Sustainable Innovation Trends and Global Value Chains in Emerging Markets

Dear Colleagues,

In December 2019, infections with the new coronavirus (COVID-19) started in the Chinese province of Hubei, and soon spread all over the world. As of 2 June 2020, there have been over 6 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 (along with 380,000 deaths) worldwide. In the US alone, there are over 1.8 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 with more than 106,000 deaths (according to the COVID-19 dashboard by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University). The COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak has majorly disrupted and is continuing to disrupt manufacturing and global value chains, with consequences for businesses, consumers, and the global economy. Companies today are scrambling to respond to these disruptions caused by COVID-19 in both developed and emerging markets. The impact on global economies through this crisis is yet unknown, but it is believed to be more damaging than anything we have experienced in the past. From a value-chain perspective, the disruptions associated with past crises (e.g., the 2003 outbreak of SARS or the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster) may not provide enough information or lessons learned for the present times. This COVID-19 crisis could cost the global economy $1.1 trillion in lost income and, at the same time, may result in innovations across the world, especially emerging markets, with a focus on sustainability and global value chains.

Global supply chains are continually evolving and transforming the way emerging world economies do business with their developed counterparts. Developing nations are joining forces with developed nations through these rapidly transforming global value chains (GVCs) without investing in building their own, thus saving time, money, and gaining access to technological innovations. Today, developing countries exert greater influence globally, economically, and politically, given the power of GVCs. Through international organizations, such as the World Bank, the World Trade Organization (WTO), the International Labor Organization (ILO), and the US Agency for International Development (USAID), GVCs lead the way for shaping international trade, governance, production, employment, growth, development, and competitiveness. The global economy is at a major inflection point due to the current COVID-19 situation and worldwide supply chain disruptions, and ‘resilience’ is needed for global organizations and emerging markets to survive through structural redesign and performance re-planning with a view on long-term impacts.

In this Special Issue of Sustainability, we invite submissions focused on sustainable innovation trends and global supply chains as value chains in emerging (versus developed) economies, international trade, and interrelationships amongst logistics, supply chain management, and global trade. We welcome submissions that offer important conceptual and empirical insights into the nature and processes of sustainable development, sustainable innovation, GVCs, GVC approaches and frameworks in different world economies, and global supply (value) chains. Of interest are papers that examine the impact of cross-cultural issues, characteristics, and challenges with regard to sustainable innovation trends and GVCs with regard to emerging world economies.

Dr. Anshu Arora
Dr. John R. McIntyre
Dr. Amit Arora
Dr. Julius Ndumbe Anyu
Guest Editors

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