Contribution of Digital Transformation in Municipal Solid Waste Management: Insights from a Case Study

This chapter aims to investigate how digital platforms improving knowledge-sharing and waste recycling effectiveness can co-create value. To that end, this research undertakes a single qualitative case study of a small, innovative firm that has developed a digital platform that engages citizens, Italian municipalities and waste management companies in a shared co-production program for the purpose of bolstering recycling rates. The case analysis relies on the network model as an analytical framework, which uses the concepts of (a) structural holes, (b) circularity holes, and (c) brokerage activities to enhance our understanding of information distribution and resource flows among actors involved in the waste value chain. The findings show that the digital platform acts as a circularity broker between various stakeholders, which jointly contribute to value co-creation.