1- A region is a geographical area which possesses certain characteristics (e.g. political, economic, physical) which give it a measure of unity that allows boundaries to be drawn round it, thus differentiating it from surrounding areas.
2- In addition to any funding provided by the national government, businesses in the member states of the European Union can also benefit from grant aid under agreed European programmes that have been designed to tackle national and regional disparities within the EU.
3- The effect of the these developments on individual countires varies according to their geography. In the USA, for example, the challange is to strike a balance between the EU,which is well advanced in terms of integration and significance, and APEC, which has the aim of free trade rather than economic integration as seen in Europe. The USA cannot ignore the increasing dominance of the Pacific area in world economic affairs, but neither can it forget the influence of the very wealthy and nature market economies of the EU.
4- Economic integration is the establishment of transnational rules and regulations that enhance economic trade and cooperation among countries. At one extreme , economic integration would result in one worldwide free trade market in which all nations had a common currency and could export anything they wanted to any other nation.The concept of economic integration is attractive,but there are many implementation problems.In particular, it requires that the participants agree to surrender some of their national sovereignty,such as the authority to set tariffs and quotas.
5- Legal responsibilities are defined by governments in laws that management is expected to obey.For example, US business firms are required to hire and promote people based on their credentials rather than to discriminate on non-job related characteristics such as race,gender,religion.
6- There is no worldwide standard of conduct for business people. This is especially important given the global nature of business activities. Cultural norms and values vary between countries and even between different geographic regions and ethnic groups within a country.
7- The economic responsibilities of a business are to produce goods and services that society needs and wants at a price that can perpetuate the business and satisfy its obligations to investors. Thus social responsibility, as it relates to the economy, encompasses a number of specific issues including how businesses relate to competition, shareholders, consumers, employees, the local community and the physical environment. The legal responsibilities of businesses are simply the laws and regulations they must obey. It is the bare minimum required of business organizations by society in return for allowing them to obtain the inputs they need from the environment, transform inputs into outputs and dispose of outputs -- in the form of goods and services acquired by consumers in order to satisfy their individual needs and wants. The legal dimension of corporate social responsibility thus refers to obeying local, national and international law regulating competition (procompetitive legislation) and protecting: workers' human rights (equity and safety legislation); the consumer (consumer protection legislation); and the natural environment (environmental protection laws).
8- While some firms consistently fail to consider ethical factors, others have given themselves a competitive edge by establishing strong credentials in this area. For instance, Toyota, which is now the world's largest car maker, boosted its global standing with its pioneering work in the nineties on the hybrid Prius model. Coca-Cola thought it commercially worthwhile to take a minority stake in the UK fruit drinks firm Innocent, which boasts that it gives away a tenth of all its profits. And McDonald's is investing heavily in activities aimed at associating it with ethical and environmental awareness.
9- NGOs are often multinational.Like multinational firms,they operate in many different countries,they have complex structures,they use many modern management techniques and their strategies are global in scope.However,NGOs have different aims and objectives from business.While business aims primarily at making profits,NGOs usually pursue social and environmental goals.
10- There are various reasons for the growth of NGO-business partnership,including the NGOs need for more funding and technical expertise and the firms desire to use NGOs to gain credibility with the public.
11- Foron brought its technical expertise to the partnership,while Greenpeace could offer its media presence and high moral authority which was more convincing to potential customers than any corporate advertising campaign. The Greenpeace-Foron partnership not only helped Foron to sell many fridges,it changed the entire marketplace.After strong initial resistance,all large fridge producer in Germany adapted the new technology.
12- There is a positive relationship between a firm's ethical ideals and practises and profitability.High ethical standards tended to inspire and motivate employees.It also gave them a feeling of well-being.Strong corporate ethics tend to build a high level of internal trust that enables the firm to retain good employees.This,in turn,can lower costs and lead to higher profits.