Summary of
Corporate Environmentalism in a Global Economy: Societal Values in International Technology Transfer
By Halina Szejnwald Brown, Patrick Derr, Ortwin Renn, and Allen L. White
Summary written by T.A. O'Lonergan, Conflict Research Consortium
Citation: Corporate Environmentalism in a Global Economy: Societal Values in International Technology Transfer, Halina Szejnwald Brown, Patrick Derr, Ortwin Renn, Allen L. White, (Connecticut: Quorum Books, 1993), 245 pp.This Book Summary written by: T.A. O'Lonergan, Conflict Research Consortium
Corporate Environmentalism in a Global Economy: Societal Values in International Technology Transfer will be of interest to those who wish to broaden their understanding of the role of values in the decision-making process. Following an introduction which lays out the concerns and goals of the book, the authors address the roles of value and culture in technological transfer. The first part of the chapter characterizes EH&S and DE&I value sets which the authors treat as independent variables. The second part of the chapter explains the concepts of: value, value conflict and trade-off, technology, culture and policy. The authors next address the methodological problems which their research poses. Finally, they examine structural and developmental models of technological transfer.
Chapter three "... focuses on international operations and on EH&S related matters: corporate EH&S policy and philosophy; EH&S organisation for domestic and foreign operations; and the international EH&S management attitudes of the executives and managers interviewed..." during research for this work. The following chapter is an examination of three case studies. The bulk of the chapter is devoted to discussion of three facilities from inception to on-line functioning. The three facilities are: Du Punt Agrichemical and Occidental Chemical, both in Bangpoo, Thailand and Modi Xerox in Rampur, India.
Chapter five is an examination of the relationship between the host country development policies and EH&S values. The next chapter is a contribution by Jeanne X. Kasperson and Roger E. Kasperson who discuss the relationship between corporate culture and technological transfer. The penultimate chapter examines the variety of business arrangements that might be agreed upon by the parent corporation and the host country affiliate. These range from "... wholly owned subsidiaries to shared equity partnerships ...". The final chapter addresses, to paraphrase the authors, the synthesis of the deeply rooted values which the host country's institutions, the multinational corporation and the joint venture partner bring to the dynamic and interactive process of facility-siting. Corporate Environmentalism in a Global Economy: Societal Values in International Technology Transfer is an examination of the multiplicity of factors in the international technology transfer. The well written text is supported by tables and graphs which the reader will find most useful.
