Research advances in environmentally and socially sustainable operations

Consumers and governments are pressuring firms to strike a balance between profitability and sustainability. However, this balance can only be maintained in the long run if the firm can take a holistic approach to sustain the financial flow (profit), resource flow (planet) and development flow (people) for the entire ecosystem comprising poor producers in emerging/developing markets, global supply chain partners, consumers in developed countries, and the planet. By considering the flows associated with different entities within the ecosystem, we classify and summarize recent Operations Research/Management Science (OR/MS) research developments. Also, we identify several gaps for future research in this important area. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.