BSR Insight | Priorities for Emerging Economies: Environment over Economic Growth?
A Gallup poll conducted in 2011 found that in emerging markets China, India, and Brazil, a large percentage of citizens felt that the environment should be prioritized, even if it jeopardized economic growth. Gallup points out that people living in the United States also expressed a desire to prioritize the environment over economic growth--until the recession in 2008. China's economic slowdown in the last year may also change the numbers, Gallup explains. Furthermore, more than three-quarters of respondents in China said they were satisfied with current efforts to preserve the environment, despite major, systemic environmental challenges such as air and water pollution in the country. According to the World Bank, the health costs of air and water pollution in China amount to about 4.3 percent of its GDP. At the same time, such sentiments might signal an increased focus on sustainability by emerging economies--as laid out in a BSR initiative, the New Geographies of Sustainability--that could shape future approaches to responsible business and governance.
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Julia Robinson, Communications Associate
Julia provides editorial, media, marketing, and digital support to BSR staff and projects... Read more →
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