ABSTRACT
This paper aims at contributing with the discussion on the subject of sustainable production by presenting a systems’ dynamics analysis based on the STEEPL aspects of the Ethanol production chain in the southernmost state of Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul (RS). This chain was selected due to its peculiar characteristics: predominance of family farms, increasing demand and low production of ethanol in the state, despite environmental and political favorable conditions. This paper presents on Section 2 a brief description of the context of the ethanol production chain in the state and then analyses the main driving forces related to the STEEPL dimensions, seeking for elements that contribute towards a sustainable and competitive production chain. Section 3 presents an analysis of the actors and the STEEPL aspects compiled from the literature review and from field interviews. The qualitative and quantitative data were obtained from academic and technical references (indexed publications, technical reports from federal and state government and
1 INTRODUCTION
Sustainable development involves the comprehension of several aspects of a production chain. It includes a systemic view of the Social, Technological, Economical, Environmental, Political and Legal (STEEPL) aspects, which contribute to constitute the production chain as it is. In order to promote improvements towards a more sustainable and intelligent production chain, it is also needed to understand the foundational drivers, theirs impacts and risks associated to the driving forces that compound the contextual and transactional environments in which such chain evolves (Van Der Heidjen, 2005; Vaccaro et al. 2010). In the pathway for sustainable and intelligent manufacturing, biofuels can be regarded as an alternative for supplying the need for clean power generation, aligned to the emergence of an awareness that the prevailing economic model still leads to the collapse of the economic and environmental structure (MAPA, 2011, MDIC, 2012a).
