Toward Regenerative Logistics and Supply Chains: Redesigning Systems, Rethinking Value, and Realizing Impact

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Introduction

This special issue seeks to advance scholarly inquiry into the emergent paradigm of regenerative logistics and supply chain management. Moving beyond traditional notions of sustainability and circularity, the issue foregrounds regeneration as a strategic, ecological, and socio-economic imperative. It aims to critically explore how logistics systems are being reconceptualised and redesigned to deliver net-positive outcomes for both natural ecosystems and society. The issue invites contributions that provide conceptual clarity, empirical depth, and managerial relevance concerning regenerative transitions. Emphasis is placed on understanding shifts in value logics, governance structures, performance metrics, and operational practices. By encouraging interdisciplinary dialogue and methodological pluralism, this special issue aims to catalyse novel thinking and inform practice on how logistics and supply chains can act as agents of restoration and systemic renewal in the global business context.

Contemporary supply chains are increasingly recognized as complex, dynamic, and interdependent systems that shape both economic and ecological outcomes (Chen & Paulraj, 2004; Gualandris et al., 2021; Wieland, 2021). While substantial research has improved logistics performance in terms of efficiency, responsiveness, and innovation (Fisher, 1997; Lee, 2004), environmental degradation, social inequities, and ecological injustice persist as unintended consequences (Wu & Pagell, 2011; Chamanara et al., 2021). Recent calls to go beyond eco-efficiency and toward eco-effectiveness and nature-positive logistics highlight the limitations of current sustainability approaches (Hahn & Tampe, 2021; Munoz & Branzei, 2021). Despite emerging work on circularity, closed-loop networks, and social enterprise-led supply chains, knowledge on regenerative logistics systems remains fragmented. This special issue addresses this urgent gap by advancing research on supply chains that not only reduce harm but restore ecosystems, rebalance social systems, and reimagine value creation, thus meeting the pressing challenges of our time.

List of Topic Areas

Theme 1: Moving Beyond Sustainability - Explores the transition from harm-reduction approaches (e.g., sustainability, circularity) toward regenerative logistics models that create net-positive environmental and social outcomes. Focus areas include transformation strategies, implementation challenges, and organizational capabilities for regenerative shifts.

Theme 2: Redefining Value and Performance - Reconsiders the dominant efficiency-based performance logic in logistics by advancing new metrics, decision frameworks, and value propositions rooted in long-term ecological and social well-being. Contributions may explore profit–planet–people trade-offs, reimagined KPIs, and the role of purpose-driven logistics governance.

Theme 3: Regenerating for Planetary Health - Investigates how logistics systems can actively contribute to ecosystem restoration, biodiversity enhancement, and climate resilience. Emphasis is placed on empirical studies showing regenerative impacts, especially through case-based and cross-sectoral research.

Theme 4: Inclusive and Contextualized Global Futures - Examines how regenerative logistics principles are applied in diverse geographical, institutional, and cultural contexts, including the Global South, Indigenous systems, and localised circular economies. Contributions should highlight governance, social equity, and relational models of supply chain coordination.

Theme 5: Systems Innovation and Design for Regeneration - Focuses on logistics process redesign, supply network reconfiguration, and cross-sector innovations that embed regenerative principles. Topics include reverse logistics, biomaterial flows, adaptive infrastructures, and digital tools (e.g., IoT, blockchain) enabling regenerative supply chain transformation.

References

Chamanara, S., Goldstein, B., & Newell, J. P. (2021). Where’s the beef? Costco’s meat supply chain and environmental justice in California. Journal of Cleaner Production, 278, 123744.

Chen, I. J., & Paulraj, A. (2004). Towards a theory of supply chain management: the constructs and measurements. Journal of Operations Management, 22(2), 119-150.

Fisher, M. L. (1997). What is the right supply chain for your product?. Harvard Business Review, 75, 105-117.

Hahn, T., & Tampe, M. (2021). Strategies for regenerative business. Strategic Organization, 19(3), 456-477.

Lee, H. L. (2004). The triple-A supply chain. Harvard Business Review, 82(10), 102-113.

Muñoz, P., & Branzei, O. (2021). Regenerative Organizations: Introduction to the Special Issue. Organization & Environment, 34(4), 507–516.

Wieland, A. (2021). Dancing the supply chain: Toward transformative supply chain management. Journal of Supply Chain Management, 57(1), 58-73.

Wu, Z., & Pagell, M. (2011). Balancing priorities: Decision-making in sustainable supply chain management. Journal of Operations Management, 29(6), 577-590.

Guest Editor

Umair Tanveer, University of Exeter, UK; [email protected]

Submissions Information

Submissions are made using ScholarOne Manuscripts. Author guidelines must be strictly followed.

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Author Guidelines

Authors should select (from the drop-down menu) the special issue title at the appropriate step in the submission process, i.e. in response to “Please select the issue you are submitting to”. Submitted articles must not have been previously published, nor should they be under consideration for publication anywhere else, while under review for this journal.

Key Deadlines

Opening date for manuscripts submissions: 16th March 2026

Closing date for manuscripts submission: 30th June 2026

Email for submissions: [email protected]