Management International Review - Call for Papers: Focused Issue on “Multinational Enterprises and their Role in Mitigating Climate Change: Comparative Perspectives”
Guest Editors:
Zaheer Khan (University of Aberdeen, UK)
Geoffrey Wood (Western University, Canada)
Huda Khan (University of Aberdeen, UK)
Pushyarag Puthusserry (University of Kent, UK)
Jie Wu (University of Aberdeen, UK)
Omar Al-Tabbaa (University of Leeds, UK)
Background and Rationale for the Focused Issue
This focused issue aims to advance both theoretical and empirical knowledge about the relationship between multinational enterprises (MNEs) and climate change (including when and where the former act as driver or mitigator), which has been seldom systematically examined but has become one of the most important issues to explore. There is an emerging body of work on MNEs relationship with energy transitions and climate change (Doh, Budhwar and Wood, 2021; Huang, Kerstein and Wang, 2018; Kanagaretnam, Lobo and Zhang, 2022; Kolk and Pinkse, 2008; Pinkse and Kolk, 2012). This focused issue invites scholarly work on this increasingly important topic which lies at the intersections of political economy, law, international management, innovation and the public policy aspects of climate change and the role of MNEs, including comparative studies on developed market multinationals, emerging markets’ multinationals, and state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in this regard. Contributions about such relationships, determinants, and consequences are encouraged and studies adopting different levels of analysis, including the firm, market, industry, and state actors are welcome.
It is increasingly recognized that climate change is the greatest single challenge facing governments and firms, specifically MNEs (Buckley et al., 2017; Huang et al., 2018; Kolk and Van Tulder, 2010; Wilson, 1981). Discussing the significance of climate change, Buckley et al., (2022) argue that climate change may disrupt globalisation. Accordingly to grapple with the challenges posed by climate change, an emerging body of work has highlighted the relationship between national institutional configurations and the relative propensity of firms to adopt renewable energy (Doh et al., 2021; Wood et al., 2019). Scholars have highlighted the important role of business organizations, public, private, and not-for-profit, in the climate change challenges (cf. Howard-Grenvile, Buckle, Hoskins and George, 2014; Wright and Nyberg, 2017), as they not only are the most important contributors to ever-increasing carbon emissions (Heede, 2014), but offer innovative approaches to adapt and mitigate the climate change challenges (Doh et al., 2021; Pinkse and Kolk, 2012). As MNEs cross national boundaries, their propensity to promote greener technologies will reflect both country of origin and domicile pressures, as well as strategic choices. Despite its significance, over decades, the topic has received relatively limited attention in the international management and organization literature (Howard-Grenvile et al. 2014; Huang et al., 2018; Kanagaretnam et al., 2022; Wright and Nyberg, 2017).
There is also limited research on examining the role of MNEs in terms of exacerbating or mitigating climate change in their home and host markets (Wang, Wijen and Heugens, 2018). Wang et al. (2018) note that government bodies can have a direct influence on the corporate environmental practices of firms particularly from emerging markets. Popular press (e.g., The Economist, 2019) has noted that countries that are more exposed to climate change face a higher cost of capital. Many economies of Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America are particularly vulnerable to severe climate change and have faced drought, including high levels of direct pollution and extreme weather conditions, all of which affect their economic development and quality of life. It has further been noted that firms from more coordinated markets are more inclined to embrace renewable energy sources, whilst there are strong counter-movements against the abandonment of hydrocarbons in the case of firms from liberal markets (Wood et al., 2019). Thus, examining MNEs and their role in mitigating climate change offers important opportunities in advancing the knowledge on the strategies that are effective in addressing climate change in different markets.
Illustrative Topics and Research Questions
Papers for the focused issue could address any of the following questions and topics by adopting comparative perspectives:
- How do MNEs address climate change in their home and host markets?
- Counter tendencies of multinationals abandoning efforts at climate change mitigation.
- How do home and host governments’ policies and concerns impact MNEs’ institutional orientation towards sustainability and climate change related challenges?
- How do MNEs manage and adapt their corporate strategies and mitigate climate change?
- How do institutions in countries of origin and domicile influence the strategic choices of MNEs in mitigating climate change?
- How could MNEs incorporate climate-related strategies in their foreign markets’ entry mode decisions?
- Do MNEs possess the necessary resources and technologies to address climate change related risks?
- What is the role of artificial intelligence and climate-related technologies in the mitigation of climate change by MNEs across different markets?
- What is the role of MNEs in addressing climate change-related issues within their extended value chains?
- How do MNEs adapt their value chain governance, coordination, and risk-mitigation arrangements to anticipate and respond to climate change challenges?
- How do MNEs innovate their decision-making, forecasting, and planning approaches to address climate change?
- What is the role of managers and board of directors of MNEs in mitigating climate change?
- What is the impact of climate change on MNEs’ entry mode choices and divestment?
- How do MNEs use management control systems in addressing climate change?
- How do governments, industry associations, MNEs and society mobilize resources and navigate the climate change related challenges?
- How can MNEs and emerging markets’ multinational enterprises embrace business model innovation as a mechanism for tackling climate change challenges? How can such a process deliver sustainable value while accounting for potential trade‐offs?
- Theorizing MNEs and the long energy transition: existing theoretical tensions and new departures/approaches towards climate change mitigation strategies.
Submission Guidelines
Papers for this focused issue should be prepared in accordance with the MIR’s submission guidelines available at:
Papers should be submitted directly to the guest editors at ecommibpol@gmail.com by December 20, 2024. All papers will go through the MIR regular double-blind review process.
References
Buckley, P. J., Doh, J. P. and Benischke, M. H. (2017). Towards a renaissance in international business research? Big questions, grand challenges, and the future of IB scholarship. Journal of International Business Studies, 48(9), 1045–1064.
Buckley, P. J., Strange, R., Timmer, M. P. and de Vries, G. J. (2022). Rent appropriation in global value chains: The past, present, and future of intangible assets, Global Strategy Journal, 12(4), 679-696.
Doh, J., Budhwar, P. and Wood, G. (2021). Long-term energy transitions and international business: Concepts, theory, methods, and a research agenda. Journal of International Business Studies, 52(5), 951-970.
Economist (2019). Countries most exposed to climate change face higher costs of capital, 15/08/2019.
Heede, R. (2014). Tracing anthropogenic carbon dioxide and methane emissions to fossil fuel and cement producers, 1854–2010. Climatic Change, 122, 229–241.
Howard-Grenville, J., Buckle, S. J., Hoskins, B. J. and George, G. (2014). Climate Change and Management, Academy of Management Journal, 57(3), 615-623.
Huang, H.H., Kerstein, J. and Wang, C. (2018). The Impact of Climate Risk on Firm Performance and Financing Choices: An International Comparison. Journal of International Business Studies, 49(5), 633-656.
Kanagaretnam, K., Lobo, G. and Zhang, L. (2022). Relationship between climate risk and physical and organizational capital. Management International Review, 62(2), 245-283.
Kolk, A. and Pinkse, J. (2008). A perspective on multinational enterprises and climate change: Learning from “an inconvenient truth”?. Journal of International Business Studies, 39(8), 1359-1378.
Kolk, A. and Van Tulder, R. (2010). International business, corporate social responsibility and sustainable development, International Business Review, 19(2), 119-125.
Pinkse, J. and Kolk, A. (2012). Multinational enterprises and climate change: Exploring institutional failures and embeddedness. Journal of International Business Studies, 43(3), 332-341.
Wang, R., Wijen, F. and Heugens, P. P. (2018). Government's green grip: Multifaceted state influence on corporate environmental actions in China. Strategic Management Journal, 39(2), 403-428.
Wilson, L.S. (1981). The world's changing climate —some issues for planners. Long Range Planning, 14(5), 83-89.
Wood, G., Finnegan, J.J., Allen, M.L., Allen, M., Cumming, D., Johan, S., Nicklich, M., Endo, T., Lim, S. and Tanaka, S. (2019). The comparative institutional analysis of energy transitions. Socio-Economic Review. 18(1), 257-294.
Wright, C. and Nyberg, D. (2017). An inconvenient truth: How organizations translate climate change into business as usual. Academy of Management Journal, 60(5), 1633-1661.