The Corporate Planet; Description and Reviews
Written by CorpWatch's founder Joshua Karliner, and published by Sierra Club Books in 1997, The Corporate Planet: Ecology and Politics in the Age of Globalization created a foundation from which the CorpWatch website emerged and evolved. Since then, the book has been excerpted by various publications ranging from The Washington Post to Earth Island Journal. You can read reviews and a brief excerpt here. The Corporate Planet can be found in many bookstores, or you can purchase it by clicking on this link . About The Corporate PlanetFrom the Tokyo timber terminal, where Japanese conglomerates process rain forest logs from around the world, to India, China and Brazil, where global chemical and automobile concerns are rapidly setting up shop, transnational corporations have made their presence felt in nearly every nation on earth. Joshua Karliner brilliantly exposes how transnationals, aided by free trade agreements and World Bank policies, are leading protagonists in the world's most pressing environmental dramas. He takes the reader behind the scenes of the global public relations companies that launch elaborate campaigns to encourage rampant consumerism as well as to create "green" images for major polluters. With lively case histories of Chevron, the company that the late Nigerian activist Ken Saro-Wiwa identified, with Shell, as the most serious environmental threat to the Niger river delta, and the Mitsubishi Group, which continues to clearcut vast swaths through aspen forests to produce eight million pairs of disposable chopsticks every day, The Corporate Planet offers frightening documentation of the central role transnationals play in environmental destruction. Arguing that transnational misdeeds can be overcome, Karliner recounts empowering stories of communities confronting the ill effects of corporate colonialism to create their own "grassroots globalization" movements. This important and timely book is a significant contribution to the battle against irresponsible corporate behavior. About the AuthorJoshua Karliner is founder and Senior Fellow of CorpWatch. He has published in The Nation, Mother Jones, the World Policy Journal and a broad array of environmental publications. He lives in San Francisco.
Praise for The Corporate PlanetIn The Corporate Planet, [Joshua Karliner] explains how transnational corporationsclean up their image rather than their act. Thoughtful analysis of globalization's ecological and social impacts and of efforts by "corporate environmentalists" to control how problems and solutions are defined.With ecological sustainability, social justice, and democratic participation as his guiding principles, Karliner celebrates "grassroots globalization"--citizens demanding responsible environmental behavior from global corporations--becoming stronger and more articulate around the world. A very clear expose of the immense efforts multinationals undertake to pass themselves off as concerned about the environment. A fine effort.The book reads easily, without being breezy, moving from concrete illustrations of how giant global corporations are affecting the lives of ordinary people to more abstract discussion of underlying issues. A Magellan-like journey around the globe, giving readers a guided tour that identifies the protectors and poisoners of planet Earth. Karliner has provided his considerable investigative skills to document the depths of corporate deceit that now prevail on the environmental battleground. A thoughtful examination of the new international balance of power in the global economy. In this excellent book, the author, Joshua Karliner discusses the difficult challenges that the globalization process poses for the environmental movement. "An important source for everyone who is concerned about our environment and our future. This persuasive book is a very useful tool in the struggle against corporate-run globalization that is accelerating the assault on our environment." "The corporation, by its nature, is as blind as it is powerful. Spiritually blind, morally blind. As a collective entity, it is worse than any of the individuals who make it up. The intensity and importance of The Corporate Planet comes from the passion and the skill with which it opens us to a vision of how dangerous to the future of our globe is global capitalism itself." "In The Corporate Planet, Joshua Karliner outlines the emerging environmental conflict between corporations wanting the freedom to plunder the earth's boundaries and people who depend on the earth for their sustenance. Essential reading for all who want to be informed members of the Earth Family in the globalisation period." |
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