Research Articles Base: Global Environmental Sustainability

Global Environmental Sustainability Essay Sample

As a person with knowledge of the role that corporations will play in global environmental sustainability, the author has always brought up to his superiors the viability of strategy formation regarding the analysis of this issue and at times fail to understand the reasons or logic behind certain strategic implementations imposed on it. By delving into this project paper, the author intends to have better insights into how global environmental sustainability is thought up, formulated and then imparted down. The author hopes to have an in-depth understanding as to how the roles that corporations play in global environmental sustainability enable them to compete effectively and profitably in this era of internationalization where competition is extremely intense. In order to reinforce the learning objectives, two key focal issues were focussed upon, i.e. innovation and diversity. Innovation was discussed with regard to the roles that corporations play in global environmental sustainability where they were renowned for their developmental capabilities to constantly innovate. Diversity came under strategic thinking and formation as the author considered the diverse culture, political climate, economic surroundings, social environment, technological settings, government policies and legal systems in order to better understand the issues being discussed.   EXECUTIVE BRIEF Multinational companies who normally make an effort to be involved in global environmental sustainability efforts normally have four main objectives: (a) Remain one of the top companies in terms of making an impact towards global environmental sustainability; (b) Gain more fame and attention than other multinational companies; (c) Establish the best credentials, with global environmental sustainability as the international flagship goal; and (d) Maintaining its competitiveness. The selection of the target country to pursue is important for the multinational companies in order to achieve their objectives. A key factor that these companies look into, of course aside from being underdeveloped, is markets where a broad leadership position has yet to be fully developed. There is no doubt that in order to gain enormous publicity and praise in the industry, there are multinational companies who engage in global environmental sustainability efforts as part of their strategy to monopolize the entire place. Their efforts towards global environmental sustainability in their own capabilities are really good, but the debate lies on whether the price these poor countries have to pay in exchange for environmental sustainability programs is fair or not is still on. This may be a clear indication of how worse the world environmental situation has gotten over the years. India, Brazil and many other underdeveloped countries will continue to remain under the control of these multinational companies unless the world environmental crisis is resolved. INTRODUCTION Environmental management can be defined as the efficient and effective implementation of the policies and tasks necessary towards the attainment of global environmental sustainability. Environmental management focuses on the careful management of the processes involved in the establishment and implementation of environmental policies (Bhattacharya, 2000). More often than not, multinational companies don’t really have the initiative to make an impact towards global environmental sustainability. Instead, these companies engage in activities that various schools of thought typically associate with “making an impact” towards global environmental sustainability. These activities include the evaluation of products and services in terms of their environmental impacts as well as establishing various environmental development projects. However, to make an impact, multinational companies must deal with all processes also done by most companies and organizations concerned with global environmental sustainability. Activities such as organizing activities for environmental management are often related with making a positive impact to global environmental sustainability. A great deal of emphasis lies on the efficiency and effectiveness of these processes. Palm, Inc. and Heineken will be the model multinational corporations that will be used in this research based on their history in environmental management. GOALS / OBJECTIVES Multinational companies like Palm, Inc. and Heineken who normally make an effort to be involved in global environmental sustainability efforts normally have four main objectives: A)   Remain one of the top companies in terms of making an impact towards global environmental sustainability. Being on top of this list enables these multinational companies to command the respect and confidence of people around the world, especially the environmentalists. Thus, these multinational companies are able to expand their operations in countries where environmental crisis exists. B)    Gain more fame and attention than other multinational companies. The activities that that these multinational companies conduct to make a positive impact to global environmental sustainability are able to meet high quality standards. As a result, these multinational companies are able to get more publicity as against other multinational companies doing the same environmental efforts. C)    Establish the best credentials, with global environmental sustainability as the international flagship goal; and D)   Maintaining its competitiveness. Being competitive allows these multinational companies to continue its tradition of excellence in both its products and services by being involved in global environmental sustainability efforts. In order to achieve these objectives, most multinational companies implement a strategy of offering a combination of programs and projects to selected underdeveloped and heavily polluted countries, but maintaining global environmental sustainability as the flagship goal of the company. These multinational companies, in exchange, also aim for broader positions as well as either the top or secondary positions in the market of these poor countries. Any of these positions would be enough for these multinational companies to deliver a high level of performance in terms of the delivery of projects and programs meant to alleviate the environmental crisis in that place. Moreover, these positions create a platform from which these multinational companies can sell their premium brands in exchange of these environmental programs (Booms, 1981). PALM, INC.’S CURRENT ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT STRATEGY Palm, Inc. aims for global environmental sustainability as a broad market leader in mobile computing as well as for segment leadership. In both cases, the Palm, Inc. brands will play a crucial part. Palm, Inc. is able to establish its environmental management strategy usually by acquiring other strong mobile computing companies and their environmental management policies, which are then combined into a new, larger multinational company. Offering environmental training to its employees, improving the company’s environmental policies, and the introduction of new technologies for global environmental sustainability then reinforces the position of Palm, Inc. in pushing for global environmental sustainability. This practically results in economies of scale that is able to create a distribution network for both the local and international environmental strategies of Palm, Inc. If an environmental strategy is already being implemented by other mobile computing companies, Palm, Inc. devotes its attention towards the development of a unique environmental protocol with its various Palm products.             The mission of Palm, Inc. is to secure the growth of its environmental strategies in a sustainable manner, while at the same time constantly improving the company’s profitability. The strategy to achieve this involves four elements: <li class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 200%"> Striving in order to reach a leading position in attractive markets </li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 200%"> Focusing on securing a competitive share of the mobile computing market segments. </li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 200%"> Working in order to improve the company’s efficiency and cut costs in operations. </li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 200%"> Continuous growth through selective acquisitions for as long as they are able to create shareholder value. </li> Palm, Inc. is committed on its efforts to continuously develop original environmental strategies that generate a high appeal to the general public due to its quality and cost effectiveness. Over the years, Palm, Inc. has been able to build a substantial base meant to boost the company’s drive for global environmental sustainability. This enables the company to bring to the fore truly original and more importantly environmental strategies that are very effective in uplifting global environmental sustainability. The research and development team of Palm, Inc. also plays a crucial role in the achievement of this feat. The company also believes that making a positive impact in the society through their environmental strategies is the very essence of being a manufacturer. HEINEKEN’S CURRENT ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT STRATEGY The selection of the target country to pursue is important for Heineken in order to achieve their objectives regarding global environmental sustainability. A key factor that Heineken looks into, of course aside from being underdeveloped, is countries where a broad environmental crisis has yet to be fully solved. In these countries Heineken strives for strong positions, because they surely know what they would get in return.           Good examples here include Heineken’s leading position in the rural areas in India as well as in Brazil. In both examples, Heineken shows its desire to establish environmental sustainability through the establishment of more and more environmental management programs in exchange for the resources that these could provide them consistently. India India has been showing steady signs of growth and progress in terms of its environmental situation for a couple of years now. This consistent progress can be attributed to the change in strategic directions that was implemented several years ago and is still being further structured up to now. Basically, the critical element of the environmental strategy was that its Government started looking at things from the perspectives of the citizens. India remains one of the favourite targets of multinational companies with their environmental programs. Under the leadership of these multinational companies and with the cooperation of the Indian government, large-scale environmental operations are being initiated from time to time in various parts of India. But along with these programs, business units of these multinational companies also started to be established to initiate the change process needed to bring these companies closer to the Indian market and their people. In the part of marketing, the decisions taken in recent years by these multinational companies already established positive impacts such as portfolio management and ethnic marketing. Brazil Brazil possesses a strong market and some heavily polluted cities that enable it to be easily targeted by the world’s leading multinational companies like Heineken Brazil’s market value has even increased over the recent years especially with the steady increase of their presence. Brazil has also one of the largest markets of home-grown products in the world. For instance, its oil market earned an estimated sales volume of 250 million hectoliters of oil in 2003. Add the fact that with a population of nearly 85 million people, Brazil is certainly one of the largest and wealthiest markets in South America. But along with these economic benefits comes the devastation of its water and mineral resources due to the improper management of oil and mining firms. BENEFITS OF MULTINATIONAL COMPANIES Undoubtedly, charitable multinational companies like Heineken and Palm, Inc. experience the following profits and benefits in the process of their global environmental sustainability efforts: ·        Financial Growth and Stability Financial stability is crucial especially in the pursuit of environmental programs and activities. Since these companies are always first in the scene to help countries with environmental crises, they continue to enjoy financial growth and stability. ·        Excellent Product Performance and Price The excellent performance of the products of these multinational companies comes as a result of well-funded environmental activities established in their target countries. In return, the people in these poor communities continue to patronize the products of these multinational companies which they think are helping them get over their worsening environmental situations. The strong performance of the products in these poor countries could also be linked to their cost-effectiveness. Surely, the multinational companies are aware of the positioning in terms of process so as to maintain satisfactory profits margin and remain competitive in the market (Gronroos, 1984). ·        Improved Marketing Strategy and Distribution High brand awareness among the poor people as buyers has created the need for aggressive marketing, and access to strong distribution channels is critical for the introduction of new products. ·        Economies of Scale and Scope in environmental management and social welfare development arising from its numerous resources and facilities situated in targeted countries worldwide. ·        Strong Publicity owing to heavy emphasis on efforts             A multinational company’s commitment to global environmental sustainability activities has always been one of the top strategies to remain competitive in the market. ·        Differentiated Products Through the unsolicited marketing of differentiated products originating from their global environmental sustainability activities, multinational companies are able to create its own firm-specific advantages. The continuous pursuit of environmental programs enables multinational companies to produce a steady stream of original projects and ideas which makes it difficult for competitors to find substitutes. Because of this differentiated approach, these multinational companies are able to market their products worldwide with the help of the poor people who keep on patronizing their products at a price. This is the way multinational companies are able maximize the returns on environmental program expenditures.   CONCLUSION The results of the analysis carried out on the environmental management of multinational companies Heineken and Palm, Inc. indicated very significant effects, even amidst the threats of unrest. Therefore, we could conclude that the environmental management of these multinational companies could still be expected to improve faster than average. The review of these companies’ environmental management capabilities and resources revealed very little inconsistencies regarding their strategies. This is coherent with their traditional inside-out approach. However, the need to reconcile both the inside-out and outside-in approaches becomes imperative now for both Palm, Inc. and Heineken. The analysis among the environment as well as the environmental management and capabilities of Palm, Inc. and Heineken revealed certain gaps, most of which are biased towards the environment. However, these gaps paved the way towards determining a number of recommended strategic options to secure their competitiveness. Also, Palm, Inc. and Heineken have to find a balance between adherence to internal forces within the management and to the changing forces of the environment in order to implement such strategic options.   Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

Global Environmental Sustainability Essay Sample

As a person with knowledge of the role that corporations will play in global environmental sustainability, the author has always broug...

If China and India and the other developing countries want to live like us – and it looks like they do – where are we going to get the resources from? It is an impending environmental disaster or a huge business opportunity

The essay topic is:   “If China and India and the other developing countries want to live like us – and it looks like they do – where are we going to get the resources from?  It is an impending environmental disaster or a huge business opportunity.”   Requirements:   1.          Discuss the captioned statement in the context of the role that corporations will play in global environmental sustainability.  Provide examples from current knowledge of at least 2 large multinational corporations to illustrate your arguments.   2.          Using your knowledge of ethics and social responsibility and environmental management, critically analyse the captioned statement.   3.          The essay is to be 2,500 words in length.   4.          Use a 12-point font and double-line or line-an-a-half-spacing.  Provide a generous margin for comments.  Use only one side of A4 paper, number every page, and staple in top left-hand corner.   5.          Please read the guide (Refer to Attachment 1 – Appendix D: Individual Essay Marking Guide) carefully before commencing your assignment.   6.          Please present your assignment professionally using an Essay Format (a synopsis is not required).  Highest marks will be given to those essays which address the essay question in a logical, coherent manner following standard essay development – i.e., introduction, body (argument) and conclusion.  See the recommended book by ‘Summers, J & Smith, B 2004, Communication skills handbook, 6th edn, John Wilsy & Sons, Milton, Qld’.   7.          Information that is not vital to the essay discussion/argument should be put into an Appendix at the end of the essay.  Marks will be deducted for irrelevant information – for example: graphs, tables, pictures, etc. – that is included in the essay body but which is not essential to the essay but simply additional or interesting information which belongs in an Appendix.   8.          Marks will be deducted for poor presentation (see above), poor spelling, poor punctuation and poor sentence structure, incorrect/inconsistent referencing, and under – or over-exceeding word limit by more than 250 words.   9.          In terms of the “Reference List”, a reference is a book or article that has been referred to in the essay.  Do not provide a bibliography – that is a list of readings which have not been referred to in the essay.  It is expected that each essay will directly source at least eight (8) academic references, considered to be journal articles or monographs, books, or refereed materials in general, as sources.  Your prescribed textbook may be one of these but doesn’t have to be.  It is expected that students will expand on information provided in texts and not simply repeat what is already there.   10.      Use ‘Harvard System’ for the reference list.  See the recommended book by ‘Summers, J & Smith, B 2004, Communication skills handbook, 6th edn, John Wilsy & Sons, Milton, Qld’.   e.g.  The general format in a reference list is as follows:   Author’s surname, Author’s initial(s) – no spaces between initials if more than one, year of publication, title of publication, edition abbreviated as edn, e.g. 2nd edn, volume number if applicable – abbreviated as vol., publisher, place of publication, page number if applicable.   Actual Example: For book -             Michael, F & Emming, BM 1991, Strategic planning, 3rd edn, Prentice Hall, London, pp. 4-10 For article or chapter in an edited book -             Axelsson, B & Easton, G 1992, ‘Foreign market entry – The textbook vs. the network theory’, in B Axelsson & G Easton (eds), Industrial networks: a new view of reality, Routledge, London, pp. 46-59 For internet sites -             Lee, MT 2000, Guidelines for citing references and electronic sources of information, viewed 12 May 2001, http://www.eliz.tased.edu.au/refs.htm Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

If China and India and the other developing countries want to live like us – and it looks like they do – where are we going to get the resources from? It is an impending environmental disaster or a huge business opportunity

The essay topic is: “If China and India and the other developing countries want to live like us – and it looks like they do – where ar...

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Introduction A one way of life is an intricate cluster of values, objectives, institutions and activities, alongside with dimensions of ethical, environmental, economic and social aspects.  Currently, the unsustainable factor coincides to the larger extent of ecological concerns.  With the interrelatedness of the dimensions, it is valuable to distinguish the disparate implications for sustainability of the three dimensions involved.  Human relationships, for instance, mayhap become socially unsustainable independently of economic or ecological factors; and in which a particular allocation of resources may be economically unsustainable independently of social or ecological factors, like increasing budget deficits perhaps.  In this paper, we would deal with the broad concept of sustainability, particularly of global environmental sustainability as it involves the discussion of corporation’s role in the sustainable development.  Further, the essence of this essay is the critical analysis of the quoted statement from (2005) which states, “If China and India and the other developing countries want to live like us – and it looks like they do – where are we going to get the resources from?  It is an impending environmental disaster or a huge business opportunity?”, base from the perspective within the premise of environmental management. Main Part Sustainability and its Dimensions             Sustainability is broad in its spectrum and is usually determined.  The essential meaning of sustainability is the faculty for continuance, whether definitely or indefinitely for the future.  However, with the current trend people has been exhibiting especially the irresponsibleness and negligence of some corporations, such as destructing environmental conditions for their own affairs  of existence or the pervasiveness of environmental effects, like climate change, toxic pollution brought about by unmindful observance of appropriate disposal of toxic waste, depletion of natural resources, both renewable and non-renewable, all of which has been caused by unacceptable social disruption and potent threat to human health.             The concept of sustainability, as what have been mentioned beforehand goes alongside with three dimensions, social, economic and environmental, would be discussed respectively.  Social sustainability pertains to the ability of the society to maintain the invaluable means of wealth-creation to replicate itself and the shared sense of social purpose to nurture social cohesion and integration.  From the existence of a principal document from United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), Agenda 21, is representative of the total commitment that is perceived to be crucial for the attainment of sustainable development.  Primarily, the focus of the objectives in the formulation of public policy, especially in the developing societies is the growth of the Gross National Product (GNP), such that these societies pose an environmental problem arising from the level of consumption, consequent environmental impacts and troublesome poverty that hampers an ailing nation since it leads to chronic scarcity at an individual level, thereby, it connotes reduction in the productivity.  Additionally, it is an ethical problem because the scarcity results to inducement of suffering as maybe producing social injustices.  To put into account, there are three reasons as to how the social dimension is critical to environment and development issues.  First, is the working on of several authors, to the wide-array of environmental-degradation problems conceived to be social in nature, for example, a “downward spiral” linking poverty and environment is widely recognized (1989; 2000; 1992;  1989; 1988);  (1985),  (1987), and  (1994) argue that land degradation is a social problem, related to a “simple reproduction squeeze” (1979). Hunger can be viewed as a distribution rather than a production problem ( 1978; 1998), as an entitlement problem (1981), or as an outcome of political conflicts (1990); a few decades ago, it was viewed as a population-control problem ( 1968).  Second, is the initiative of policy makers to reconcile the environment and economy dimension, problems in relation to the implementation is still proved to be evident, such as policy makers can be confronted in the anticipation and identification of the right institutions can more or less likely be consistent with the desired conditions. Thirds, is the implementation of the incorporation of the exiting social system to the necessary changes in resource use, structure of the economy, or in nature/society relations necessitating major adjustments in relation to the said system.  Therefore, the right identification of social systems should be compatible with both ecological and economic sustainability to accommodate the dynamics of social change.              Economic sustainability is most commonly interpreted as a condition of non-declining economic welfare projected indefinitely into the future ( 1992).   According to  (1995), there are already been a number of recent papers that have sought to combine optimality and sustainability in some way by pruning out of consideration those consumption paths that are ethically indefensible, by treating environmental goods as a source of utility in their own right, as well as inputs to production (1995) and by making sustainability an extra constraint on the optimal growth path (1994;  1995). Proposed treatments seemingly are promising, however, the problem arose because the proposed treatments inability to capture the diverseness of the natural environment as a contributor to the economy.  Simply stated, economic sustainability encourages any activity relevant in the maintenance or at least increases the level of the four capital stocks, that maintains or increases the productive capacity.               The impacts of environment can be felt globally, continentally, regionally, nationally and locally, that is why it is of primary importance to consider environmental sustainability.  The definition of environmental sustainability can take into different forms, although, the respective definitions falls into the same context of environmental sustainability.  Environmental sustainability, in terms of life that is governed in human ways, pertains to the sustaining ability of the environment to preserve human ways of life. The definition of environmental sustainability, in terms of economic activity, on the other hand, refers to the environment’s ability in the production of pivotal inputs economy to maintain the welfares of the economy.  Since sustainability, in relation to human ways of life and economic activity, is dependent on the maintenance of the precursor of environmental functions, is defined by  (1992), as the capacity of natural processes and components to provide goods and services that satisfy human needs, which in turn can be identified as the stocks and flows of natural capital, environmental sustainability can then be defined simply as the maintenance of invaluable environmental functions.  The disparate definitions of environmental sustainability, in turn provides different views, such as contrasting it with economic and social sustainability, it leads  (1993) to stress: ‘When judged by the length of time for which they (were) sustained, some of the most successful societies were also among the most exploitative, where the abuse of human rights was greatest’.  Nevertheless, environmental sustainability activities are also likely to contribute to the economic sustainability.    The Role of Corporations in Global Environmental Sustainability In the early 1990’s, the recognition to environmental concerns has prompted corporations to respond, as it is considered to be one rapidly evolving change in corporate management and strategy.  Often called “greening,” this response is a process by which human activity is made compatible with biospheric capacity. . . (1993).  Seeing the urgent need to respond to the pressing environmental problems that would also likely affect the corporations in the long-run, corporations begun to develop and implement policies, programs, and tools to meet their environmental opportunities and constraints (1992;1991;1984; 1996;1991; 1990;  1992; 1992; 1992).  The society, in general, as well has become fervently concerned with the natural environment health and the responsibility and roles of corporations in plausibly inducing negative impact in the ecosystems and human health. In the United States, for example, companies like Ben & Jerry’s, the Body Shop, and Smith & Hawken are commonly pointed to as “green” companies, whereas, on the other hand, companies such as Exxon and American Cyanamid are considered to be environmentally unfriendly companies. If things of unsustainable environmental exist in developed countries, it is therefore, evident that it also exists in the developing countries, where, the existence of unsustainable scenarios is even worst.  The struggle to advance human well-being in developing nations at times crashes with increasing efforts to shield the global environment. To prevent foreseeable conflicts, the principle of sustainable development has been proposed and has become widely accepted ( (1987) wherein the adoption of this principle, necessitates instilling of policies that allows industrial, agricultural, and other developments, yet also seeks to protect natural resources and public health for the benefit of future generations. The technological expertise of corporations, will play a vital role in fostering sustainable development as it cultivates new design for energy, transport and water supply systems via lessening the environmental impact and mandating companies to activate hazardous mining and manufacturing activities performances in a manner that ensure the protection of natural resources and public health. Moreover, the said technological expertise is crucial in the prevention of persistent waste disposal problems, in the development of biodegradable packaging, and in the design of new innovative products that are more compatible with the environment throughout their life cycles, such as substitutes for harmful chemical pesticides.(1991) The continuous advancement of technological expertise is essential for global environmental sustainability since environmental parameters spells volatility.  Fundamentally, as human well-being advances, developing nations will be more inclined to stress on the importance of protecting its natural resources and environmental amenities.  Another role of corporations would be in the formulation of policies promoting for sustainable development, as bearing the major proponents of developmental activities.  Multinational corporations (MNC’s) are seen to have aggressively looked for new alternative resources, markets, joint ventures, and facility sites. Recent studies show that such global expansion is growing significantly because “it pays” (Anderson 1991). In industrial countries, public agencies are under pressure to expedite MNC activities in developing nations and counterpart agencies that are likewise pursuing development opportunities for developing countries with MNC’s. Thus, MNC activities are being “pushed and pulled” toward developing nations at an increasing rate, and policies for sustainable development must ensure that MNCs provide the requisite technical expertise (1991).   Critical Analysis from the Statement   From the statement, “If China and India and the other developing countries want to live like us – and it looks like they do – where are we going to get the resources from?  It is an impending environmental disaster or a huge business opportunity?”.  In terms of the resources, developing nations are abundant with, particularly in the human resources, in which especially China’s population can easily come to terms with.  The presence of four capital stocks namely, ecological capital, human capital, social/organizational capital and manufactured capital resources are not scarce in developing nations compare in the United States.  From a perspective of an environmental management, environmental sustainability can gain in full strength if it can be perceived as fostering the well-being and opportunities of future, both humans and the environment, should not be sacrificed or be place into risk for present human advantage of an opportunist.  It is an impending environmental disaster for the developing nations, such that these nations maybe susceptible to exploits from the developed nations.  Exploited in terms of MNC not looking after the general welfare of the human resources through non-promotion of well-being and sometimes leads to unethical management practice of discrimination and abuse.  Nike Inc., for example, has been criticized for using sweatshop labor in countries like China, Vietnam, Indonesia and Mexico, all of which are developing nations. The tendency for exploitative practices occuring in developing countries might seem to be prevalent, this in turn could lead us to say that due to this circumstances, it is indeed providing MNC’s to have a gigantic business opportunity such that it can make most of the available resources, unethically and unjust, while at the time reaping the benefits of cheap cost in operations.  For example, in Ethiopia, a very poor country, Nestlé demanded millions in compensation for shares in Ethiopian agricultural firm as revealed by  in 2002. At first, Nestlé denied to pay the settlement to the Ethiopian government but in the face of public criticism, naturally, Nestlé would give in to the settlement but not implying that they are guilty of it, although, pinpoints other extraneous reasons to justify its issuance of settlement. Nestlé’s demand to a poor country in which they have operations, is a clear illustration how much some MNC’s seek to venture dig in deep into the business opportunity of operating in a developing country.  For both China and India, known to have tied with their rich cultures, cannot live an American way, although, with the resources they can use and the promising social sustainability, they are likely to reach the level of America in terms of global environmental sustainability in the future.   Conclusion The concept of global environmental sustainability implies the delivery of environmental, economic and social benefits as they are interrelated. This essay had explored the general context of sustainability and its pertinent dimensions, social, economic and environmental.  Further, the appropriate pivotal roles of corporations in enriching and be the forefront of global environmental sustainability as they have the technological resources and its influence is substantial.  In critical analysis of the statement, it deals with the realities as to how MNC activities demonstrate its power over the developing countries.       Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

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Introduction A one way of life is an intricate cluster of values, objectives, institutions and activities, alongside with dimensions of ...

Corporate, Social and Environmental Responsibility: Making Best Use of Current Technology (3,674 words)

Corporate, Social and Environmental Responsibility: Making Best Use of Current Technology (3,674 words)     Introduction Globalization of both the economy and the society has confronted the world over the past decade. Increased market competition identifies continuous adjustment and improvement in the production lines of countries to recognize the participation of smaller units of the society. The introduction of the new division of international labor calls for evaluation and reorganization of the business operations as well as a reassessment of the governing economic policies of a country. As such, a shift of focus and interest from the local market to the international setting has demanded innovation not just in corporate leadership as new information; forms of communication and technology are being offered to be utilized in encouraging and reinforcing interaction among individuals.   A good business strategy makes it a point to integrate and harmonize the goals, policies and actions of the organization into a tactical coherence in order to ensure and guarantee the success in the industry. The integration of the conservative and traditional management practices was observed in the ever-increasing complexity of the business environment. The technological advancements that characterizes the information era at present paved the way to the efficient conceptualization of more creative and effective business frameworks which when utilized by business companies will open more possibilities and better position in the competitive atmosphere in the industry.   The concept of endogenous economic development highlights a country’s need to allow change and make room for the growth of its production system by developing and utilizing the potential of local resources through the investment of private firms and holdings as well as of the government itself through national economic policies. But maximizing the potential of a country’s resources means direct impact on the environment. As such, companies at present are governed and guided by corporate responsibility measures and statement as dictated by national policy in order to ensure that sustainable development in all aspect of the country is ensured. This paper presents discussions on the role of multi-national corporations in realizing global environmental sustainability as part of their corporate social responsibility through the available technologies at present.     Environmental Issues Having claimed that previous researches have lacked in discussing the effects on firm performance of “Best Practices” of environmental management which supposedly enable firms to simultaneously protect the environment and reduce costs, (2000) made use of the resource-based perspective of the firm in analyzing if complementary assets are required to gain cost advantage from implementing best practices. The study included completed surveys on 88 chemical companies which indicated that the capabilities for process innovation and implementation are complementary assets moderating the relationship between best practices and cost advantage which is a one of the important determinants of firm performance.   The findings of the study indicated that the competitive effects of environmental strategies differ across firms with certain characteristics, thereby suggesting that future studies should analyze the environmental in the broader context of firms’ existing resources and capabilities as well as their existing business strategies. As such, this may lead to differing normative implications on the design and implementation of environmental strategies. Moreover, the researcher suggested studies on the analysis of failed environmental practices that were implemented by business organizations in order to be environmentally competitive focusing on their resources and capabilities in order to provide insights on the underlying context of such incapacity as well as to identify the barriers and constraints in firms’ drive to create environmentally sound competitive advantage (2000).    The importance of firms’ capabilities for process innovation and implementation to complement the best practices and cost-reduction objectives of the organizations is a great possibility since varying environmental practices requires different complementary assets. As such, before deciding on specific environmental strategies to be implemented firms should be able to discern and identify the capabilities of their inherent resources to conceptualize suitable and appropriate environmental strategies. Identifying the business strategies of the business first is recommended in order to come up with the most strategic environmental strategy that will create competitive advantage to the business organization (2000).                 Meanwhile,  (1998) examined the appropriateness as well as effectiveness of ISO 14001 as an environmental strategy among industries that seek to turn their waste into environmentally helpful forms. As such, the authors examined the promises of ISO 14001 through critical evaluation of the advantages as well as disadvantages of the said standard. AS&C was the company used to complete the academic investigation of the standard in order to come up with sound recommendations pertaining to the implementation and employment of the ISO 14001. According to  (1998) ISO 14001 is most frequently implemented because of (1) the intrinsic worth of the management system proposed by the standard follows the principles of rigor, follow-up, effectiveness to name a few; (2) the standard’s better control of the human resource of the business organization which includes eliciting greater compliance with work procedures and instructions; and finally (3) the socio-economic spin offs of implementing the new standard such as an active approach to customers’ future requirements.   It was interesting noted; however, that very few participant managers of the study mentioned that ISO 14001 certification could lead to improvements in terms of environmental quality. The study likewise pointed out that the fact that ISO 14001 provides a universal model for environmental management made some managers believe and perceive that the standard also poses drawbacks in its implementation. These include apprehensions on (1) the effectiveness of achieving the fundamental purpose of any green effort which is reducing waste discharge into the natural environment; (2) the promise that the standard will generate measurable improvements in the environmental quality; (3) the system does not set ceilings or any mandatory targets as it focuses highly on the means making “environmental performance” ambiguous; (4) contradictions between the standard and the modern management trends as it adheres to the traditional management principles; (5) increased bureaucracy and lack of employee involvement and consultation when it comes to environmental issues; and (6) the cost and constraints dictated by the implementation of the standard and the certification process which include audit costs, allotted time for documentation, and efforts to comply with the specifications of the letter like training and communication.   In this light,  (1998) recommended that before implementing the ISO 14001 environmental strategy, companies need to (1) take time familiarizing with the standard, (2) assess the organizations’ needs, (3) evaluate the appropriateness of the standard with their management philosophies, (4) evaluate the difference between the current EMS and the standard’s system before certification processes, (5) consult with and involve personnel during all stages of system development, (6) participation of the upper management in the system development as leaders and policy-makers of the organization, (7) integrating the standard’s requirements with the needs of the company, and (8) avoiding duplication of management systems since the ISO series have the tendency to overlap with each other. The authors further emphasized that ISO 14001 is a toll and not the end of increasing environmental quality encouraging organizations that implement the standard to be more result-driven (1998).      Sustainable Development Prior to the common use of the term sustainable industries, the terms sustainable economy and sustainable development were common. Their popularization started with the United Nations Conference for Environment and Development (the Earth Summit) in 1992. The conference was prompted by the report Our Common Future (1987, World Commission on Environment and Development, also known as the Brundtland Commission), which called for strategies to reinforce efforts to encourage sustainable and environmentally sound development. A series of seven United Nation conferences followed on environment and development. They coined the most broadly used definition of sustainable development as, development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs ( 1996).   Sustainable development demands that we search for ways of living, working and being that allow all people of the world to guide vigorous, satisfying, and economically safe lives without destroying the environment and without endangering the potential interests of people and the planet. It requires an understanding that operating has consequences and that we must find inventive ways to change institutional structures and influence individual behavior. Merely it is about taking action, changing policy and practice at all levels, from the individual to the international (1997).   Sustainable development is an economic state where the demands placed upon the environment by people and commerce can be met without reducing the capacity of the environment to provide for future generations (1994). As an economic, social, and ecological concept, it is intended to be a means of configuring civilization and human activity so that society and its members are able to meet their needs and express their greatest potential in the present, while preserving biodiversity and natural ecosystems, and planning and acting for the ability to maintain these ideals indefinitely (1997). In this regard, the success of growth and progress in a particular country can only be realized through sustainable development which involves every level of organization, from the local neighborhood to the entire globe.   Sustainable development is often depicted schematically using three circles for the target dimensions of environment, economy and society, to which are added the time and north-south dimensions. The diagram illustrates that: Economic, social and environmental processes are interlinked. Public and private agents alike cannot be permitted to act one-dimensionally and in isolation. Instead, their actions must take into account the interplay between the three dimensions of environment, economy and society ( 1996). It goes beyond environmental conservation. In order to satisfy our material and immaterial needs, we require economic prosperity and solidarity in our society. The implications for the future of the actions of today must be factored in (the intergenerational aspect) so that future generations are also able to satisfy their needs (1997). Moreover, sustainable development calls for long-term structural change in our economic and social systems, with the aim of reducing the consumption of the environment and resources to a permanently affordable level, while maintaining economic output potential and social cohesion (1997).     Corporate Responsibility The business environment has long been characterized with complex interrelationships among and between companies belonging to the same industry. With the internationalization trend in the business community in different countries all over the world, the observing good ethical practices is paramount to every business transaction and deals in successfully operating in the global market. The trust, honesty, responsibility, integrity and accountability between transacting business firms and organizations are values which serve as the key foundation of gaining credibility and good position in the international arena. Hence, standardization of the code of ethics in the corporate world was realized and enacted through the legalization and enforcement of laws and policies that will protect the interests of business establishments. Such legal move resulted to the proper attitude and behavior among business organizations with business transactions thereby decreasing the number of business-related cases filed.   Corporate social responsibility can be defined as the duty of organizations to conduct their business in a manner that respects the rights of individuals and promotes human welfare (1985). While the level of social responsibility exhibited by multinational corporations is said to be improving, perfection has hardly been attained. Governments and people around the world seem to have an increasing interest in scrutinizing the actions of global corporations, in effect forcing international companies to be good corporate citizens.   According to Mohr (1996), corporate responsibility is supported by the concepts of multidimensional definitions and social marketing. In the multidimensional definitions concept, the focus is on the major responsibilities expected from companies. These major responsibilities include economic, legal, ethical and philanthropic dimensions (1991). These responsibilities must be performed in order to benefit not only the company operators but also their employees, customers, the community and the general public.  (1991) notes that the social marketing concept of corporate responsibility stresses that company should operate in a way that maintains or enhances the well-being of its customers as well as its society.   Social responsibility in business has been debated for a long time, and several sides of the issue have been presented by ethicists. This debate has been extended in recent years to include the operations of multinational companies. Thus, it is important to view some of the changes in the attitudes and behaviors of multinational companies and their perceptions of corporate social responsibility in light of the evolving nature and composition of global competition ( 1970).   Business culture has turned its focus when the businesses penetrate globally. There had been dispute, argument, confusion and debate towards the subject “social responsibility” in business arena. Many believed that it is a tool to change the business set up to promote a more well working environment. However, there are also cynical about the existence of social responsibility and its role in managing the business. Even so in history, the topic of social responsibility has received so much attention when it first came into popularity in the developed world. It became controversial because of its inconsistencies with the free enterprise system. However, whenever we view today’s scenario, there are indications that social responsibility has become an obligation for any business, and that it is permanent fixture on the corporate business scene (1999).   According to  (2005), a country’s system of corporate governance comprises the formal and informal rules, accepted practices and enforcement mechanisms, public and private, which together govern the relationships between people who effectively control corporations on one hand, and all other who may invest resources in companies located in the country, on the other. They emphasized that well-governed companies with actively traded shares should be able to raise funds from non-controlling investors at significantly lower cost than poorly governed companies; because of the greater risk premium such potential investors can be expected to demand for investing – if they accept to invest at all – in less governed companies.   For instance,  (2006) found significant evidence that economically interdependent countries follow similar corporate governance laws and policies that protect the stakeholders on the companies. However, there is no relationship between corporate governance practices and globalization although globalization may have induced the standardization of corporate governance across countries but which does not necessarily imply implementation.   Moreover, complete convergence to single corporate governance has been impossible as evident in the number of deviations implemented by different business organizations originating from different countries. The diverse cultural orientation and cultural values among different business institutions like\wise may have contributed to the number of corporate governance that are practiced respectively by organizations. This is reflective in the differing legal systems of the countries that incorporate different corporate laws and policies. Those business organizations that illustrated similar corporate governance approaches as evident in their laws and policies are characterized with similar geographic location as well as cultural orientation. The study deepened the academic investigation by delving into the comparisons between countries, industries as well as firms ( 2006).      Anglo American Plc and the SHE Committee Anglo American Plc is a mining company that is considered as the global leader in the industry. Its main products include diamonds, platinum, goal, coal, industrial minerals as well as base and ferrous metals. As a global leader, Anglo American operates extensively in a number of foreign sites including Europe, Australasia, North and South America as well as Africa. The company believes that it has a strong commitment towards sustainable development and that the business is helpful in alleviating worldwide issues such as poverty. Furthermore, the company is aware that it has a major responsibility towards the community, considering that the mining business ca cause disruptive effects on people. Thus, the company developed an approach for addressing ethical issues; this approach is contained in the company’s Good Citizenship: Our Business Principles framework (2001).   In this framework, one of the important ethical issues covered is the aspects on safety, health and environment.  Based on the Safety, Health and Environment Report ( 2001) of the company, each of these aspects have distinct aims. For the safety and health aspect, the aims include the prevention or reduction of work-related injuries and health problems of the contractors and employees and the provision of effort to address major community health issues. In the environmental factor, the aims of the company include the conservation of natural resources, prevention or reduction of negative impacts brought about by the company’s operations, demonstration of active land stewardship and biodiversity, promotion of good local community relations and the respect towards the communities’ heritage and culture.   In addition to these developed aims, the company also established the Safety, Health and Environment (SHE) Committee. This company committee is in charge of policy frameworks and safety guidelines in relation to health and environmental management. Moreover, this committee is also responsible of ensuring that all company efforts done for the promotion of these aspects are implemented appropriately. This Anglo American department works constantly in evaluating these efforts and recommending ways on how these can be improved. Specifically, the impact of the company’s mining activities on land, water and air are all monitored accurately by this committee ( 2001). This committee also assesses the company’s level of compliance to its developed aims for the safety, health and environmental factors.     The U.S. Rubber Recycling Inc Perhaps the most unexpected benefit of the tire recycling process is ironically in its waste to energy utilization. August 1999, State of Ohio officials could see that they must take action. From the state capital in Columbus, one could see the smoke from a tire dump fire burning more than 60 miles to the northwest.           Whole tires and rough tire chips are used at cement kilns, pulp and paper mills, power plants, waste-to-energy plants and industrial boilers. In 2000, approximately 47 percent of the 273 million scrap tires generated in the United States were burned for fuel. It also follows the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) guidelines; that call for the clean disposal and non-emission of toxic fumes during the incineration process, which was followed (1994).  From the state capital in Columbus, one could see the smoke from a tire dump fire burning more than 60 miles to the northwest. The environmentalists finally clamored for laws to prohibit the pollution-creating incineration of tires.  They finally outlawed the incineration process in favor of utilizing safe alternative means to recycle rubber (1994).   U.S. Rubber Recycling Inc. is recognized as the premier resource for tire tiles of all types and the staff has over four decades of experience in rubber recycling. U.S. Rubber Recycling Inc. has both the experience and the expertise to continually develop new products that provide design flexibility hitherto unavailable in tire tile. Rubber from scrap tires is a waste material that is ideal for use in landscaping applications. By using recycled rubber products, landscapers can create cost-effective, high-quality, and environmentally beneficial projects. Aside from the company’s recycling technology to make use of waste rubber tires, the firm likewise ventured into the potential of landscaping market using scrap tires (1999).   The landscaping market is potentially large enough to recover all the scrap tires that are currently discarded in landfills or tire piles. Furthermore, landscaping applications could be modified to include playground surfaces, paving athletic stadiums etc. Other benefits from using recycled rubber in landscaping projects include project cost savings, and improved product performance and safety. Greenhouse gas and public health benefits result from diverting tires from landfills and tire piles. Using ground rubber in landscaping applications results in significant cost savings from decreased project maintenance and from the benefits related to improved product performance (e.g. safety and/or suitability). Additional benefits from using ground rubber in landscaping applications include benefits related to avoided disposal – space savings (landfill space, land space), reduced risks to human health from tire piles, and avoided emissions from tire pile fires (1999). All these were ventured into by the company in its contribution to environmental sustainable development.     Conclusion In this respect, it is illustrated that businesses from different countries do not show the same level of dedication to being perceived as socially responsible. Moreover, it is also attested that firms across countries have variety of principles, processes and stakeholder issues to express that they are responsibly committed.  People expect firms not only to perform the traditional function of providing goods and services to all citizens who are willing to pay for them, but also to help society solve its problems. If these things are generally seen as desirable, and the firm does them, then it is socially responsible. If the firm does not, then some people may feel it is irresponsible.   Moreover, incorporating and promoting increased public participation in dealing with plans and projects toward progress and development illustrates an efficient and effective measure to achieve more possible success of economic and social growth. Since the public is the foremost concern of every institutional and national improvement, it is very logical that public consultation will be highly incorporated as inputs to come up with sound policies that will reflect the preferences and general welfare of the society. Public participation will ensure developments that are in synch with the needs of the society and at the same time increase the likelihood of long-term and continuous growth for the whole country.       Even though the issue is tackled in its complexity, it is no doubt that social responsibility has to play a great role in today’s business world. It may either contribute to efficiency, effectiveness, success or failure. What is important is that we are becoming more aware each day. No doubt that in this era, social responsibility should become every business’ obligation. Hence, addressing real environmental issues is not yet late through the use of the new technological innovations that serve the interest of sustainable development as companies at present are continuously equipped with ways to adhere to corporate, social and environmental responsibilities.     Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

Corporate, Social and Environmental Responsibility: Making Best Use of Current Technology (3,674 words)

Corporate, Social and Environmental Responsibility: Making Best Use of Current Technology (3,674 words) Introduction Globaliza...

Earth Day

Earth Day             Widespread concerns about environmental decay in the United States and about the growth in the world’s population burst into a true mass movement in 1970. On April 22 of that year, the first Earth Day was celebrated. An estimated twenty million people participated nationwide, with 10,000 grade schools, 2,000 colleges and 1,000 communities getting involved. The event was deemed “the largest one-day outpouring of public support for any social cause in American history. Earth Day was the brainchild of Democratic Senator  (who would go on to become chairman of the Wilderness Society). Nelson’s purpose in organizing Earth Day was to allow latent public interest in environmental affairs a chance to express itself in the form of a nationwide teach-in. By most accounts, Earth Day was a tremendous success (2002). The annual celebration of Earth Day every April 22 is a collective expression of public will to create a sustainable society. Earth Day educates and mobilizes people worldwide for environmental protection (2004).   Earth Day Network             The Earth Day Network (EDN) involves a major educational effort to influence school curricula. Protection of the environment is proclaimed necessary for the protection of human life (2004). Earth Day Network aids in promoting environmental citizenship and year round progressive action worldwide. Earth Day Network is working to increase environmental awareness around the world. Earth Day is the only event that is being celebrated by people of all backgrounds, religions and nationalities around the world. EDN uses innovative education tools and programs in promoting civic participation among citizens. It also seeks to develop a sense of responsibility towards the environment. Earth Day Network is yet another advocacy group spreading the word through public relations on protecting the environment. Its initiatives led the way to the creation of the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency and the passage of the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, and the Endangered Species Act. With the aid of the Internet, the network has linked activists around the world to its program.   Level 1 Students             Level 1 students must be taught that familiar places have a variety of features and that people care for places that are important to them. They should be made aware that people’s activities can improve damage or protect a place. They must be aware of the importance of protecting the environment on human existence. They must develop a concern towards the welfare of the environment. One of the most important things that students must learn is recycling. The three golden R’s of Earth Day is Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.   Earth Day Activity for Level 1 Students Earth Patrol Goal The goal of this activity is to make the students responsible for class or school recycling. This activity aims to develop the students concern for the environment by making them aware of the benefits of recycling.   How to involve the Students?             1. Form an environment Patrol inside the classroom.             2. Make the students choose Environment Patrol Leaders.             3. Responsibilities must be assigned to Environment Patrol Leaders.             4. Place recycle bins in strategic places.             5. Educate the students on recycling by making a bulletin board.             6. Collect recyclable materials. Other Ideas             1. Organize a tour of the recycle facility.             2. Start a recycle program that earns school equipment             3. Conduct a recycle poster contest.             4. Encourage the students to take their lunch in a reusable lunch boxes or                       cloth bags instead of paper bags.             5. Encourage the students to use cloth napkin instead of paper one.             6. Encourage students to use recycled materials to cover their books and make them decorate it.             7. Make a “craft box” of discards you think might be handy for class            projects during the year.             8. Make Recycle Posters to remind everyone about recycling.                     . Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

Earth Day

Earth Day Widespread concerns about environmental decay in the United States and about the growth in the world’s population...