Speaker
Description
In the context of growing ecological and social pressures, regenerative business models are emerging as the new imperative in sustainable business development. This concept goes beyond traditional sustainability approaches, proposing a form of economic organization that not only minimizes negative environmental impact but actively contributes to restoring, renewing, and revitalizing its sources of energy and raw materials. Thus, the objective of a regenerative business model is not merely internal efficiency and profitability but also the restoration of natural ecosystems and the alignment of economic activities with broader social and environmental goals.
Scholarly literature argues that only regenerative business models can generate substantial long-term value. A regenerative economy fundamentally transforms how we understand economic performance, relying on principles such as ecosystem restoration, circularity, systems thinking, and value creation beyond financial profit. Unlike passive sustainable models that seek to reduce harm, a regenerative economy is active by nature, contributing directly to natural capital recovery and social equity.
Although the idea of regeneration has long been present in fields such as architecture, ecology, and urban design (through concepts like regenerative design), the term "regenerative economy" as an integrated economic framework has only recently gained attention. A key milestone in conceptual development is the seminal work of John Fullerton – Regenerative Capitalism (2015), where the author states that "[the theory] is less a new theory than a rediscovery and synthesis of what is hidden in plain sight."
This paper aims to map the academic interest around the concept of regenerative economy and regenerative business models by conducting a systematic literature review. The primary tool for bibliometric analysis was VOSviewer, which enables the visualization of thematic networks and emerging research clusters considering the research included in the Scopus database. Fewer than 100 relevant publications were identified in recent years, highlighting the emerging nature of this field. The thematic analysis reveals the existence of three major research clusters. The first encompasses studies focused on regenerative business models and their applications in management and entrepreneurship. The second one looks at macroeconomic and systems-oriented approaches, treating regenerative economics as a transformative framework at a structural level to ensure sustainability. The third cluster includes papers exploring the intersection between regenerative and circular economies, emphasizing the complementarities between these paradigms.
By conducting this systematic analysis, the study seeks to clarify the current positioning of regenerative economics in academic research and to provide a conceptual foundation for future theoretical developments and practical applications of these models in organizational contexts.
