Institutionalization of Green Logistics Practices (GLPs) towards a Sustainable Economy: With Special Reference to the Sri Lankan Logistics Sector

Abstract

With the increasing global emphasis on sustainable development, logistics companies are under growing pressure to integrate environmentally and socially responsible practices into their operations. This study explores the adoption of Green Logistics Practices (GLPs) within the Sri Lankan logistics sector and examines how these practices contribute to organisational and sector-wide sustainability. Drawing on Institutional Theory, the study frames GLP adoption not merely as a set of isolated operational choices, but as organisational responses to coercive, mimetic, and normative pressures that gradually reshape the logistics sector as a whole. A qualitative research approach was adopted, and data were generated through semi-structured in-depth interviews with seven logistics companies representing small, medium, and large-scale operations. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. The findings indicate that logistics firms in Sri Lanka are increasingly adopting environmental sustainability practices such as route optimisation, renewable energy utilisation, energy-efficient warehouse operations, rainwater harvesting, green packaging, waste management, and digitalisation to minimise their ecological footprint. In addition, organisations demonstrate a strong focus on social sustainability through employee health and 45 © 2026 by Authors | CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 | https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ safety initiatives, grievance handling systems, ethical labour practices, and safety monitoring mechanisms. These practices collectively contribute to improving operational efficiency while balancing environmental and social objectives, and, viewed institutionally, indicate a gradual convergence around a shared set of sustainability norms among the participating firms. The study contributes to the limited empirical literature on green logistics in developing country contexts by providing insights into how sustainability is operationalised in practice and by extending institutional theory to a previously underexamined sector and setting. The findings also offer practical implications for managers and policymakers to promote the adoption of sustainable logistics practices in the sector. Further, the cross-case findings suggest two interconnected pathways through which these practices become institutionalised: an eco-efficiency pathway, where environmentally friendly practices are sustained because of their operational value, and a legitimacy pathway, where social and compliance practices are embedded through accepted organisational expectations. The study also proposes institutional depth, the extent to which a practice is embedded in routines, targets, and monitoring systems, to explain why some practices persist while others remain isolated.