Carbon Footprints in the Sand: Marketing in the Age of Sustainability

Abstract

A growing number of people wish to do no harm to the earth and leave a stable living environment for future generations. In response to the growing concern with carbon emissions' impact on the marketplace, this paper investigates the emerging field of sustainable development through the typical manner in which it is measured, carbon emissions. Firms are beginning to address this demand by reducing their carbon footprint, the carbon dioxide emissions created by a product throughout its life cycle. Simultaneously, carbon foot-print labels have begun to appear on products in North Amer-ica, Asia, and Europe. We examine both the potential impact of carbon footprint labels and their informational content from the perspectives of firms and consumers. Specifically, we lay the groundwork for future carbon footprint research by pro-posing how industry, firm, consumer, and label attributes affect firm action, content of carbon footprint labels, consumer preferences, and financial outcomes.