BUSN20016 Research In Business

Criteria

Problem Statement

The apparel industry is one of the major polluters both directly and indirectly in the world, thus attracting major attention with regards to environmental degradation. For example, the use of non-organic cotton pollutes the soils while the manufacture of synthetic fabrics causes air pollution through carbon emission. (Tiwari 2015). For this reason, many countries have started to adopt sustainability in the textile industry. This means that companies will have to embrace activities and means that will satisfy the goals of the business and the shareholders while sustaining natural and artificial resources needed. This can be evidenced by the Paris Accord which is an agreement of about 190 countries whose aim is to eradicate climatic change. (Mahapatra, & Ratha 2017). Also, Nordic countries have adopted environmentally friendly ways for textile industries to operate. (Mani, et al 2018).

Due to high levels of air pollution by textile industries and also soil pollution due to the use of inorganic cotton, many countries, especially in Europe and the USA have adopted strict laws to curb the same. For example, China has banned some substances previously used in the textile industry such as phthalates and lead which research showed are not eco-friendly. Any company found to be in contradiction of these laws is penalized heavily according to the law. It has also banned the importation of non-organic cotton. (Zhang & Da 2015).

The research will focus on Wobabybasics a textile company based in China which has heeded the government’s call on eco-friendly manufacturing. The company deals in children wear and is owned by its founder Sherry Poon. The company operates in an eco-friendly manner as it uses organic cotton to manufacture its products leading to production organic clothing. Organic cotton is grown without the use of synthetic substances such as pesticides, fertilizes or herbicides. Also, since the clothes are organic, it means that they can undergo a process of sorting, segregation, and grading for recycling purposes thus reducing waste which translates to minimal environmental degradation. (Oh & Abraham 2016).

Research Aims And Objectives

The aims of this research will be as follows:

1. Establish how laws of different countries today necessitate their textile industries to operate in an environmentally friendly manner.
2. The legal consequences for non-compliance or failure to comply with the environmental legislation.

The key objectives of this research are as follow:

1. Establish methods adopted by the textile industry to operate in a manner that is sustainable to the environment.
2. To establish the benefits textile companies are deriving by embracing sustainability.

Methodology

The methodology will encompass qualitative methods to collect and analyze data. Qualitative analysis will seek to answer how and what questions. (Flick 2015)

Data Collection

For this research, secondary data will be used which is the reference to other people’s work with regards to the research topic. The sources of secondary data will include books, scholarly articles, journals and online sources.

Data Presentation And Analysis Methods

For simpler and accurate interpretation of data, it will be presented in form of graphs, charts and excel sheets. The qualitative methods of analysis will be thematic. (Radulescu & Repovs 2015).

References

Flick, U. (2015). Introducing research methodology: A beginner’s guide to doing a research project. Sage

Johnston, M. P. (2017). Secondary data analysis: A method of which the time has come. Qualitative and Quantitative Methods in Libraries, 3(3), 619-626.

Mahapatra, S. K., & Ratha, K. C. (2017). Paris climate accord: Miles to go. Journal of International Development, 29(1), 147-154.

Mani, M., Hussein, Z., Gopalakrishnan, B. N., & Wadhwa, D. (2018). Paris Climate Agreement and the Global Economy. Policy Research working paper; no. WPS 8392. Washington, D.C. : World Bank Group. Retrieved from https://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/705871522683196873/Paris-climate-agreement-and-the-global-economy-winners-and-losers

Oh, K., & Abraham, L. (2016). Effect of knowledge on decision making in the context of organic cotton clothing. International Journal of consumer studies, 40(1), 66-74.

Radulescu, V. D., & Repovs, D. D. (2015). Partial differential equations with variable exponents: variational methods and qualitative analysis. Chapman and Hall/CRC.

Tiwari, A. K. (2015). Environmental aspects of genetically modified crops critical study in the light of International Environmental guidelines and National Law. Retrieved from https://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/43036/5/summary.pdf

Zhang, Y. J., & Da, Y. B. (2015). The decomposition of energy-related carbon emission and its decoupling with economic growth in China. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 41, 1255-1266.