The EU taxonomy defines criteria for economic activities committed to a net zero emission by 2050, and other environmental goals. Its overall goal is to direct investments to economic activities aligned with the European Green Deal and, thereby, classified as sustainable. For industrial organizations, there is an urgent need to develop adaptive capabilities to meet the requirements set by the new taxonomy. The present scoping review contributes by analyzing academic publications on this topic through the lens of a complex science and systems approach. It analyzes academic publications on the EU taxonomy, related to industrial organizations and their development of socio-technical systems. At the initial stage, 526 scientific publications were retrieved from three web repositories (Scopus, World of Science, and Scholar). Only eight publications matched the selection criteria and constitute the data of this study. Results indicate that there is a lack of holistic perspectives and an unbalanced system response to the EU taxonomy. Adopting a systems approach can help industrial organizations navigate the intricate dynamics of a sustainable transition, striking a balance between adhering to the EU taxonomy and maintaining market competitiveness. The findings emphasize the importance of trans-disciplinary approaches and the need for agile and adaptive ways of learning inside industrial organizations.

The climate crisis threatens the sustainable development of our planet. Mitigating the complexity of the sustainable challenge needs a holistic and systematic perspective. Systems solutions, such as systems thinking and systems engineering, can help to mitigate such challenges. Systems engineering in particular has to assist in transdisciplinary development and cooperation. Methods, tools, and methodologies in systems engineering can be key enablers to align the present world condition towards sustainable trajectories. To align with the sustainable transition, industrial organizations need to integrate sustainability at their core: the system’s development. Realizing socio-technical systems that are sustainable is not a triviality. Based on industry interviews and a literature study, this article discusses these challenges and presents how systems thinking and systems engineering disciplines may support industries to mitigate the same. To realize sustainable systems this work suggests i) identifying sustainability as a quality of the system; ii) collecting environmentally sustainable (big) data; and iii) establishing a collaborative environment among stakeholders where to discuss challenges related to the system’s lifecycle.

The usage rates of shared autonomous vehicles (SAVs) have become a pressing concern following their increased deployment. While prior research has focused on initial user acceptance, post-adoption behavior remains underexplored. As SAV deployment matures, public concerns have expanded beyond safety to encompass service requirements, challenging the relevance of earlier findings to current commercialization efforts. This study investigates the factors shaping SAV utilization through an empirical study in Norway, where autonomous buses have operated for several years. Through mixed methods, we first analyzed responses from 106 participants to 43 SAV users and 63 witnesses of SAV operations. The results revealed that concerns had shifted from technological anxiety to service-related factors. Through purposive interviews with individuals who showed acceptance of SAVs but did not adopt them as their primary mode of transportation, we explored the gap between high acceptance and low usage. Our findings provide insights into long-term SAV deployment and guidelines for improving usage rates, highlighting the importance of addressing service characteristics such as information transparency, vehicle appearance, speed, and convenience, rather than focusing solely on safety in commercial settings.