Chapter 15
Sustainability and the Natural Environment
LEARNING OUTCOMES
After studying this chapter, you should be able to:
1. Discuss the concept of sustainability and its imperative.
3. Identify and discuss the issues that arise for businesses in their responsibility for the
environment and sustainability.
5. Describe other environmental stakeholders, including interest groups, employees, and
investors.
6. Discuss business environmentalism, sustainability goals, and the future of the
business/environment relationship.
TEACHING SUGGESTIONS
INTRODUCTION – This chapter identifies what is meant by the term environment and why it
has become one of the most significant issues in our lives. As background for the discussion, the
authors describe some of the major environmental issues facing us. They then focus on the
variety of responses the government and organizations have developed to address these issues.
Two themes are emphasized—that humans are part of the natural environment and that
environmental issues are extremely complex.
KEY TALKING POINTS – If nothing else, this chapter should scare the students into realizing
that environmental issues are critically important and that the environment is a critical business
There is a tremendous amount of information available to supplement this chapter. Depending
on the instructor’s and students’ particular interests, the discussion could center on existing
problems, individual business’s efforts to alleviate environmental impacts, more general
approaches to solutions, or public policy questions such as economic growth versus sustainable
Some books that are very informative and may be of interest include:
Carson, R. 1962. Silent Spring. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. This is the book, that for many
people, alerted them to the pending ecological disaster. Unfortunately, more than forty years
after publication, it is still highly relevant.
Schumacher, E. F. 1975. Small is Beautiful. New York: Harper & Row Publishers. Trained as an
economist, Dr. Schumacher nonetheless took a very different approach to the dismal science.
Two short essays are particularly relevant to this chapter—“The Problem of Production” and
“Buddhist Economics.”
Anderson, R. 1998. Mid-Course Correction. Atlanta: Peregrinzilla Press. Mr. Anderson calls his
reading of Hawken’s book a personal epiphany that awakened him to what he and others of his
generation were doing to the planet, and how that would affect his grandchildren’s lives.
Diamond, Jared. 2005. Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed. New York: Viking
Books. Mr. Diamond examines the role that various ecological factors played in the success or
failure of different historical societies.
Finally, two videos aired on PBS stations address the question of over consumption, its effects
on our lives, and its effects on the planet. Affluenza and Escape from Affluenza may appear
visually dated to students, but its message is still instructive. These videos are well suited to
discussions about the social and environmental costs exacted by continued economic growth.
PEDAGOGICAL DEVICES – In this chapter, instructors may utilize a combination of:
Cases:
1-Wal-Mart- The Main Street Merchant of Doom
2-The Body Shop (A) – Pursuing Social and Environmental Change
16-Coke & Pepsi in India
18-Dole’s DBCP Legacy
22-A Smoke-Free Generation in Tasmania
25-The Hudson River Cleanup and GE
28-Safety, What Safety
29-Felony Franks (2)- Home of the Misdemeanor Wiener
34-Hidden Price of Fast Fashion
Ethics in Practice Cases:
Water Scoring: A Way to Push for Better Water Stewardship?
A Little Green Lie
Who Failed to Protect the Community in Flint, Michigan?
Slow Fashion
Spotlight on Sustainability:
There’s an App for That
Living “The Other Low-Carb Life”
LECTURE OUTLINE
I. THE SUSTAINABILITY IMPERATIVE
IV. THE IMPACT OF BUSINESS ON THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT
A. Climate Change
B. Energy
C. Water
D. Biodiversity and Land Use
E. Chemicals, Toxics, and Heavy Metals
V. RESPONSIBILITY FOR ENVIRONMENTAL AND SUSTAINABILITY ISSUES
A. Environmental Ethics
B. The NIMBY Problem
VI. THE ROLE OF GOVERNMENTS IN ENVIRONMENTAL AND SUSTAINABILITY
ISSUES
A. Responses of Governments in the United States
Ch 15, Instructor’s Manual, Business & Society, Carroll 10e
1. Air Quality Legislation
B. International Government Environmental and Sustainability Responses
VII. OTHER ENVIRONMENTAL AND SUSTAINABILITY STAKEHOLDERS
A. Environmental Interest Groups
B. Other Sustainability Interest Groups
VIII. BUSINESS ENVIRONMENTALISM AND SUSTAINABILITY
A. Patagonia
IX. THE FUTURE OF BUSINESS: GREENING AND/OR GROWING?
X. SUMMARY
SUGGESTED ANSWERS TO DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Students should recognize that their answers to these discussion questions should be well
reasoned and supported with evidence. Although some answers will be more correct than others,
students should be aware that simplistic answers to complex questions, problems, or issues such
as these will never be “good” answers.
1. Question: What is sustainability? How does sustainability relate to environmentalism?
2. Question: What are several of the most important environmental issues now receiving
worldwide attention?
Answer: The textbook lists several environmental issues that have reached the critical
stage: climate change, energy, water, biodiversity/land use, air pollution, waste
management, ozone depletion and deforestation, among others. I would emphasize climate
Ch 15, Instructor’s Manual, Business & Society, Carroll 10e
3. Question: Who has responsibility for addressing environmental issues?
Answer: Of course, we all have responsibility for addressing environmental issues, because
we all have an impact on the environment. How much we consume, the type of cars we
4. Question: How can ethics be applied in response to environmental issues?
Answer: Deontology is the most likely ethical theory to help resolve the environmental
crisis. This theory emphasizes doing our duty, with little emphasis placed on the outcomes
of our actions. Thus, a deontologist would be likely to recognize a duty to not harm the
environment. Business people, however, tend to be utilitarians—seeking to do only those
measure environmental costs.
5. Question: Should businesses and societies continue to focus on unlimited economic
growth?
Answer: As noted previously in the text, companies have economic responsibilities, as
well as legal, ethical and philanthropic responsibilities. The key to this question is whether
the company should focus on unlimited economic growth. Companies must focus on
economic growth, but they cannot do so at the expense of their other responsibilities.
Continued emphasis on unlimited economic growth without focusing on a company’s legal
and ethical responsibilities will only use up our resources more quickly, thus shortening
the remaining life of our planet. The criterion of economic growth was established in a
time when survival was the primary concern. We have essentially solved that problem
GROUP ACTIVITY
may want to review the class results and note the top three to five contributors of carbon dioxide
emissions (i.e., car use, airplane use, utility use). Once the top three to five class contributors of
carbon dioxide emissions are identified, students should develop proposals of realistic
methods/steps that students in the class can take to reduce their carbon dioxide emissions.
Students should focus on novel ideas that may not have been developed yet and be ready to
present their proposals in a five-minute presentation to the entire class.
INDIVIDUAL ASSIGNMENT
Ask students to research current international agreements and proposed U.S. laws and
regulations regarding climate change. As a starting point, instructors may want to guide students
to the following websites:
In connection with their research, students should prepare a typed-written response to the
following questions:
(1) What is the conclusion of the latest report from the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on
Climate Change? What is at risk?
(2) In the United States, what does the Pew Research Center show as a top priority for
Americans? How has this changed since 2009? Given the differing view of the
political parties, do you expect action by U.S. legislators?