Georgia Mo Hughes
Title: Digital Product Passports and the Governance of Power Dynamics in Textile Global Value Chains: A Supplier–Centric Analysis
Supervisor: Dr. Margit Kirs
Opponent: Dr. Egert Juuse
Defense: 8 June 2026
Abstract: This study examines how the EU Digital Product Passport (DPP) and related traceability requirements alter power dynamics in textile value chains from a supplier perspective. Drawing on Global Value Chain governance theory, platform governance scholarship, and Lessig's code-as-law framework, it investigates the conditions under which traceability supports supplier upgrading rather than reinforcing dependency. The central argument is that DPP-driven traceability increases transaction codifiability, raises data demands across the chain, and relocates governance decisions into digital infrastructure whose design is not equally accessible to all actors. Whether these conditions produce upgrading or dependency depends on three governance conditions: capability, value capture, and valuation alignment. Where all three hold, upgrading is possible but structurally exceptional. The most common trajectory is compliance without upgrading.
Keywords: Environmental Sustainability, Digital Product Passport, Power Dynamics, Textile Value Chain, Supplier Perspective
