Sustainable Last-Mile Logistics: Challenges, Innovations, and Policy Perspectives

Sustainable last-mile logistics emerge as a critical focus in the transition toward greener, more efficient supply chains. As e-commerce demand increases and urban populations grow, supply chains present unique environmental, economic, and operational challenges. Rapid innovations like electric delivery, micro-fulfillment centers, cargo bikes, and data-driven routing reshape what sustainable distribution looks like in larger cities. Combined with evolving policy frameworks that balance commercial needs with environmental goals, these developments highlight the complex interplay between technology, business models, and regulation in building a more sustainable last-mile ecosystem. Sustainable Last-Mile Logistics: Challenges, Innovations, and Policy Perspectives explores sustainable innovations, government policy, and technology-driven solutions that transform last-mile logistics in emerging markets. It combines theoretical frameworks with case studies to offer a comprehensive academic and practical resource to address distribution challenges, business innovation strategies, and policy integration. This book covers topics such as green business, circular economy, and environmental science, and is a useful resource for business owners, policymakers, academicians, researchers, and scientists.

Reason Masengu is an Assistant Professor of Marketing at Middle East College, Muscat, Oman. He holds a PhD in Business Administration (Marketing) from North-West University, South Africa, a Master of Commerce in Marketing Strategy, and a Bachelor of Technology Honours in International Marketing. His research interests centre on logistics, supply chain management, food safety, sustainability, and global marketing, with a strong focus on emerging economies. Masengu has secured several competitive research grants, including projects funded by Oman’s Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation and the International Telecommunication Union, addressing topics such as food safety risks, logistics competitiveness, and digital financial inclusion. He has published widely in leading journals and has co-edited volumes with IGI Global, Springer, and Palgrave Macmillan. He also serves on editorial boards, acts as a peer reviewer, and contributes to conferences, bridging academic rigour with practical solutions for industry and policy.

Divaries Cosmas Jaravaza is a distinguished academic with a PhD in Business and Marketing from WITS Business School (University of Witwatersrand, SA). Dr Jaravaza is a specialist in accounting education, marketing, advertising, and cultural perceptions. His extensive educational background includes a Master of Commerce in Marketing Strategy (Midlands State University), an MBA (Zimbabwe Open University), BBA (Institute of Marketing Management Graduate School of Marketing) and multiple diplomas in marketing, accountancy, and business management. Dr. Jaravaza has over two decades of higher education teaching experience at Bindura University of Science Education and Mutare Teacher College, where he has taught a diverse range of subjects from financial accounting, costing to social media marketing. He is an external examiner for University of Witwatersrand (SA) and North West (SA), a PhD supervisor at Bindura University of Science Education (Zimbabwe), University of South Africa(South Africa) and Durban University of Technology (South Africa), and an ACCA Global mentor for Oxford Brookes University (UK). His prolific research career boasts of 28 Scopus and 21 Web of Science indexed publications in, iter alia, Journal of Consumer Behaviour, Journal of Foodservice Business Research, Journal of African Business, International journal of Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Marketing, 7 book chapters on digital technologies among others. He also has 31 DOAJ indexed publications. Dr. Jaravaza also serves as an Editorial Board Member of Humanities & Social Sciences Communications, a Springer Nature Scopus Indexed Journal as well as a journal reviewer for Scopus indexed Elsevier, Taylor and Francis and Emerald journals. He is a book editor for two books: Cognitive Commerce: Understanding Consumer Behaviour in the Era of AI and Machine Learning Volume 1 and Volume 2 (in press) and a research coordinator, contributing significantly to the fields of marketing and consumer behaviour reflecting his deep commitment to advancing academic excellence and practical knowledge in his field.