ASSESSING GLOBAL PRODUCT SUSTAINABILITY OF CONSUMER ELECTRONIC PRODUCTS – DEVELOPMENT OF AN INTEGRATED APPROACH

This Thesis will develop – on the basis of an extensively conducted literature review – a concept with which it shall be possible to better measure, assess and examine sustainability in general and sustainability impacts of (electronic) products. Against this background, the main goals of this thesis are threefold. The first key objective is to conduct a thorough literature review that will help create a solid foundation to this and all subsequent work dealing with assessing a product’s impacts in its various life cycle stages. Light shall be shed to and clarity be achieved in a field of study that teems with papers and information, which have caused it to be rather impenetrable and difficult to access. Based upon this, it is this study’s second key objective and primary goal to develop and provide a concept that is capable of addressing one aspect and challenge of assessing sustainability (of products) that has not yet received much attention: The fair allocation of sustainability impacts among the various actors of a supply chain. The literature review will be of help in determining and proposing a method of how to assess sustainability in an integrated fashion, which will then serve as an input for the subsequent allocation. Last but not least and thirdly, it is the goal of this thesis to ideally put this developed concept to use in the consumer electronics sector and assess one majorly significant device of this particular industry for its sustainability impacts