13.1: Business, It's Stakeholders, and the Natural Environment Flashcards
What are the ethical issues and responsibilities for shareholders regarding the environment?
Investment decisions influenced by environmental handling.
Risks associated with environmental problems or disasters.
Establishing “green” investment criteria.
What environmental responsibilities do directors have?
Getting environmental issues on the board agenda.
Liability for environmental contamination.
Motivating management to address environmental issues.
What are the key environmental concerns for employees?
Workplace exposure to environmental problems (e.g., indoor air pollution).
Refusal to perform environmentally harmful tasks.
Whistleblowing on employer misconduct.
What ethical challenges do customers/consumers face regarding the environment?
Inconsistencies between environmental concerns and consuming environmentally unfriendly products.
Unwillingness to pay higher prices for eco-friendly products.
Evaluating the viability of “green” products.
What environmental responsibilities do lenders/creditors have?
Assessing increased financial risks due to environmental factors.
What are the environmental expectations for suppliers?
Responding to demands for more eco-friendly products.
Reassessing transportation and packaging for sustainability.
What roles do service professionals play in environmental management?
Ensuring familiarity with laws and regulations.
Designing appropriate environmental audits.
Identifying full environmental cost accounting methods.
What is the “concept of the commons”?
A resource used as though it belongs to everyone, often leading to overuse and depletion, as described by Garrett Hardin in 1968.
How do competitors interact with environmental issues?
They face consequences of gaining a competitive edge through environmentally friendly products.
What are the ethical challenges for NGOs regarding environmental concerns?
Responding to groups based on environmental concerns.
How does the media influence environmental responsibility?
By shaping responses through coverage of environmental problems.
What role does the government play in environmental ethics?
Enforcing compliance with laws and regulations.
Influencing public policy related to the environment.
What are the two key concepts that aid businesses and society in addressing environmental challenges?
The environmental ethic.
Sustainable development.
What is the environmental ethic in business ethics?
A set of values or principles guiding an organization’s practices regarding the environment, emphasizing moral responsibility and sustainable management from design to disposal.
What are the three main ethical approaches related to the environmental ethic?
Deontological (rule-based): Focuses on adhering to rules and regulations universally applied.
Utilitarian: Balances the positive and negative outcomes of corporate actions on the environment.
Virtue ethics: Considers personal values and motivations, emphasizing concern for both human and environmental well-being.
What is a limitation of the deontological approach in environmental ethics?
It treats all beings as ends but may ignore broader moral considerations in environmental contexts.
How does the utilitarian approach evaluate environmental decisions?
By weighing the relative costs, harms, and benefits of actions, though it struggles with unforeseen consequences and intrinsic values.
Why is virtue ethics considered broader than the other two approaches in environmental ethics?
It incorporates subjective evaluation based on virtuous traits and concern for long-term well-being.
What is sustainable development, and who first defined it?
Development ensuring current use of resources does not harm future generations’ prospects. Defined by the United Nations World Commission on Environment and Development (1987).
What are the key goals of sustainable development?
Ensure environmental and economic concerns coincide.
Reduce poverty and sustain resources for future generations.
Allow continued economic growth while protecting the environment.
How does business sustainable development differ from general sustainable development?
It focuses on strategies meeting the needs of enterprises and stakeholders while protecting and enhancing natural and human resources for the future.
Who developed the definition of business sustainable development?
The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), supported by Canada and Manitoba’s governments.
What does business sustainable development emphasize about organizational activities?
The dependence of economic activities on human, natural, physical, and financial capital.
What ethical guidelines are corporations encouraged to use in environmental reporting?
The rule-based and utilitarian approaches, with limited use of the virtue ethics approach for decision-making.
What is acid rain, and what causes it?
Acid rain is precipitation with high concentrations of sulphuric and nitric acids, caused by industrial gas emissions that combine with water in the atmosphere.
How does air pollution affect the environment?
Air pollution impacts air quality through emissions from burning fuels, industrial sites, and transportation vehicles. Smog is a common form of air pollution.
What is an ecosystem, and how should businesses approach it?
An ecosystem is a biological community of interacting organisms and their environment.
Businesses should adopt an ecosystem approach by recognizing interrelationships among land, air, water, wildlife, and human activities.
What are the environmental concerns related to energy production and consumption?
Energy generation damages the environment and releases pollutants when fuel is used.
Businesses and consumers are responsible for reducing energy waste and adopting efficient technologies.
Why are nature and wildlife significant environmental concerns for businesses?
Business operations harm birds, mammals, fish, and plants, particularly endangered species.
What is the role of the ozone layer, and how is it affected?
The ozone layer protects Earth by filtering UV radiation from the sun.
Its thinning has increased UV radiation levels, contributing to environmental concerns.
What is pollution, and why are businesses under pressure to reduce it?
Pollution is any contamination of the environment, and businesses face growing pressure to minimize their contributions to it.
What is waste management, and what are the “4 Rs”?
Waste management involves the disposal, processing, recycling, and reuse of wastes. The 4 Rs are reduce, reuse, recycle, and recover.
Why is water quality a significant environmental issue?
Water quality is determined by contaminants affecting chemical and bacterial composition, making safe drinking water a critical concern for businesses and society.
What is the RBC Blue Water Project, and what are its goals?
A 10-year initiative to protect fresh water through donations, education, and events. RBC supports water protection in towns and cities and promotes water-efficient technologies.
What is climate change, and what causes it?
Climate change results from human activities altering atmospheric chemical composition through greenhouse gases (GHGs), causing global temperature increases and severe weather events.
What are greenhouse gases (GHGs), and what is their impact?
GHGs trap heat in the atmosphere, contributing to global warming. They include carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and fluorocarbons.
