Simulations 177
SIMULATION FIVE
Deer Lake Marina: Forever Proud?
Background
(Everyone reads)
Deer Lake Marina has been in existence since the late 1960s. The marina is located on Deer Lake,
which connects to the Tennessee River. Residents of Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee enjoy the
water and surrounding natural environment. Camping, boating, swimming, fishing, and other outdoor
sports are very popular in this region. Deer Lake is located in a historic part of the United States, as the
area has several Civil War battle sites. Because of the area’s beauty, mild climate, interesting cultural
Today, Deer Lake Marina includes 150 in-water boat slips, dry storage for 125 boats, a fuel dock, and
lifts for launching boats. The owners of Deer Lake Marina hope to expand by building a large boating
supply store, restaurant, and boat repair and service facility. Because the land and water space available
for expansion includes a wetlands area, the marina owners obtained a permit from the Army Corp of
Engineers. The next step is to secure business and building permits from the county. A public notice
was issued to discuss the Deer Lake Marina application for permits. Two groups, the marina owners
and the Deer Lake Forever Proud, a local conservation and historical group, have requested time to
state their cases to the County Council.
Wetlands are low-lying areas saturated with water that connect land with large bodies of water. In the
last 200 years, the continental United States has lost over 50 percent of its wetlands. Flooding and poor
178 Simulations
Marina Owners
(Only the students assigned to this role read this page)
Your team represents the owners of Deer Lake Marina. Your parents started the marina in the late
1960s before the area was popular with tourists from surrounding states. The marina has always
operated as a family business, with strong values and a commitment to customer satisfaction. Over the
Your parents are now retired and leave day-to-day and strategic decisions to their children (your team).
At this point in its life cycle, the marina needs to expand. By adding a large boating supply store,
restaurant, and repair and service facility, your team will improve the marina’s prospects for meeting
customer needs, ensuring future growth and profitability. The marina is barely profitable, as several
newer marinas are capturing portions of the market. The store, restaurant, and repair facility will
differentiate Deer Lake Marina from competitors and help serve the growing population in the area. In
addition, the expansion will create new jobs and other economic effects. A local bank has agreed to
fund the $950,000 expansion, which includes dredging the two acres of wetlands area, building a
seawall, and constructing and partially equipping the buildings.
Simulations 179
Deer Lake Forever Proud
(Only the students assigned to this role read this page)
Your team represents Deer Lake Forever Proud (DLFP), a community group dedicated to
environmental conservation and historical preservation. Although environmental and historical causes
are not always joined, DLFP has been quite successful at developing public support for retaining the
natural beauty and cultural significance of the Deer Lake area. Your team is currently working on a
plan to have Deer Lake designated as a National Heritage Area.
Many members of DLFP know the marina owners and appreciate their strong business sense and
success. A few DLFP members have boats stored at Deer Lake Marina and can see the value of adding
a restaurant, store, and repair facility. However, these members are very loyal to the DLFP and tend to
side with the community group on this particular proposal. One member of DLFP recently read about
the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP), a voluntary program operated by the United States government
that provides financial incentives for private property owners to enhance wetlands. Property owners
agree to limit future development of the land in exchange for federal dollars and assistance in restoring
and maintaining the wetland. To be eligible for the program, the land must have some wildlife benefits,
farming ability, or related advantage.
180 Simulations
County Council
(Only the students assigned to this role read this page)
Your team consists of the elected officials to the County Council. You have all moved to the Deer Lake
area within the last twenty-five years and are still considered “newcomers” by some members of the
community. Your terms are staggered, so only one of you is facing an election in the coming year
(designate who this person is). This council member was elected from the part of town that is most
progressive on social issues, including environmentalism.
At a national meeting for governmental officials, you learned about the federal approach to
environmental protection. Specifically, the County Council is starting to use the EPA’s community–
based environmental protection (CBEP) method, whereby many stakeholders are involved in
preserving, protecting, and enhancing the area’s natural environment. CBEP focuses on local issues,
encourages goals that reflect many stakeholders’ views, and brings longer-term solutions. In addition,
the County Council hopes to meld social, environmental, and economic objectives.
Simulations 181
Teaching Overview on Parcel International Express
Parcel International Express is an international shipping and contract logistics company. PIE competes
with other major shipping companies such as FedEx and DHL. The company’s goal is to practice
customer orientation by developing loyalty through efficiency and quality of all services offered. While
PIE must conform to all regulatory agencies in the areas that it operates, it operates in a highly
competitive environment that requires employees to meet specific performance requirements. PIE
therefore faces many risks related to organizational decisions, employee conduct, and external
environmental issues created by numerous stakeholders.
PROCESS
1. Determine how the exercise roles will be assigned. There are five roles that should be played by
teams of four or five students each. Multiple teams with the same role can be used in a class, as
long as each “meeting” takes place between the five roles.
2. Make copies of the role-play exercise pages (one copy of background page for each student; one
copy of each role for each team assigned that role).
5. Instruct teams to work on their position papers and presentations outside of class. Students will
need to conduct research, brainstorm, and create persuasive, concise, and reasoned positions
before attending the meeting. Students will need to learn more about possible arguments for and
against their viewpoints by perusing news articles, government web sites, and other information
sources.
KEY ISSUES
1. Handling ethical misconduct disasters
2. Developing ethics and compliance programs in multinational corporations