Promoting Industrial Symbiosis: Using the Concept of Proximity to Explore Social Network Development

Abstract

Industrial symbiosis (IS) has been identified as a strategy for promoting industrial sustainability. IS has been defined as the development of close working agreements between industrial and other organizations that, through the innovative reuse, recycling or sharing of resources, leads to resource efficiency. Key to IS are innovation and social network development. This article critically reviews IS literature and concludes that, to inform pro-active strategies for promoting IS, the understanding of the social processes leading to resource innovation needs to be improved. Industrial ecologists generally believe that close geographic proximity and trust are essential to the development of IS. This article argues, however, that there is a need to learn more about the meaning of, need for, and specific role of geographic proximity and trust in IS and, additionally, that other potentially important social factors have remained under-explored. To move IS research forward, this article suggests to engage with research in economic geography on the concept of 'proximity', which draws attention to the ways in which geographic, cognitive, institutional, social and organizational distances between actors might affect innovation. Arguably the analytically distinct but flexible dimensions of proximity can be useful to explore how and why IS develops. The resulting qualitative knowledge would form a basis for researching whether general patterns for IS development exist and, more importantly, could inform

Industrial Symbiosis, Networking and Innovation: The Potential Role of Innovation Poles

“…According to some authors, IS is strongly rooted in these two elements, which may adversely affect its development even in the presence of positive technical requirements [86]. In a local network of companies, relations are an important aspect.…”

Modeling and Evaluation of the Possibilities of Forming a Regional Industrial Symbiosis Networks

“…The Advisory Council has served to institutionalize cooperative resource management practices among the firms and deepen the social embedding of inter-firm relations Granovetter 1985). ISN in Barceloneta is evaluated as "fully developed", however due to the medium distances the attribute proximity is evaluated as moderate because according to Velenturf and Jensen 2015, industrial ecologists commonly believe that trust and geographical proximity-vicinity are essential to the development of IS and consequently ISNs. Close geographical proximity and confidence among actors and firms are essential to the development of IS (Velenturf and Jensen 2015).…”

“…ISN in Barceloneta is evaluated as "fully developed", however due to the medium distances the attribute proximity is evaluated as moderate because according to Velenturf and Jensen 2015, industrial ecologists commonly believe that trust and geographical proximity-vicinity are essential to the development of IS and consequently ISNs. Close geographical proximity and confidence among actors and firms are essential to the development of IS (Velenturf and Jensen 2015). According to Velenturf and Jensen (2015), to move IS research forward there is a need for additional research on the concept of proximity, with attention on institutional, geographical, cognitive, social, and organizational distances between actors (Velenturf and Jensen 2015).…”

“…Close geographical proximity and confidence among actors and firms are essential to the development of IS (Velenturf and Jensen 2015). According to Velenturf and Jensen (2015), to move IS research forward there is a need for additional research on the concept of proximity, with attention on institutional, geographical, cognitive, social, and organizational distances between actors (Velenturf and Jensen 2015). The polar map of selected attributes for Barceloneta is given in Figure 5.…”

“…Sci. 2018, 7, 13 10 of 26 organizational distances between actors (Velenturf and Jensen 2015). The polar map of selected attributes for Barceloneta is given in Figure 5.…”