Choosing a social or environmental problem from the list provided

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Choosing a social or environmental problem from the list provided.

Start by choosing a sustainability issue (a social or environmental problem) from the list that we have provided on Canvas. Choose one that seems to you to be interesting and important. In choosing a problem, keep in mind that you will need not just to explain the problem (Part A) but also discuss how business is involved in causing it (Part B), why they do so (Part C), and how business is involved in minimizing it (Part D).

Please note that we have provided a link under each problem to get you started. We provide these to give you a good start, but they are not intended to be sufficient. You will need to do your own additional, secondary research to complete the various sections of your Report.

The Sustainability Report assessment requires you to select ONE of these problems:

This is my topic

Air Pollution
Why air quality matters | Ministry for the Environment Links to an external site.

PART A: 

Describe the precise harms that are associated with your selected problem. Show the negative consequences that it causes for people, communities and/or the environment. 

Having chosen your social or environmental problem, the task in Part A is to explain it accurately and clearly. To do this you will need to draw on credible research: you will need to go beyond the links that we provide on the list of issues. Do not just say that it is a problem: show how big of a problem it is by drawing on relevant examples and evidence. Make sure that these come from credible and authoritative sources. Depending on the issue that you choose, you might draw on statistics from the Ministry for the Environment, or the International Labour Organisation, or on well-researched articles from credible news sites – not from some opinion piece in the paper, or a blog post. As a guideline, plan to provide 5 or 6 references in this paragraph to fully support your contention that your chosen problem is a significant problem.

PART B: 

Describe some of the business practices and some of the firms that are causing this problem. 

Having established the extent of the problem, we now ask you to show how business organizations have been involved in creating this problem.

Here is a suggested process:

• Think about your chosen problem: what sort of business activity causes this problem?
• Then, what industries and (therefore) what business organizations are involved in this sort of activity?

Note that the wording for Part B refers to “business practices and some of the firms.” You need to do both.

Make sure that the firms you talk about are ones that create a significant impact in terms of the problem you are writing about. This paragraph asks you, again, to do the sort of work that is going to require some research. It depends on the nature of your problem and how firms contribute to it, but we suggest that you should refer to at least 3 or 4 sources.

PART C:

Explain why the companies you discuss in part (b) continue to act in ways that cause your selected problem.

In Part C, we ask you to explain why the companies that you discuss in Part B continue to act in ways that cause significant harm to people, communities, and the planet. Make sure you draw on the relevant course material, as your explanation here needs to be clear and comprehensive.

PART D:

Provide examples of how some companies around the world are acting so as to minimize or avoid the negative consequences that you described in part (a).  

In this Report, we want you to focus not just on the problem, but also (and especially) on something more positive: what business organizations can do to address this problem.

Remember that the guiding question for BUSS509 is: how can a business operate in a way that generates a positive social (or environmental) impact, rather than a negative impact? BUSS509 is: how can a business operate in a way that generates a positive social (or environmental) impact, rather than a negative impact?

So, the task in Part D is to describe how "some companies around the world are acting so as to minimize or avoid the negative consequences that you described in Part A.”

Please do not write about how charitable organizations have responded, or what government programs are doing. We are interested in seeing how it is possible to conduct business in a way that solves our most pressing problems. It is up to you to find examples of companies that are doing creative and constructive things to address your chosen problem. A starting point might be looking at the slides for Weeks 7, 8, and 9 – there are many examples given there of companies trying to address social and environmental problems while remaining viable and profitable businesses. Some of them may be relevant to your chosen issue. You will need to ensure that you choose companies that are making a significant positive difference (not just some minor or trivial difference) and you will need to be able to demonstrate that these firms really are doing the good things that you claim (see next section).

An important note on thinking critically in Part D:

Companies often like to say that they are doing good things for people and the planet, because that is good for their public reputation. It does not always mean that they are as good as they say they are. So, be careful to draw on objective, credible secondary sources. It is fine to refer to a company’s website or its sustainability report, but make sure that you do not rely simply on what companies say about themselves. Look also for reports or articles published by others, so that you can report with confidence on what these companies are doing. 

STRUCTURE:

1,000 words (+/- 10%) is a very tight limit for this Report. You will need to plan it out carefully, make sure that you only write material that is related to the questions, and edit carefully. You will want to leave yourself plenty of time to make sure that it is done well. Here is a suggested structure that you may follow:

Executive Summary

Explain the purpose of the report, highlight any major points and describe the conclusion and recommendation. Keep it brief, and make sure you don’t just repeat what you say later (suggestion: 150 words)

Please note that the Executive Summary is not included in the word limit for the Report.

Table of Contents

Please note that the Table of Contents is not included in the word limit for the Report.

Background

The paragraph dealing with Part A (200 words)

Discussion 

The paragraph dealing with Part B (175 words)

The paragraph dealing with Part C (175 words)

Paragraph 1 dealing with Part D (150 words)

Paragraph 2 deals with Part D (150 words)

Conclusion / Recommendation

Conclude by suggesting some ways in which the positive business behaviors that you describe in Part D could provide some lessons to other businesses: what principles might be taken up more broadly across the business so that business could make more of a positive contribution? (150 words)

Reference List

In-text citations and Reference lists are compliant with APA Format 7. Please ensure you include in-text references for any cited sources as well as including the full source reference in your reference list. Both your in-text referencing and reference list should follow APA 7th ed. Failure to do this will result in marking penalties. 

Please note that the Reference List is not included in the word limit for the Report