Footprints in the Jungle: Natural Resource Industries, Infrastructure, and Biodiversity Conservation

Rating:
Summary: Engaging Private Sector in Environmental Protection
Review: Business which is based on profit maximization is usually considered to be in conflict with the goals of environmental protection. This contradiction can be even more severe when the business owned by private sectors in developed countries extend their activities in far-away underdeveloped areas. The book looks at the environmental protection from business perspectives, especially extractive industries' involvement in biodiversity conservation. It explores numerous cases ("best practices") showing how business interests reconcile with environmental protection goals. The dynamics of various stakeholders was investigated to illustrate how the business strategic calculation of benefit and cost has been shaped by other stakeholders. According to the authors, there are two major reasons of why business starts to voluntarily involve in environmental protection: corporate reputation (intangible value) and eco-efficiency (tangible value). The book is a big contribution to the empirical studies of how business operation has been shaped by environmental protection and vice versa. I recommend the book to environmental experts, project managers and corporate environmentalists.

Rating:
Summary: Engaging Private Sector in Environmental Protection
Review: Business which is based on profit maximization is usually considered to be in conflict with the goals of environmental protection. This contradiction can be even more severe when the business owned by private sectors in developed countries extend their activities in far-away underdeveloped areas. The book looks at the environmental protection from business perspectives, especially extractive industries' involvement in biodiversity conservation. It explores numerous cases ("best practices") showing how business interests reconcile with environmental protection goals. The dynamics of various stakeholders was investigated to illustrate how the business strategic calculation of benefit and cost has been shaped by other stakeholders. According to the authors, there are two major reasons of why business starts to voluntarily involve in environmental protection: corporate reputation (intangible value) and eco-efficiency (tangible value). The book is a big contribution to the empirical studies of how business operation has been shaped by environmental protection and vice versa. I recommend the book to environmental experts, project managers and corporate environmentalists.