Two posts over at Fairer Globalization discuss the impact of ethics on consumer choices, and the role of principles in corporate practices. The latter identifies four explanations for a growing trend on the part of globalized businesses to “over comply” with ethical practices: privatization, globalization, NGO oversight/consumer activism, and the rise of socially responsible investing. All of those fit under the umbrella of increased public awareness, whether of the globally borne costs of development (ie. climate change) or of the local impact of particular companies’ practices. It’s another example of how globalization is inseparable from the information revolution that has accompanied it, whether in terms of the logistics the internet has facilitated or the oversight capabilities it has made up for in the era of government deregulation. It will be interesting to see what kind of impact the development of internet infrastructure in the developing world will have on this feedback loop.
