Learning Processes in the Early Development of Sustainable Niches: The Case of Sustainable Fashion Entrepreneurs in Mexico

Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

Authors

There are still several gaps to bridge in learning and sustainability transition research, one of which is the empirical exploration of learning processes and outcomes involved in the formation and development of sustainability niches. The purpose of this study is to investigate the formation and development of a sustainability niche through the lenses of individual and social transformative learning, specifically the learning processes and outcomes. We conducted a qualitative exploratory multi-case study of six different projects participating in the sustainable fashion and textiles niche in Mexico. We used documentation and individual interviews (n = 7) to collect evidence of the learning process in the formation and development of this niche. We used transformative learning theory to guide the analysis of the learning phenomena occurring in the development of this niche, distinguishing three main phases where individual learning takes place in the first two and social learning in the third. Analytical elements such as prior learning, disorienting dilemmas, action engagement and network building figure prominently in the learning process and outcomes in the development of the sustainable fashion niche in Mexico. This work provides a better and more detailed understanding of the multi-level perspective model through exploring sub-levels within the niche level, by shedding light on the importance of individual and social learning in the development of sustainable niches.
Original languageEnglish
Article number8434
JournalSustainability
Volume12
Issue number20
Number of pages26
ISSN2071-1050
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 13.10.2020

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This research was made possible within the graduate school “Processes of Sustainability Transformation”, which is a cooperation between the Leuphana University of Lüneburg and the Robert Bosch Stiftung. The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support from the Robert Bosch Stiftung (12.5.F082.0021.0). The first author wants to thank Mireille Acquart for her valuable help and support during the fieldwork in Mexico regarding this research. We also want to thank the entrepreneurs who agreed to be interviewed for this research.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.

Documents

DOI

Recently viewed

Researchers

  1. Anke Schöndube

Publications

  1. Programmability
  2. Finding the Boomers
  3. Life satisfaction and the consumption values of partners and friends: Empirical evidence from German panel survey data
  4. Do high incomes reflect individual performance?
  5. Activity-Based Costing as a Basis for Transfer Prices and Target Setting
  6. Tailoring of residual stresses by specific use of defined prestress during laser shock peening
  7. The impact of auditor rotation, audit firm rotation and non-audit services on earnings quality, audit quality and investor perceptions: A literature review
  8. Capacity building for transformational leadership and transdisciplinarity
  9. Prestigeverlust
  10. ‘Forewarned is Forearmed’: Overcoming Multifaceted Challenges of Digital Innovation Units
  11. Development of environmentally biodegradable drugs
  12. Legal aspects of satellite-based earth observation
  13. International Master’s Programme in Sustainable Development and Management
  14. Aktienanleihen
  15. The organizational powers of (digital) media
  16. Slow convergence or no change at all?
  17. Kickback Payments under MiFID:
  18. Pitfalls in the Study of Democratization
  19. Synchronic and Diachronic Pragmatic Variability
  20. Despite Good Correlations, There Is No Exact Coincidence between Isometric and Dynamic Strength Measurements in Elite Youth Soccer Players
  21. 插畫與跨符號翻譯:無稽詩文的視覺呈現
  22. Idioms – Languages of Art, Thematic issue of Texte zur Kunst, Nr. 108
  23. Notting Hill Gate 5
  24. Tree species richness promotes an early increase of stand structural complexity in young subtropical plantations
  25. The rhetorical structure of marketisation in selected emails of tertiary institutions