Societal, economic and ecological prosperity will be highly affected in the next decades due to socio-demographic developments and climate change. The design of more sustainable logistics business types can address such challenges to build more resilient supply chains. Therefore, the discussion with regard to transformational potentials of logistics businesses provides valuable information to shape business strategies according to future sustainability requirements. Within the framework of this paper, a mixed-methods approach has been applied to explore and analyze drivers and barriers for sustainability transformations of logistics service providers (LSPs) and to evaluate related business strategies with optimization and simulation methods in a concrete regional context. So far, LSPs’ main obstacles are competitive pressure, focal firm orientation, and dependence on other supply chain members, while supply chain collaboration and integration, as well as the integration of sharing economy solutions and new digital technologies, have been identified as promising for sustainability transitions. Accordingly, this paper suggests a roadmap for the logistics sector while defining retention strategies such as growth, replication, mimicry, and mergence to meet future societal and environmental requirements. By doing so, this study contributes to theory by constructing the Lead Sustainability Service Provider (6PL) business model (arche)type and its role in societal transitions.

Sustainable Development and Social-Ecological-Technological Systems (SETS): Resilience as a Guiding Principle in the Urban-Industrial Nexus

The United Nations’ Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) highlight the importance of cities for sustainable development globally. With SDG 11 a specific urban goal exists and also many of the other SDGs have strong ties to urban areas. However, implementing the SDGs on an urban level is not a straightforward process. This article wants to shed light in the relationship between cities and SDGs and builds up on existing literature, the practical experiences of the authors in SDG implementation as well as the work carried out by the DKN Future Earth working group on Urban Sustainability transformations. The article consists of two main parts: Firstly, we explain some challenges concerning SDG implementation in German Cities such as indicators and data availability, tradeoffs, the role and limits of urban planning and the difficulties of city-wide integration of sustainability policies. Secondly, we present potential solutions to overcoming these challenges. Prioritizing so-called impact chains, developing SDG implementation governance mechanisms and transparent negotiation processes as well as a new definition of system borders can facilitate SDG implementation. The aim of this article is also to discuss similarities and differences between the SDGs and alternative approaches such as the Local Agenda 21 and to evaluate if and how global sustainability agendas such as the SDGs can actually lead to a more sustainable development locally. In the conclusion, we acknowledge the potential of the SDGs for sustainable urban development but emphasize, that many obstacles need to be overcome on this way.

The dimensions of the triple bottom-line approach to sustainable development contain inherent conflicting goals in implementation. In cases of urban development around the world, this is exemplary for settings in major port cities. Here, mostly economically oriented infrastructure requirements of the ports meet more comprehensive concerns of sustainable urban development. There are incoherent governance systems: Ports are often involved in higher-level national planning hierarchies, while urban development is predominantly locally controlled. This is also the case in Jakarta Megapolitan with Tanjung Priok Port, Indonesia, the most prominent and still expanding national seaport. The port expansion is also aimed to be a significant hub in one of the world’s maritime axes, which refers to vast urban growth. However, the entire urban economic effects are uncertain, for example, concerning urban diseconomies of scale or rebound effects, such as traffic congestion, social segregation, conflicts, or the digital divide. Urbanization and the contemporary patterns of economic growth are drivers of environmental vulnerability of both parties. This study serves to overcome fragmented approaches by using a holistic, sustainable governance transition process for integrating urban and port-industry governance concepts. A novel online platform, VIDEL (Virtual Dashboard of Environmentally Logistics-Port-City), is designed as a smart system that engages all stakeholders. This platform binds the requirements and interests as well as harmonizing actors in the interactions of urban with port and industry to secure innovative and environmental-friendly way. It will become a digital control tower for sustainable governance system in a port-city.