Not a Lost Cause

Not a Lost Cause
Cooperation
Profitmaximizing
Cooperations are aware of the consumerist behaviour of individuals and thus make us of it as a mean to gain more and more profit. The Demandsuuply theory The more individuals demand fore goods, the more the the factories will produce goods for us
Largescale production by factories to meet the escalating
demand produces toxic chemicals and emits greenhouse gases
that have adverse impacts on our environment such as global
warming
Since coopertaions want to mximize profit, they
prefer not to produce "green product" which
includes higher cost of production.
Selling this higher price product to consumers means
producer may lose in term of price competitiveness with their
rivals since they have to sell the 'green products' at higher
cost
A cursory glance around some shopping sites at laundry detergent shows
that the green detergent we use, Mrs. Meyers, comes in at $0.20 per fluid
oz, while another green product, Seventh Generation, comes in at $0.14 per
fluid ounce. However, All 2X Concentrated Laundry Detergent(nongreen)
comes in at roughly $0.09 per fluid ounce.
Therefore, most cooperations choose to produce
nongreen products which may involve the use and
emission of toxic chemicals during the process of
production.
In May 2002, the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) released an extensive report saying
that, “there was a growing gap between the efforts to reduce the impact of business and industry on
nature and the worsening state of the planet” and that “this gap is due to the fact that only a small
number of companies in each industry are actively integrating social and environmental factors into
business decisions.”
Corporate Social Responsibility
lack of CSR
One sharp example of environmental problems caused by multinational
corporations, is the drive to extract oil from Nigeria6. As the previous link, from this
site’s section on Africa shows, corporations have even backed the military to
harass, even kill, local people who continue to protest at the environmental and
other problems the activities of the various oil companies have caused.
CSR manipulated by company to
maximize profit instead of to save the
environment
Increasing green movement in the society. A certain group of
individuals will be attracted to buy a product if it is called 'greenproduct'
since this individual will feel that they have actually
contributed into saving the environment by using this product
Companies use this 'green movement' concept to actually increase
their sales by attracting these green activists to use their products.
The very aim of Corporate Social Responsibility itself is lost, which
is to ensure the welfare of the environment and the society.
With increased consumerism, there has been a rise in the number of environmental groups campaigning on various
issues such as environmentally friendly products. To varying extents then, environmental concerns are issues that
sometimes make the mainstream news. However, a cover story11, of Down To Earth magazine from Delhibased
Centre for Science and Environment as an example, warns that the latest craze in green and ethical consumerism
may just be another way for corporations to exploit people and make money by misrepresenting the facts. As another
example of this, EarthDay Resources’ annual Don’t Be Fooled Awards12 highlight some of what they call the
corporate “greenwashing” that goes on through advertising and lobbying campaigns.
Kimberly's Clark shocking
mismanagement of forest
resources
shocking photos of a massive stockpile of
oldgrowth logs destined to become disposable
products Kleenex tissue
OGOKI FOREST
egregious mismanagement of the forests
Company's claim that 'much of the fibre
comes from leftovers of the lumber production
process
It turns out that KC is purchasing huge
quantities of pulp made primarily from whole, old
growth trees
71% of Kenogami Forests has
benn fragmented
substantial decline of monitored
species by 80% within the next 100
years
threaten species habitats
KENOGAMI FOREST CLASSIFIED AS
INADEQUATELY PROTECTED AND HIGH
PRIORITY FOR CONSERVATION
TATA CHEMICALS
ICIS awards
a strong emphasis on
sustainability and the
environment
judges noted that the company has well
established and deeply embedded philosophies
of social n corpoorate responsibility
Government
In developing countries where bossting
economic growth outweighs protecting the
environment
Industrilisation
increase production in manufacturing
Since the Industrial Revolution, atmospheric CO2
has increased by around 100ppm due to human
activity
Manufacturing factories produce high amounts
of greenhouse gases and other harmful gases
along with toxic waste dumped into water
bodies
In fastgrowing cities such as China,
cropland is converted to nonfarm
uses
Industrial construction, paving of land for roads, highways and
parking loats are claimimng cropland in densely populated
countries that are rapidly industrializing such as CHINA and
INDIA
in 2011, new car sales in China are projected to reach 20 million. It
is estimated that for every 5 million cars added to a country's fleet,
roughly 1 million acres must be paved to accomodate them and
cropland is a often the loser.
Government often believe that environment has a
longterm impact therefore they may just focus on
shorter term issues such as economic growth through
industrialization.
However in developed countries efforts have
been made to reduce environmental
degradation
developed countries has more stable economic
growth and therefore can diverge their attention
more on environmental isssues
Singapore Government policy that motor vehicles
must be fiited with catalytic converter to reduce
pollution (environmentalfriendly car)
Use of renewable source of energy
such as Wind Power in
Netherlands
developing countries also start
contributing their parts in saving the
environment
China has a policy such that citizens have to bring
their own plastic bag as they will be supplied. If not,
they have to purchase a cloth bag on the spot for
$1
but these measures are obsolete, compared to
the largescale environment degradation caused
by their manufacturing industries
Intergovernment
The sense of urgency among all levels of
communities in the world is heightened for
continued efforts to address the challenging
issuesenvironment degradation
Regional Associations such as ASEAN
ASEAN Celebrates the ASEAN Environmentally Sustainable Development Film Festival
Phnom Penh, 19 October 2011
The Film Festival is a part of the implementation of ASEAN Environmental Education Action Plan
(AEEAP) 20082012, which aims to inspire and promote awareness of ASEAN citizens on the
importance of multistakeholders' participation in addressing climate change.
Over the last decade, there have been adequate examples of natural disasters around the
ASEAN region which have claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. It shows how
susceptible the Southeast Asian region is to changing environmental conditions.
diplomatic agreements thru
international organisations such as
UN
Kyoto Protocol
gained support from 55 countries to
reduce carbon emmissions by
2015
but many believe that this protocol is a failure
Copenhagen Summit
UN mobile app lets users calculate size of carbon footprint 13 December 2011
A new United Nations mobile telephone application released today lets users calculate their carbon footprint, visualize its equivalent in a particular ecosystem, and learn new ways in which they can reduce their emissions through specific actions.
The UN Climate Change Conference in Durban,
South Africa concluded on Sunday, 11 December
with a package of decisions called the Durban
Platform.
a continuation of the Kyoto Protocol
Three Nations Agree to Conserve
Biodiverse Heart of Borneo
NGO
Greenpeace
Movement against Kleenex Clear cut
Greenpeace Ends Its “Kleercut” Campaign
and Applauds the Company’s Sustainability
Efforts
KC has set a goal of obtaining 100% of the
company's wood fibre for tissue products from
environmentally responsible resources
enhance the conservation and
protection of Endangered Forests
These revised standards are proof that when responsible companies and Greenpeace come together,
the results can be good for business and great for the planet
KC's efforts are challenge to its competitors
'i hope other companies pay close attention'
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