Green HRM in the Global South: Establishing Sustainability, Responsible Transformations, and Resilient Organizational Development

Introduction

In order for organizations to accomplish sustainability goals, human resource management (HRM) is a crucial strategic component. The incorporation of environmental responsibility into HR standards and procedures is known as "green human resource management," or GHRM, which links business strategy with environmental demands. In other terms, GHRM is defined as the use of HR practices to enhance environmental sustainability (Ahmad and Sadiq, 2025; Renwick et al., 2013). GHRM has been shown to foster eco-friendly behavior (whilst acting as an institutional change driver by transforming employees into sustainability ambassadors both inside and outside the workplace (Dumont et al., 2017)).

Most of the academic literature on GHRM practices stems from perspectives of Europe and North America (Global North), while the application of these practices in the Global South is still scattered, context-specific, and not adequately studied (Jackson et al., 2023; Pham et al., 2020), offering both substantial opportunities and particular obstacles to success.

The term ‘’Global South’’, denotes regions outside Europe and North America. It reflects geopolitical power dynamics rather than development or cultural differences (Dabos and Connell, 2012). While researchers have started to pay attention to the Global South, most of GHRM empirical research has been conducted in the Global North.  This geographical focus on Global North in GHRM research may produce conceptual frameworks and recommended policies that are divorced from the socioeconomic and institutional contexts of Global South countries (Adekoya et al., 2023; Vandy and Mohanty, 2025). It is very important to consider how, why, and whether countries in the Global South shape the main element of GHRM practices that emerge in their organizations (Ren et al., 2018).

This special issue, therefore, aims to close significant gaps in the existing GHRM scholarship, by highlighting the unique contexts, obstacles, and opportunities for integrating Green HRM in the Global South throughout Latin America, Africa, Asia and the Middle East. We encourage conceptual papers, empirical research, and scholarly discussions that explore how GHRM can advance social justice, economic stability, and sustainable development in contexts of scarce resources while simultaneously helping to achieve environmental sustainability. We welcome papers that provide new perspectives on GHRM from the Global South.

List of Topic Areas

This special issue invites submissions that address (but not exclusively) the following areas:

1. Contextualizing GHRM in the Global South (i.e. the adoption of GHRM, implementation barriers, contribution to sustainability). 
2. GHRM and work outcomes in the Global South (i.e. the effect of GHRM on green and non-green individual and organizational outcomes). 
3. How GHRM can enhance staff well-being in informal staffing settings (i.e. the relationship between GHRM and workplace happiness, job security, and inclusive practices of staffing, etc.)
3. GHRM in sector-specific context in the Global South (i.e. manufacturing, IT, higher education, hospitality, etc.). 
4. National perspectives of GHRM in the Global South (i.e. how GHRM can facilitate effective economic transitions given the frequent scarcity of the resources and climate vulnerability). 
5. Leadership, organizational culture, management commitment to sustainable practices (how the aforementioned factors can shape GHRM practices in contexts where pro-environmental values may be nascent). 
6. GHRM and Organizational Resilience in the Global South (i.e. why and how GHRM can serve as a tool that contributes to organizational resilience in the light of environmental and operational disruptions). 
7. The role of AI and digital transformation in enabling GHRM in the Global South. 
8. Success stories and case studies of organizations that pioneered the implementation of GHRM in the Global South.

Submissions Information

Submissions are made using ScholarOne Manuscripts. Registration and access are available at: https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/ijoa

Author guidelines must be strictly followed. Please see:  https://www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com/journal/ijoa

Authors should select (from the drop-down menu) the special issue title at the appropriate step in the submission process, i.e. in response to “Please select the issue you are submitting to”.

Submitted articles must not have been previously published, nor should they be under consideration for publication anywhere else, while under review for this journal.

Key Deadlines

Opening date for manuscripts submissions: 07/04/2026

Closing date for manuscripts submission: 30/11/2026