This forward-looking book introduces the concept of Ethical Value Networks, building upon a theoretical exploration with primary evidence of their impacts in the Global South. It moves away from focusing on the consumption section of networks, with grounded impact studies that explore ethicality as a concept, how ethical value is created and how this is distributed through the socio-economy.
This forward-looking book introduces the concept of Ethical Value Networks, building upon a theoretical exploration with primary evidence of their impacts in the Global South. It moves away from focusing on the consumption section of networks, with grounded impact studies that explore ethicality as a concept, how ethical value is created and how this is distributed through the socio-economy. Framed by theoretical exploration and reflection, the book offers a selection of case studies from Africa, Latin America, the Pacific, and Southeast Asia to highlight the implications of Ethical Value Networks for producers and localities in the Global South. Chapters further analyse and critique the rise of the ethical trade and certification schemes, as well as three ethical trade constellations: social justice through fair trade, sustainability through organic agriculture, and authenticity through geographic indications. The in-depth analysis of ethical trading in wine, coffee, fruit and other key sectors combined with theoretical study will make this an important read for ethical trade researchers as well as policy makers and those responsible for the governance and operation of ethical value networks. It will also be an invigorating read for economic geography, development studies, international development and management studies scholars.
Fairtrade has established itself as a distinct phenomenon within the realm of global consumerism. Fairtrade aims to protect small producers against price volatility and inadequate incomes as well as to provide community benefits (health care, education). It relies on consumer purchases of FT products carried out at agreed minimum prices. These purchases measure the trust accorded to the scheme which is founded on a system of certification comprising a series of recommended producer welfare-enhancing standards that FT products must satisfy ...
Fair and ethical trade is often criticized for being highly gendered, and for institutionalizing the ethical values of consumers, the priorities of NGOs and governments, and most of all, food retailers. But little is known about how women smallholder farmers experience diverse ethical standards, or whether and how standards reflect their values, local cultural and environmental contexts, or priorities for achieving sustainable livelihoods. Linking gender, smallholder livelihoods and global ethical trade regulations, this book reveals that multiple understandings of social justice, environmental sustainability and well-being – or ethicality – exist in parallel to those institutionalized in ethical trade schemes. Through an in-depth case study of smallholder subsistence and French bean farming in Kenya, the book grounds the analysis of livelihoods, gender and ethical trade in women smallholders’ perspectives, links the macro level of markets with the micro level of livelihoods, and engenders relations of power, structure and agency in food networks. It brings together disparate bodies of theory to illustrate the knowledge, strategies and values of women smallholder farmers that are often beyond the scope of ethical trade regulations. It also provides a challenging new vision for doing food systems research.
Politics is intuitively about relationships, but until recently the network perspective has not been a dominant part of the methodological paradigm that political scientists use to study politics. This volume is a foundational statement about networks in the study of politics.
Informal Networks in International Business sheds light into the complex nature of informal networks and the respective context in which they operate as well as exploring the challenges and opportunities they produce for a modern international business.
Multinational enterprises must contend with increasingly challenging conditions in the international business environment. This Handbook explores how classic principles of international competitive strategy are transformed in today's markets and provides suggestions on how firms can develop effective strategies to respond to these transformations.
Increasingly, consumers in North America and Europe see their purchasing as a way to express to the commercial world their concerns about trade justice, the environment and similar issues. This ethical consumption has attracted growing attention in the press and among academics. Extending beyond the growing body of scholarly work on the topic in several ways, this volume focuses primarily on consumers rather than producers and commodity chains. It presents cases from a variety of European countries and is concerned with a wide range of objects and types of ethical consumption, not simply the usual tropical foodstuffs, trade justice and the system of fair trade. Contributors situate ethical consumption within different contexts, from common Western assumptions about economy and society, to the operation of ethical-consumption commerce, to the ways that people’s ethical consumption can affect and be affected by their social situation. By locating consumers and their practices in the social and economic contexts in which they exist and that their ethical consumption affects, this volume presents a compelling interrogation of the rhetoric and assumptions of ethical consumption.
A global transformation in food supply and consumption is placing our food security at risk. What changes need to be made to the ways we trade, process and purchase our food if everyone in the world is going to have enough wholesome food to eat? Is there genuine scope for creating food futures that embrace considerations such as ecological sustainability and social equity as well as placing good food on the table - and making money? Drawing upon examples of innovative food chains in Europe, Canada, Africa and Latin America, leading academics and practitioners challenge the idea that individuals are powerless in the face of global supply chains and the legal apparatus protecting them. The authors do not, however, underestimate the scale of the task at hand. They explore the tensions and dilemmas inherent in innovative practice - such as the ethics of mainstreaming, balancing a variety of goals and the ways in which success is defined - as well as presenting success stories and explaining how they were achieved. Creating Food Futures provides you with inspiring examples of what is being done and thought-provoking suggestions for future work.