Journal of Contemporary Administration

Bioeconomy and Innovative and Sustainable Businesses in the Context of Natural Resource Management and Confrontation of Climate Change in the Amazon

Mário Vasconcellos Sobrinho — 2024-12-18

Há mais de 50 anos, o debate sobre desenvolvimento sustentável está presente no mundo acadêmico e foi assumido na perspectiva política em face da necessidade de conciliação entre o sistema produtivo e a conservação dos recursos naturais. Os efeitos deletérios do modelo de desenvolvimento econômico baseado em um sistema produtivo altamente explorador de recursos naturais e em uma matriz energética baseada em combustíveis fósseis foram duas das muitas razões que levantaram o debate sobre desenvolvimento sustentável em nível mundial.

Governance and Value Appropriation in the Cocoa Bioeconomy at Amazonas

Lucas Xavier Trindade — 2024-11-28

Objective: this article identifies the mechanisms that guide governance and determine the possibilities of appropriation of value (income) by extractive producers who participate in different value chains of the cocoa bioeconomy in Amazonas. Theoretical approach: transaction cost economics, with an emphasis on the relationships between the specific conditions of assets and bargaining power over the appropriation of value, represents the basis for the two theoretical propositions formulated. Methods: a qualitative approach to multiple case studies was used in two regions (Madeira and Juruá rivers), which are representative of the value chains of the cocoa bioeconomy in Amazonas. Secondary (documents) and primary (interviews and focus group) data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Results: in the commodity and specialty cocoa chains, differentiated relational governance mechanisms have been established, which configure the distribution of bargaining power between intermediaries and producers and consequently the ability of these agents to appropriate value. Conclusion: swaying bargaining power in favor of producers depends on the presence of specific assets positioned to their benefit. The higher the level of specific assets involved in the transaction in favor of extractivists, as occurs in the specialty cocoa chain, the greater their bargaining power tends to be and, consequently, their opportunity to appropriate value. Encouraging the creation of value chains based on specific assets that increase producers’ ability to appropriate income is imperative to achieve an inclusive bioeconomy in the Amazon.

Content Marketing and Digital Engagement in Amazonian Sustainable Tourism

Edwin Arango Espinal — 2024-12-10

Objective: to analyze how different elements of content marketing on Instagram influence eWOM (measured through likes and comments) for sustainable hotels in the Amazon. Theoretical approach: the study is grounded in media richness theory and uses and gratifications theory to examine the effectiveness of social media content marketing strategies. Method: a content analysis of 1,000 Instagram posts from ten sustainable Amazon hotels was conducted, followed by a negative binomial regression model. Results: videos generate more engagement than images, validating media richness theory. Strategies focused on biodiversity and relaxation facilities are effective in generating likes, while informative and sustainability-related content encourages more comments. Cultural content showed an unexpected negative impact on engagement. Conclusion: the study contributes to the literature by providing specific recommendations on content marketing optimization in the unique context of sustainable Amazon tourism, an underexplored area in digital marketing research. The findings validate media richness and uses and gratifications theories in this specific context.

Entrepreneurial Education for Amazon’s Sustainable Development: An Evaluation of the Genesis Program

Lucas Carregari da Rosa Carneiro — 2024-12-12

Objective: this article evaluates the Genesis Program, part of the Amazon Journey, created to awaken local entrepreneurial talents and strengthen the business ecosystem based on the forest’s biodiversity. Theoretical approach: it argues that developing behavioral skills and fostering an active learning community are essential for this goal. Methods: the theoretical analysis is grounded in experiential learning, emphasizing the dimensions of action and reflection, experience and abstraction, and the principles of engagement in discovery activities, courage cultivation, associative thinking, and diversity, which are essential for innovation. The research uses questionnaires (n = 147) and interviews (n = 26) to collect participants’ perceptions and analyze the program’s evolution over time. Results: as a result, the Genesis Program recorded 7,177 enrollments across the nine states of the Legal Amazon, involving more than 160 municipalities and generating 585 new entrepreneurial solution ideas. Conclusion: it was found that there was a need to improve the engagement method, leading to the development and application of new training formats. The 37 local ambassadors were identified as essential for the program’s reach and achieving objectives. The article shares lessons learned and seeks to inspire new research and initiatives for developing talents in entrepreneurship, innovation, and bioeconomy fields.

Experimentalist Governance in Bioeconomy: Insights from the Brazilian Amazon

Vanessa Cuzziol Pinsky — 2024-12-13

Objective: understand whether subnational processes to develop bioeconomy policy are integrated with local implementation efforts in the state of Amazonas. Theoretical framework: experimentalist governance. Methods: deductive content analysis was conducted in three phases: open and axial coding and integration of theory. Results: a nascent system of experimentalist governance to foment bioeconomy is taking shape. However, the potential for experimentalism to improve policy reforms is far from realized due to policy coordination problems,
incipient collective action among actors, and the absence of incentives to promote experimentation and systematic learning from local experiences. The quintuple helix innovation model is a promising approach to engage different actors in the design and implementation of bioeconomy experiments, where the state actor assumes central coordination and local actors implement. Political will and longterm
strategy based on metrics and a system for review are essential. Conclusion: the experimentalist problem-solving approach could have a significant impact in the Amazonian bioeconomy by demonstrating and replicating the successful initiatives to generate useful local policy experiments, learning, and promoting socioeconomic opportunities with environmental conservation. Policy experimentation can be a new
viable alternative to move state and non-state actors from conflict based on divergent economic interests to a cooperative means to promote socioeconomic development by demonstrating and escalating success cases that can foster policies and opportunities.

Sociobioeconomy and Social Technology in the Amazon Region: An Integrated Framework Proposition

Diana Cruz Rodrigues — 2024-12-16

Objective: To propose an analytical framework that integrates the social technology approach into the concept of socio-bioeconomy, as
its compatible technological strand, based on the concept of a social technological system. Theoretical framework: The concept of sociobioeconomy is discussed in light of the three predominant visions of bioeconomy (biotechnological, bioresources, and bioecological), proposing a conceptual-analytical framework. The social technological system concept is revised to integrate it, in a cross-cutting way, with the socio-bioeconomy. The framework integrates the dimensions of the social technological system with the dimensions of the socio-bioeconomy. Methods: The proposed framework was applied in a case study of a potential social technological system in socio-bioeconomic activities in the rubber production chain in the Amazon. Data collection included documentary research, interviews, and a technical visit. Results: the case study presented the integration of three solutions based on social technology, constituting various properties of a social technological system. The social technology system shown was compatible with the dimensions of socio-bioeconomy. Several properties
of the framework were evidenced, allowing its initial analytical viability to be considered. Conclusions: The framework has advanced in the analytical detailing of socio-bioeconomy, including its technological aspect, by bringing it closer to social technology. The framework can also help with technological development in socio-bioeconomy initiatives.

Strategic Management for Sustainability

Keila Regina Mota Negrão — 2024-12-06

Objective: this study proposes a framework that integrates organizational resources and capabilities with sustainability dimensions to support the development of sustainable strategies. Grounded in the natural resourcebased view (NRBV), this framework combines sustainability dimensions with organizational strengths to enhance value creation. Method: using a qualitative, theoretical, and exploratory approach, this study employs bibliographic research to conduct a conceptual analysis centered on strategic management for sustainability. Thesis: organizations achieve superior results when the value generated through resources and capabilities, aligned with sustainability dimensions, leads to value appropriation by consumers. Conclusions: the proposed framework begins by guiding organizations to identify their existing resources and capabilities. Following this, it encourages managers to explore ways to integrate sustainability into strategies that leverage these internal assets. Additionally, the framework prompts organizations to consider how their offerings (goods or services) can generate value for the enterprise while fostering value appropriation by customers. This value creation is viewed through three key aspects: a strong value proposition from economic and financial perspectives, the wellbeing provided to customers, and the alignment with the organization’s sustainable mission. The framework is designed to be flexible and adaptable, enabling its application across diverse organizational types and allowing for adjustments based on regional contexts. Moreover, it calls for future empirical studies to test, replicate, validate, or refine the framework, contributing to its practical relevance and potential evolution.