Sustainable development: impact on the social dimension of the reverse supply chain

Abstract

The study addresses the relationship between Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and sustainable development as an articulating element of its three dimensions: environmental, economic and social. Variables that integrate the social dimension in the field of recycling are evaluated, where in a previous study it is concluded that in Ecuador the reverse supply chain in household appliances (refrigerators) has shortcomings in this dimension and affects the sustainability of the RENOVA program. A method to integrate the results of the evaluation of variables at the level of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) dedicated to the recycling of refrigerators using the survey is proposed. The effects on the working environment are significant, interfering with sustainable development in the area of recycling, where the Social Group Entropy Optimization Algorithm (SGEO) model to optimize the variable was used. The results set the basis for an organizational change from the use of ICT, tending to open innovation, knowledge management, shared information management and project monitoring.