Faculty note: Professors Gurtu and Kumar publication

UW-Green Bay Associate Prof. Amulya Gurtu (Supply Chain Management, Austin E. Cofrin School of Business) and Prof. Sampath Kumar (Marketing Management, Austin E. Cofrin School of Business) co-authored a paper, “Sustainability from Designers to Consumers” in the Journal of Business and Economic Perspectives, XLVII(1), pp 68-90. This paper presents a viewpoint that functions, other than supply chain management, have a bigger role in environmental sustainability. Marketing is used to lure consumers into replacing products as often as possible. Replacing products, which are in good working condition, results in an increase in carbon emissions. It is a waste of precious natural resources. This raises the question whether customers are aware of the environmental impact of their buying behavior and do they consider sustainability when making purchase decisions. Study results suggest that even though students do care about the environment, sustainability in buying decisions has a low priority.