Business Sustainability: The Natural Step and IKEA Analysis

This project examines the application of The Natural Step (TNS) framework to IKEA's sustainability initiatives. The assignment begins with an overview of the scientific principles underlying TNS, including its four system conditions, backcasting methodology, and the TNS funnel, which addresses resource availability and utility. The core of the project focuses on IKEA's specific sustainability efforts, such as its use of LED lighting, sustainable sourcing of raw materials, and commitment to renewable energy. The analysis connects these activities to the TNS model, demonstrating how IKEA builds awareness, assesses its impact, develops strategic plans, and takes action to achieve sustainability. Furthermore, the project addresses planetary boundaries, particularly climate change and resource regeneration, emphasizing how IKEA's actions contribute to environmental sustainability and the long-term benefits of these investments, including increased stakeholder engagement. The project concludes by highlighting the importance of these initiatives in aligning business practices with environmental and social responsibility.

Sustainability in Business
References
TNS A-B-C-D process of implementing
sustainability
Building awareness and comprehension:
organizations are aligned with common
understanding in relation to sustainability.
Baseline Mapping: materials and energy flow are
assessed by materials and energy flow besides
affecting the society by making use of the four step
condition discussed in the earlier section.
Creating vision and strategic plan: for achieving
sustainable society organizations develop long-term
vision followed by facilitating a strategy from this
point of view in order to attain sustainability and look
backwards. Backcasting is been used by this step of
A-B-C-D process with intent of recognizing step by
step solution for bringing organizations from their
prevailing condition towards a sustainable situation.
Down to action: actions are implemented by the
organizations in the final step of this process and
backcasting process used for evaluating the
decisions constantly thereby, encouraging that they
attain the vision that was created in the initial stage.
Müller & Pfleger (2014)
IKEA’s Sustainability initiatives
• Usage of LED solutions for lighting across its
premises and other business units into under
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s
Green Lights Program
• Acquiring raw materials like cotton and timber
through sustainable resources.
• Fat packaging and use of chlorine-free paper
in catalogue and advertising flyers
• Working towards 100% renewable energy and
create energy equivalent to its operational
consumption
• Providing economical solutions for achieving
effectiveness in the use of scarce natural
resources like water and energy besides
solutions for renewable energy and waste
sorting.
• Working towards the implementation of its
newer commitments towards environmental
policies.
Chabrak (2015)
TNS Funnel
It is a theoretical interpretation of the resources
availability and utility. It significantly contributes
illustrating that with rising population and resource
demand or increased use of resources, it is likely that
the availability of resources will decline thus,
confining the freedom owing to individuals and
organizations having lesser scope for moving.
However, by achieving sustainable demand and
supply to a certain extent this can be averted.
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30552
Müller, A., & Pfleger, R. (2014). Business transformation
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Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s40685-014-0011-y
Chabrak, N. (2015). Promoting corporate social responsibility
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The scientific principles of sustainability gives base to
the structure of natural step (TNS), having focus on
the origination of the relationship between cause and
effect besides integrating broader environment and
socio-economic system in its thinking. this framework
has been designed correspondingly to the actions
and conduct that are direct for working towards the
achieving sustainability. Alexius & Furusten (2019)
Elements of TNS Framework
• Four Systems Conditions
• Backcasting
• TNS Funnel
Four System Condition
1. Substances extracted from Earth’s crust cannot
increase into the biosphere systematically
2. Society produced substances cannot increase in
the biosphere systematically
3. Physical base of the nature’s productivity and
diversity should not be consistently degenerate
4. For meeting the earlier three system conditions,
use of resources for meeting the needs of human
should be fair and efficient
Backcasting
It determines the product, service or organization’s
needs; stakeholders identification; analyze the
prevailing situations; develop future scenarios and
identification and implementation of strategies, is
applied on numerous purposes such as planning,
decision-makings, scenarios, innovation. Eswarlal &
Vallesi (2014)
Relation of IKEA activities with TNS Model
• Four system condition: human resources are
used besides resource regeneration while
meeting customer demands
• A-B-C-D process sustainability
implementation: It build awareness in the
society, identifies impact of its operation,
develops vision and strategic plan and take
actions accordingly.
Planetary boundary addressed
• Climate change
For lessening its impact on climate change the
company needs to switch towards
incorporating the utility of renewable energy
sources across its operational functions
besides resources regeneration it uses for
productions.
• Resource regeneration will help to promote
environmental sustainability.
• Initial investment is higher, but the long-term
benefits will make the investment negligible.
• It will increase stakeholders interests and
contributions in IKEA’s sustainability approach