Purpose: A growing number of companies are measuring the sustainability performance of their businesses. Some companies are using pre‐existing sustainability indicator systems to assess their performance. Other companies are looking beyond measurement of impacts to create their own system of indicators to measure sustainability. Formulating relevant indicators of sustainability performance is a difficult task for any organization, but especially for small/medium enterprises (SMEs) that often lack financial, knowledge, and labor resources. The purpose of this paper is to consider two different sustainability assessment approaches undertaken by a single case study company, a start‐up SME.Design/methodology/approach: The authors developed a method for an SME, Ecologic Designs, Inc., a self‐identified green business that reclaims materials to make bags and accessories, to create its own sustainability indicators without outside expert help. This research chronicles the struggles and triumphs of the SME in measuring its sustainability performance using a pre‐existing system and then using the developed method.Findings: The SME's managers applied the developed method to create, select, and weight sustainability indicators to help answer a strategic planning decision – where to locate operations and facilities in an expanding supply chain.Originality/value: The paper describes the struggles and triumphs of a start‐up SME in measuring its sustainability performance using a pre‐existing system and then using the developed method.

The negative environmental impacts of the current linear system of textile and apparel production are well-documented and require urgent action. The sector lacks an effective recycling system, resulting in massive waste and environmental pollution. This paper presents the results of qualitative research involving textile and apparel industry stakeholders, including representatives from brands and retailers, waste collectors, recyclers, non-profit organizations, academic institutions, and government agencies. Our research focused on stakeholder perceptions of the significance and importance of textile circularity, the challenges that exist for transitioning the textile and apparel industry from a linear system to a circular economy (CE), and resources that exist to support this transition. The results of this study call attention to the following urgent requirements: a consistent definition of CE to promote transparency and accountability and prevent greenwashing; improved systems for materials identification, sorting, and pre-processing of post-consumer textile waste to enable recycling; innovations in mechanical recycling technologies to maintain the value of recycled materials; and new, materials-driven approaches to design and manufacturing that are responsive to feedstock variability and diverse consumer needs. The research findings also suggest the need for flexible, regional CEs that are rooted in community partnerships.

Kangaroo care (KC), skin-to-skin contact between infants and caregivers, is encouraged in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) to support health through improved weight, growth, and infant–maternal attachment while reducing the incidence of sepsis and infant pain. However, the optimal duration and frequency of KC to maximize health outcomes is unknown. Given parents' time stressors, identifying optimal KC time is critical. A literature review was undertaken on May 28, 2021 via querying the PubMed database from January 1, 1995, to May 28, 2021, regarding KC and NICUs with 442 results. Eleven studies met the eligibility criteria of (1) comparative KC between infants and adult caregivers in NICUs as a randomized controlled trial, (2) peer-reviewed articles in English, (3) study subjects ≥5, (4) health outcomes, and (5) KC sessions >1. Infant physical growth parameters, infant neurodevelopment, infant stress via salivary cortisol levels, and breastfeeding outcomes appear to increase with KC as compared with standard care (SC) without KC. Improvements were observed with longer KC duration, 2 h/d as compared with 1 h/d, for neurodevelopment and breastfeeding outcomes, but no greater improvement with longer KC duration was shown for reducing infant stress through salivary cortisol levels. Regarding maternal stress, the influence of KC duration showed mixed Parental Stressor Score: NICU scores. Further study on the impact of KC duration and frequency on health outcomes and dose–response relationship would help determine how much and how frequent KC is needed to improve specific health outcomes for infants and their mothers. Key Points