Zero Deforestation Commitments and Industry 4.0 Enabling Technologies: An Analysis of Their Role in Mitigating Deforestation

ABSTRACT This study examines the role of corporate zero‐deforestation commitments (ZDCs) and Industry 4.0 (I4.0) enabling technologies in mitigating deforestation. Drawing on data from 110 companies included in the Forest 500 dataset, the research explores whether sustainability commitments and digital innovation influence firms' deforestation performance. Building on the performative view of sustainability communication and the Technology–Organization–Environment framework, the study develops and tests hypotheses linking ZDCs, I4.0 adoption, and deforestation scores. Regression analyses show that both ZDCs and I4.0 technologies are individually associated with higher deforestation scores, suggesting that firms' symbolic “talk” can translate into substantive “walk” and that digital tools support monitoring and traceability. However, the interaction between ZDCs and I4.0 adoption does not yield significant effects, indicating that their combination does not automatically reinforce outcomes.