IT IS SMART ONLY IF IT IS SUSTAINABLE Environmentally Friendly Business Strategies as a Source of Creating Bigger Value Pool and Reducing Negative Environmental Impacts By Mohammad Tashfeen Khan July 24, 2016 A Major Paper submitted to the Faculty of Environmental Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master in Environmental Studies, York University, Toronto Ontario, Canada Dr. Ellie Perkins (Superviser) __________________________________________ Mohammad Tashfeen Khan (MES Candidate) ___________________________________________ IT IS SMART ONLY IF IT IS SUSTAINABLE IT IS SMART ONLY IF IT IS SUSTAINABLE “We have met the enemy and he is us”. Walt Kelly “We cannot “Modern command technology owes Nature except ecology an by obeying her.” apology.” Francis Bacon Alan M. Eddison “Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's needs, but not every man's greed.” Mahatma Gandhi Major Paper MES 2016 Mohammad Tashfeen Khan (212984142) i IT IS SMART ONLY IF IT IS SUSTAINABLE Contents Chapter 1: Introduction: Starting with a Concluding Point ............................................................................................. 1 1.1 Environmental Sustainability ................................................................................................................................ 1 1.2 The Smartphone Dilemma .................................................................................................................................... 3 Chapter 2: Methodological Approach ............................................................................................................................. 5 Chapter 3: Environmental Impact of Smartphones ...................................................................................................... 12 3.1 Extraction and Manufacturing ............................................................................................................................ 13 3.1.1 Environmental Damage Evidence ................................................................................................................ 17 3.1.2 IPhone’s Extraction and Manufacturing ...................................................................................................... 23 3.2 Packaging and Distribution ................................................................................................................................. 26 3.2.1 Environmental Damage Evidence ................................................................................................................ 26 3.2.2 IPhone Packaging and Distribution .............................................................................................................. 28 3.3 Use Phase ............................................................................................................................................................ 30 3.3.1 Environmental Damage Evidence ................................................................................................................ 31 3.3.2 IPhone Use ................................................................................................................................................... 33 3.4 End of Life............................................................................................................................................................ 34 3.4.1 Environmental Damage Evidence ................................................................................................................ 34 3.4.2 IPhone Recycling and Disposal ..................................................................................................................... 38 Overview of Chapter 3 .................................................................................................................................................. 40 Chapter 4: Mitigating the Smartphone’s Environmental Impact .................................................................................. 44 4.1 Meta Strategy ...................................................................................................................................................... 45 4.1.1 Vision and Transformational Strategy ......................................................................................................... 45 4.1.2 Stakeholder Engagement ............................................................................................................................. 47 4.1.3 Exploration of Environmental Needs ........................................................................................................... 48 4.1.4 Regulatory Reforms and Policy Transfer ...................................................................................................... 54 4.1.5 Performance Standards and Reporting ........................................................................................................ 55 4.1.6 Companies’ Political Role and Stimulate Strategy ....................................................................................... 57 Major Paper MES 2016 Mohammad Tashfeen Khan (212984142) ii IT IS SMART ONLY IF IT IS SUSTAINABLE 4.2 Redefining Productivity in the Value Chain......................................................................................................... 60 4.2.1 Extraction and Manufacturing Phase ........................................................................................................... 60 4.2.2 Packaging and Distribution Phase ................................................................................................................ 62 4.2.3 Use Phase ..................................................................................................................................................... 65 4.2.4 End of Life Phase .......................................................................................................................................... 68 4.3 Supportive Industry Clusters ............................................................................................................................... 73 Overview of Chapter 4 .................................................................................................................................................. 75 CHAPTER 5: Business Benefits and Bigger Value Pool .................................................................................................. 78 5.1 Redefining the Purpose of the Corporation ........................................................................................................ 79 5.2 Value Pool ........................................................................................................................................................... 80 5.3 Examples of Companies Benefiting from Environmental Friendly Strategies .................................................... 82 5.4 Companies Creating a Bigger Value Pool ............................................................................................................ 83 5.5 Redefining productivity in Value Chain and Business Benefits ........................................................................... 84 5.5.1 Extraction and Manufacturing ..................................................................................................................... 84 5.5.2 Packaging and Distribution .......................................................................................................................... 86 5.5.3 Use Phase ..................................................................................................................................................... 88 5.5.4 End of life ..................................................................................................................................................... 90 Overview of Chapter 5 .................................................................................................................................................. 93 CHAPTER 6: Concluding with a Starting Point: The Beginning ...................................................................................... 95 References: ................................................................................................................................................................. 100 List of figures Image 1 Smartphone Dependency ................................................................................................................................. 2 Image 2 what is in your Smartphone? ........................................................................................................................ 13 Image 3 Peruvian Rainforest ....................................................................................................................................... 18 Image 4 Bangka Island ................................................................................................................................................. 19 Image 5 Baotou Man-made River ............................................................................................................................... 20 Major Paper MES 2016 Mohammad Tashfeen Khan (212984142) iii IT IS SMART ONLY IF IT IS SUSTAINABLE Image 6 Baotou Toxic Farmland ................................................................................................................................... 21 Image 7 China's Longjiang River ..................................................................................................................................