Replacing Cardboard-Based Boxes with a Circular Economy Solution in Austria: A Framework for Stakeholder Assessment and Impact Evaluation of Social, Ecological and Economic Factors

The status quo of the courier, express and package (CEP) industry is the use of disposable cardboard boxes (and in some special cases plastic polybags). Rising energy and fuel costs, regulatory and societal demands as well as rising competition put pressure on companies to invest in circular economy solutions, such as returnable transport items (RTI). Introducing new technologies has its obstacles and prima-facie sustainable approaches can entail unexpected or unintended consequences. To be successful key stakeholders need to support the introduction of such new technologies. Taking the example of the Austrian CEP industry, this chapter presents a framework for identifying and prioritising relevant stakeholders. We argue that stakeholders must be considered in terms of their resources to implement the circular economy solution as well as in regard to the impact the circular economy approach creates in terms of social, ecologic and economic factors. Our framework is valuable for practitioners and can be applied to a wide range of industries.