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Yanan Li

PhD fellow

Subjects
Strategy Managerial economics Supply chain Shipping Sustainability

Primary research areas

De­car­bon­iz­a­tion in Ship­ping
Ex­am­ine the role of cargo own­ers in shap­ing the pace and dir­ec­tion of de­car­bon­iz­a­tion with­in the ship­ping in­dustry, and ex­tend the ana­lys­is to how ex­tern­al shocks, such as COV­ID-19, geo­pol­it­ic­al con­flicts, and tar­iff policies, re­shape their in­flu­ence and stra­tegic choices.
Buy­er-sup­pli­er Re­la­tion­ship in Ship­ping
Ana­lyze the power dy­nam­ics in­her­ent in the in­ter­or­gan­iz­a­tion­al re­la­tion­ships between ship­pers and car­ri­ers, fo­cus­ing on how this dis­tinct buy­er–sup­pli­er pair­ing af­fects co­ordin­a­tion, bar­gain­ing, and long-term part­ner­ship out­comes.
Sus­tain­able Sup­ply Chain Man­age­ment
In­vest­ig­ate the sig­ni­fic­ance of Scope 3 emis­sions in cor­por­ate sustain­ability strategies and as­sess the trade-offs firms face between prof­it­ab­il­ity and in­vest­ments in sup­ply chain de­car­bon­iz­a­tion when mak­ing op­er­a­tion­al and stra­tegic de­cisions.

Sus­tain­ing col­lab­or­at­ive de­car­bon­iz­a­tion in ship­ping amid cli­mate change.

Yanan Li is a PhD Fellow at CBS’ Department of Operations Management, starting in 2025. She holds a BBA (Hons) in International Shipping and Transport Logistics from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (2022) and a Master of Engineering (by research) in Industrial Systems Engineering & Management from the National University of Singapore (2024). 

Her research focuses on shipping decarbonization, examining how cargo owners and markets influence low-carbon transitions, how shipper–carrier relationships shape collaboration, and how firms balance Scope 3 emissions with profitability. She also studies how global disruptions such as pandemics, conflicts, and trade shifts affect progress in sustainable supply chains. 

Beyond her doctoral work, Yanan has contributed to studies on port policy, port operations, and maritime technology adoption. She has taught Managerial Economics and Shipping Business Analytics and supervised master’s theses in maritime technology and management.