatKirchherretal.(2017)undertookwhencodingdefinitionsofcirculareconomy. Kirchherretal.alsocombinedthedeductivecodeswithinductiveonesthatdevelopduringthe codingprocess. ThecodingframeworkonTable2combinedtheoriesfromKirchherretal.(2017),Visser(2009), andDahlsrud(2008).The‘circulareconomy’andthe‘CSRdefinitions’sectionrefinedthe codingframeworkdevelopedbyKirchherretal.(2017)andDahlsrud(2008)respectivelytosuit thepurposeofthisresearch.The‘internal’and‘externaldriversofCSR’sectionsusedthe theoriesofthedriversofCSRindevelopingcountriesfromVisser(2009).Usingcoding frameworksfrompreviousresearchisalsousefulinimprovingtheconstructvalidityofthis research(Maruster,2013). AppendixAdetailstheinterviewquestionsforthisresearch,whichconsistsoftwotopicswhich are“CSR”and“circulareconomy”,whicharethendividedintosmallersub-topicsaskingthe intervieweestheirviewofCSRandcirculareconomy,howtheypracticeCSRandcircular economy,alongwiththeirviewoftheconnectionofrespectivetopicswiththeircompanyvalues andsustainability.Thesection“Coreprinciples”,“Enabler”,and“CSRPyramid”ofTable2will beusedtoanalyzethefirms’formofCSRpractices.“Aims”willbeusedtoanalyzewhetherthe aimofconductingthoseCSRpracticesalignwiththeelementsofsustainabledevelopment. “Definitions”willbeusedtoanalyzehowtheintervieweesdefineCSR,while“Internal”and “ExternaldriversofCSR”willbeusedtolookatwhatdrivesthesefirmstoconducttheir respectiveCSRpractices.TheperceivedrelationshipbetweenCE,CSR,sustainability,and sustainabledevelopmentinthepointofviewofthesecompanieswillbeanalyzedusing inductivecodingbecausetherehasbeennodeductivecodingdevelopedfrompriorresearch.The useofdeductivecodinginthiscasewillnotclosethepossibilityofthemesdevelopingfrom inductivereasoningsimilartowhathadbeendonebyKirchherretal.(2017). 18 CHAPTER4 RESULTS 4.1.PerceiveddefinitionofCSRbyfashionfirmsindevelopingcountries Allthefirmsidentifyasasmalltomediumenterprise,andtwoofthefirmsidentifyasasocial enterprise,whicharebusinesseswhoseobjectivesareprimarilytoalsosupportsocialcauses (Corneliusetal.,2007).Threeofthemdonotseewhattheydoasabusinesstofallunderthe categoryofCSR,becausethereiscommonperceptionthatonlylargercorporationsdocorporate socialresponsibility,asIntervieweeCputsit,“Corporatesocialresponsibilityisforthebig company,whichisfullycommerciallyoriented,andtheyspend10%oftheirtimeonsocial projects.”Thesocialenterprisefoundersinparticulardon'tidentifywhattheydooutsideof fulfillingeconomicresponsibilitiesasCSRbecausetheyseeitasbeingintegratedtotheircore valueasabusiness.ThismaybeexplainedbyVisser(2009)statingthatCSRindeveloping countriesismuchlessformalizedbecauseformalCSRbenchmarks,standards,andreportsare onlycommonlyfollowedbymultinationalcompanies.Inthiscase,thechallengewasto determinewhichactionsfallunderthecategoryofCSRandwhichdoesnot,whichissolvedby askingprobingquestions(Maruster,2013),andreferringbacktothedefinitionofCSRin developingcountriesthatthispaperusesfromVisseretal.(2007fromVisser,2009). 19 4.2.Therelationshipbetweenfashionfirms’CSRpracticesandcirculareconomy Tableabovedisplayscodingresultsfromfirms’CSRpracticesgroupedintotheelementsof circulareconomyalongwithquotesfrominterviewees.Allfirmsshowbothimplicitandexplicit referencetosomedimensionsofthe4Rframeworkwhichconsistsofreducing,reusing, 20 recycling,andrecovering,andindicateconsciousdecisionstointegrate4RintotheirCSR practices. Allfourfirmsdiscussreducingresourceuseandpreservingnaturalcapital,whichhasthemost quotations.Theydothisbyproducinglimitedcollections,designingproductswithalong lifetime,usingnaturaldyes,andminimizingpackaging.Reusingistheleastcommonelementof circulareconomy,onlymentionedtwiceinthecodingprocessandthequotesarerelatedtothe founders’understandingofcirculareconomyasopposedtotheirCSRpractices.Recyclingisthe secondmostcommonelementofthecirculareconomythatisrelatedtofirms’CSRpractices. MostfirmshaveCSRpracticesthatinvolveturningscrapsofclothingwasteintoavarietyof itemsrangingfromfashionitemssuchassmallbags,shoes,accessories,andeventoproduce newcollections,tonon-fashionitemssuchasbeanbagsanddolls.Threeoutoffourofthefirms selltheproductsmadefromclothingscraps.FirmsCrunsaCSRprojectwhichsellsthedolls fromclothingandusestheproceedsfromtheretorunawomenempowermentorganization undertheguidanceoftheUnitedNations.Recoveringonlyhasthreequotes,andisonlyfoundin FirmBandD.FirmB’smanufacturerrunstheclothingscrapsthroughrecyclingmillstocreate newmaterialfromtheremnants.FirmDproducesecoprintfashionwhichisamethodof transferringthenaturalpatternsandcolorsofleavesontoasheetofcloth(DS&Alvin,2019).At theendoftheimprintingprocesstheorganicwasteisthenturnedintoeco-enzymes. NoneofthefirmsexplicitlyreferencetheirCSRpracticesandrelateittothecirculareconomyas asystem.However,bothFirmsBandDmakeimplicitreferencestomicro-systemsperspective andmacro-systemsperspective,butnotmeso-systemsperspective.Bothfirmsreference micro-systemsbysayingthattheremustbenecessarychangesinproductmaterialslike“using organicmaterial”assaidbyFirmB.FirmDalludedtothefactthateachfirmmustbe responsiblefordealingwiththeirownwasteinawaythatisbeneficialtotheenvironment. Therearetwoenablersofthecirculareconomywhicharebusinessmodelsandconsumers.Firms AandBaspiretotransformtheirbusinessmodeltoarentalmodelinwhichtheyproducea selectionofclothingandrentthemouttopeopleasanalternativetoabusinessmodelthat satisfiesconsumerdemandwithoutproducingexcessivelyandhurtingtheenvironment. 21 IntervieweeAsaid,“But,3dressescansatisfytheneedsof100peopleandthenyouhavesaved 97dressesfrombeingproduced.Andyou’llstillmakethemoney.”FirmBalsocommunicates itsplanstoopenaresaleplatformforpeoplewhohavepurchasedfromthemcanreselltheir secondhandclothesonthoseplatforms.FirmB’sideaisstillalongthelinesofgivingcustomers aplatformtoreturntheirwell-wornclothesbutinexchangeforstorecreditsandcitesthatthe longertheclothesarekeptthemorestorecreditsgiven.Firmsalsociteconsumersasadriving factorbehindtheirideastocreateproductsmadefromrecycledmaterialsbecause,asInterviewee Bputsit,“especiallynowtherecycledmaterialsarecomingintojustabit–alotmoretrendy now,”whichIntervieweeDalsoechoes. Allfirmsexpresssomedegreeofalignmentinsomedimensionsofsustainabledevelopment whichareenvironmentalquality,economicprosperity,andsocialequity,alongwithreferencing careforfuturegenerations.Allfirmsexpressconcernstowardstheenvironmentasmotivations thatguidetheirbusinesspractices.However,noneofthefirmsexplicitlyreferenceeconomic prosperitywhichisto“maintain,protect,and/orrestoretheeconomy”asastandalonegoalto achievebyconductingCSRpractices.Ifany,theseexpressionsareintertwinedwithexpressions ofachievingsocialequityasshownbywhatIntervieweeAsaid,“Soitwillalwaysbelinkedto thedevelopmentofmycompanybutIthinkitwillbeamixbetweenthesocialandeconomic sideofit.”Firmsdiscussmakingconsciouschoicesonbusinessdecisionsleadingtosocial equity,forexamplebychoosingtosetupproductionlinesincountrieswithdireneedofjobs, andchoosingtoworkwithgrassroot-levelfirmsasopposedtolargerfirmswhengiventhe optionofworkingwitheitherofthem.Twointervieweesexpressexplicitcareforfuture generations,onewhiledescribingwhatcorporatesocialresponsibilitymeanstothem,andone whiledescribingtheirmotivesofestablishingasocialbusiness. 4.3.Theoreticallinksbetweencirculareconomyandcorporatesocialresponsibilityin thecontextofdevelopingcountries Afterestablishingtheconnectionbetweenfourfirms’CSRactivitiesandtheelementsofcircular economy,Tableabovedisplaysthetheoreticallinksbetweentheelementsofcirculareconomy 22 andcorporatesocialresponsibilityintheformofacorrelationtable,whichisanapproachD. Moreaetal.(2021)usedintheirstudies. UnderKirchherretal.’scirculareconomydefinition(2017),reducingshouldbeprioritizedover otherRsfollowingthewastehierarchybecausecirculareconomyshouldalsobeaboutchangein modeofoperationandproductmaterialsorthemicro-systemsperspective(Gharfalkaretal. 2015).Aconcernthattheybroughtupisthatreducingisfoundtohavelostprominenceintheir definitionanalysis.Thispaper’sfindingansweredtheconcernbecausereducingisthemost mentionedbyintervieweesastheconsciousCSRactionstheytaketosupportsustainable developmentgoals.However,thismayalsobeattributedtothefactthattwointerviewees identifiedthemselvesasacirculareconomypractitionerwhichindicatespriorfamiliaritywith howcirculareconomyworks.