The PDMA Handbook of Innovation and New Product Development, 4th Edition

CHAPTER THREE SUSTAINABLE INNOVATIONS AND SUSTAINABLE PRODUCT INNOVATIONS: DEFINITIONS, POTENTIAL AVENUES, AND OUTLOOK¹

Rajan Varadarajan

3.1 Introduction

Environmental Oath for Consumers: Do no harm to the natural environment, whenever and wherever possible. Choose ecologically less harmful substitute products to meet specific needs and wants, whenever and wherever possible. Do minimal harm to the natural environment when searching for, buying, using, and disposing products to meet specific needs and wants

Environmental Oath for Corporate Decision-Makers: Do no harm to the natural environment, whenever and wherever possible. Choose courses of action that would cause minimal harm to the natural environment, whenever and wherever possible. Continuously innovate to lower the harm caused by the firm’s activities to the natural environment.

Environmental Oath for Country Leaders: Do no harm to the natural environment, whenever and wherever possible. Refrain from making politically expedient policy decisions that would harm the natural environment over the long-term. Resolve to make environmental policy decisions that are in the best long-term interests of humans and other species inhabiting the planet, even in the face of opposition from interest groups, as a leader-statesman would (Varadarajan 2020).²

In recent years, issues relating to environmental sustainability have steadily ...