Session for BHC 2006.
In the borderlands between environmental history and business history a series of research topics waits to be explored. One of these topics is the contested relationship between environmental policy and business practice. Historically, industrial regulation has been contrasted with the need for economic development. Business has often been portrayed as a ravager of nature that needs to be controlled by government. Does environmental policy and business practice necessarily have to be in opposition? This session will examine questions like: How can environmental policy serve as a restriction or as an opportunity for businesses? What role have specific industries formed in the formation of environmental regulation? How have businesses adapted their business strategies to increased environmental awareness? Answering these questions will better our understanding of the motivations for business interaction with environmental policy.
Participants
- “Bottle Bills: Breaking or Building Business?” Finn Arne Jørgensen, Department of Interdisciplinary Studies of Culture, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway.
- “French Nineteenth Century Industrial Environmental Regulation and the Chemical Industry,” Geneviève Massard-Guilbaud, Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales – Paris, France
- “The German Railroads and the ecological turn of transportation policies,” Christopher Kopper, Dept. of History, Universität Bielefeld, Germany
Session commentator: Christine Meisner Rosen, Haas School of Business