Today, environmental protection is among the central matters for natural conservation,
public health and sustainable business. With advanced technologies and changing lifestyles,
the consumption of resources and release of wastes and pollutants are increasing fast. This
requires policy makers to design environmental policies that properly guide the development
of new products and business operations. The goal of environmental policy is to limit, slowdown,
reduce or eliminate environmental damages caused by industrial and human activities.
Environmental issues generally addressed by environmental policy include (but are not
limited to) air and water pollution, waste management, ecosystem management, biodiversity
protection, and the protection of natural resources, wildlife and endangered species. This
book gathers the latest research from around the globe in this field.
Chapter 1 - Families who run family business enterprises are the policy recipients the
author focuses on in this chapter. They respond to environmental policy either as family
members or as business people. In this chapter, the author uses decision-systems theory
(DST) to discuss why policy recipients choose to respond in different ways. Understanding
policy recipients’ decision processes is important for policy developers for two main reasons.
First, it can help policy developers devise environmental policies that are accepted as
‘legitimate’ by policy recipients. This is important because ‘legitimate’ policies are more
likely to be implemented and result in lasting change than policies that are resented. Second,
it can help policy developers assess whether or not their proposed policies are going to
‘improve society’. Policies that ‘improve society’ are those that both help future generations
satisfy their family’s aspirations and also meet global ideals, such as sustainable development
ideas.