Cover
Volume 7, Special Issue 6 (2026)

Published: October 25, 2026

Pages: 27-36

Research Article

The role of green management in promoting sustainable development in the oil industry sector: An analytical study of the opinions of a sample of workers in the Najaf refinery

Shahad K. Hussein 1 Karrar H. Razzaq 2
1College of Urban Planning, University of Kufa, Iraq
2Ministry of Finance, Baghdad, Iraq
History
  • Received: August 14, 2026
  • Available Online: October 25, 2026
DOI

https://doi.org/10.56967/ejfb2026979

Abstract

This study aims to highlight the role of green management in achieving and promoting environmental and corporate sustainable development by proposing new mechanisms for its implementation to support sustainability at various levels. The study adopted a descriptive-analytical approach using a questionnaire distributed to a sample of 274 employees at the Najaf Refinery, and examined the causal relationships among the study variables, with data analyzed using SPSS. The results showed that sustainable development can be achieved through environmental planning and design, waste management, and environmental training and awareness. They also revealed that green management serves as an effective tool to enhance sustainable development in the oil industry by reducing harmful environmental impacts and improving resource use efficiency, thus contributing to tangible economic and social benefits. This study underscores the importance of green management in supporting sustainable development in the oil industry and proposes mechanisms to strengthen its application and achieve sustainability on a broader scale, in line with efforts to meet organizational needs and improve environmental and organizational efficiency.

Keywords

References

  1. Abad-Segura, E., Morales, M. E., Cortés-García, F. J., & Belmonte-Ureña, L. J. (2020). Industrial processes management for a sustainable society: Global research analysis. Processes, 8(5), 631.
  2. Abedin, B., Gabor, M. R., Susanu, I. O., & Jaber, Y. F. (2024). Exploring the perspectives of oil and gas industry managers on the adoption of sustainable practices: AQ methodology approach to green marketing strategies. Sustainability, 16(14), 5948.
  3. AlZgool. (2019). Nexus between green HRM and green management towards fostering green values. Management Science Letters.
  4. Chang, T. W., & Hung, C. Z. (2021). How to shape the employees’ organization sustainable green knowledge sharing: Cross-level effect of green organizational identity effect on green management behavior and performance of members. Sustainability, 13(2), 626.
  5. Chygryn, O. Y., Rosokhata, A. S., Rybina, O. I., & Stoyanets, N. (2021). Green competitiveness: The evolution of concept formation.
  6. García-Salirrosas, E. E., & Rondon-Eusebio, R. F. (2022). Green marketing practices related to key variables of consumer purchasing behavior. Sustainability, 14(14), 8499.
  7. Gawusu, S., Zhang, X., Jamatutu, S. A., Ahmed, A., Amadu, A. A., & Djam Miensah, E. (2022). The dynamics of green supply chain management within the framework of renewable energy. International Journal of Energy Research, 46(2), 684-711.
  8. Haiyun, C., Zhixiong, H., Yüksel, S., & Dinçer, H. (2021). Analysis of the innovation strategies for green supply chain management in the energy industry using the QFD-based hybrid interval valued intuitionistic fuzzy decision approach. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 143, 110844.
  9. Holmberg, J., & Sandbrook, R. (2019). Sustainable development: what is to be done. In Policies for a small planet (pp. 19-38). Routledge.
  10. Katsikeas, C. S., Leonidou, C. N., & Zeriti, A. (2016). Eco-friendly product development strategy: antecedents, outcomes, and contingent effects. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 44(6), 660-684.
  11. Leal Filho, W., Azeiteiro, U., Alves, F., Pace, P., Mifsud, M., Brandli, L., ... & Disterheft, A. (2018). Reinvigorating the sustainable development research agenda: the role of the sustainable development goals (SDG). International Journal of Sustainable Development & World Ecology, 25(2), 131-142.
  12. Leal Filho, W., Tripathi, S. K., Andrade Guerra, J. B. S. O. D., Giné-Garriga, R., Orlovic Lovren, V., & Willats, J. (2019). Using the sustainable development goals towards a better understanding of sustainability challenges. International Journal of Sustainable Development & World Ecology, 26(2), 179-190.
  13. Mathews, J. (2018). Implementing Green Management in Business Organizations. IUP Journal of Business Strategy, 15(2).
  14. Nozari, H., & Ghahremani-Nahr, J. (2021). Identifying the dimensions and basic features of green product design with an emphasis on improving the environment. Applied Innovations in Industrial Management, 1(1), 8-14.
  15. Purvis, B., Mao, Y., & Robinson, D. (2019). Three pillars of sustainability: in search of conceptual origins. Sustainability science, 14(3), 681-695.
  16. Sachs, J. D., Schmidt-Traub, G., Mazzucato, M., Messner, D., Nakicenovic, N., & Rockström, J. (2019). Six transformations to achieve the sustainable development goals. Nature sustainability, 2(9), 805-814.
  17. Swain, R. B. (2017). A critical analysis of the sustainable development goals. In Handbook of sustainability science and research (pp. 341-355). Cham: Springer International Publishing.
  18. Wu, R., Huo, B., Yu, Y., & Zhang, Z. (2022). Quality and green management for operational and environmental performance: relational capital in supply chain management. International Journal of Logistics Research and Applications, 25(4-5), 471-492.
  19. Yafi, E., Tehseen, S., & Haider, S. A. (2021). Impact of green training on environmental performance through mediating role of competencies and motivation. Sustainability, 13(10), 5624
  20. Najaf refinery operates at full capacity — Iraqi News:
  21. Iraq to increase Najaf refinery’s capacity to 100,000 barrels per day — Iraqi News:
  22. Al-Sudani launches the construction works of the Najaf Refinery Expansion Project — INA.iq:
  23. Iraq launches Najaf refinery expansion project — Zawya Projects