About the Journal

Aims, Scope, and Core Areas

SBD is rooted in the intersections of business studies, development economics, environmental management, and public policy, seeking to transcend the traditional dichotomy between “economic efficiency” and “social responsibility” in business research. The journal’s fundamental position is that sustainability is not a peripheral concern for business but a core dimension that contemporary business research must internalise. We encourage authors to build creative dialogues between rigorous academic analysis and real-world policy and corporate practice concerns, and especially welcome high-quality submissions in the following areas:

Sustainable Strategy and Business Models

• Design, innovation, and transformation of sustainable business models

• Circular economy business practices: from linear to closed-loop value chains

• Sharing economy, platform economy, and sustainable value creation

• Business valuation of natural capital and ecosystem services markets

• Sustainable competitive advantage and green strategy

• Business model resilience and climate adaptability

• Regenerative business models and moving beyond “net zero”

Corporate Social Responsibility and ESG

• Theory, practice, and critique of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

• Measurement, evaluation, and limitations of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) indicators

• ESG investing, green finance, and sustainable capital markets

• Corporate philanthropy, social investment, and shared value

• Stakeholder theory in sustainable business

• ESG disclosure: transparency, greenwashing, and regulation

• Historical evolution and cross-national comparison of corporate responsibility

Sustainable Supply Chains and Operations Management

• Green supply chain management and closed-loop supply chains

• Sustainable procurement, supplier auditing, and supply chain human rights protection

• Carbon footprint accounting, life cycle assessment, and product environmental labelling

• Labour rights, modern slavery, and fair trade in supply chains

• Circular operations: remanufacturing, recycling, and industrial symbiosis

• Sustainability in digital supply chains

• Food supply chains and sustainable agricultural business

Green Finance and Sustainable Investment

• Impact investing, socially responsible investing, and ESG funds

• Green bonds, climate bonds, and transition finance

• Carbon markets, carbon pricing, and corporate carbon asset management

• Climate financial risk and corporate financial resilience

• Sustainable banking, insurance, and inclusive finance

• Nature-related financial disclosure (TNFD) and biodiversity finance

• Barriers and pathways for green investment in developing economies

Climate Action and Corporate Transformation

• Corporate climate strategies, carbon neutrality commitments, and decarbonisation pathways

• Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) and corporate emissions reduction practices

• Corporate management of climate risk: physical risk and transition risk

• Business opportunities and challenges in the renewable energy transition

• Climate litigation, climate liability, and corporate compliance

• Workforce transition and just transition in the net-zero economy

• The role and responsibility of business in global climate governance

Sustainable Entrepreneurship and Social Innovation

• Business models and scaling strategies of social enterprises

• Environmental entrepreneurship (ecopreneurship) and green entrepreneurship

• Inclusive entrepreneurship: business opportunities at the base of the pyramid

• Construction and governance of social innovation ecosystems

• Incentives and constraints for impact-oriented entrepreneurial investment

• Women’s entrepreneurship, youth entrepreneurship, and economic empowerment of marginalised groups

• Sustainable entrepreneurship education and capacity building

Sustainable Marketing and Consumer Behaviour

• Green marketing, ethical marketing, and sustainable brand strategies

• Sustainable consumption behaviour: motivations, barriers, and behaviour change

• Consumer acceptance of green products and willingness to pay premiums

• Anti-greenwashing regulation and green claims certification

• Social norms, cultural values, and sustainable lifestyles

• Sustainability narratives and influence communication in digital marketing

• Sharing consumption, second-hand markets, and dematerialisation trends

Sustainable Human Resource Management

• Green human resource management strategies and practices

• Employee green behaviour: enabling factors and organisational support

• Sustainable work design, well-being, and job quality

• Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) business practices and outcomes

• Workforce retraining and employment security in the just transition

• Sustainable leadership: ethical leadership and responsible leadership

• Organisational mechanisms for employee engagement in sustainability initiatives

Business Ethics and Governance

• Ethical foundations of sustainable business: from utilitarianism to care ethics

• Corporate governance and the integration of sustainability goals

• Board sustainability oversight and accountability mechanisms

• Anti-corruption, business integrity, and compliance systems

• Ethical responsibilities of multinational corporations in global value chains

• Legalisation of sustainability disclosure and corporate governance reform

• Shareholder activism and sustainable governance

Development Economics and Inclusive Growth

• The role of sustainable business in developing economies

• Business and poverty alleviation: potential and limits of inclusive business models

• Green transition barriers and policy support for SMEs in developing countries

• The informal economy and its interface with sustainable business

• Foreign direct investment, technology transfer, and sustainable development

• Fair trade, community enterprises, and local economic development

• Business contributions and limitations in implementing the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Sustainable Innovation and R&D

• Green technology innovation, diffusion, and path dependence

• Eco-design and sustainable product development

• Clean technology, energy storage, and breakthrough innovation

• Sustainable R&D collaboration: university-industry alliances and open innovation

• Intellectual property, technology sharing, and sustainability trade-offs

• Synergies and conflicts between digital transformation and sustainability

• Biotechnology, new materials, and sustainable development

Policy Environment and Institutional Frameworks

• Policy instruments for sustainable business: carbon taxes, subsidies, and regulation

• International trade rules and sustainable business

• Industrial policy and corporate response under dual-carbon targets

• Industry standards, certification, and self-regulation for sustainable business

• Corporate compliance in central-local policy coordination

• Corporate roles and private governance in global governance transformation

• Sustainable public procurement and business opportunities

Methodological and Interdisciplinary Perspectives

• Mixed-methods designs in sustainable business research

• Statistical methods and big data analytics for ESG indicators

• Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Social Life Cycle Assessment (SLCA) methods

• System dynamics and scenario planning for sustainable business

• Field experiments, randomised controlled trials, and policy evaluation

• Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) in sustainable business research

• Interdisciplinary perspectives: dialogues between business and environmental science, ecological economics, and political ecology

Interdisciplinary Dialogue
SBD consistently welcomes boundary-crossing scholarship from economics, management, sociology, environmental science, political science, law, anthropology, geography, engineering, communication studies, public policy, and related fields, provided it carries a clear connection to sustainable business.