Ch 4 cont d Environmental Equity and Sustainable Development Current economic outlooks treat the Earth as if it were a business in liquidation Sell it all now natural resources were going to run out anyway Treating things inanimately everything is a product commodity Just worried about bottom line ignore impact on people No region can achieve sustainability in isolation From growth oriented to balance oriented lifestyle They want us to consume more so they can make more and go faster As long as we re capitalists this isn t going to happen Chapter 5 Theoretical Considerations What is Theory A way of looking at the world Theories are simplifications about the world Different theoretical frameworks Poststructuralist Everything is a construct of our society We all try to simplify what we see around us in terms of our theory oversimplification about the world to help us interpret it Factors of Location Numerous variables influence the location of firms and industries Labor The most important factor in location EXCEPT in the primary sector where the resource is located is most important Myth Firms always want the cheapest labor possible they want productive labor Skill labor required affects the size of its labor market if you graduate with a Computer Science degree you will not stay in College Station you will go to Silicon Valley Labor factor is saturated with politics Labor unions boost up labor expenses the only factor that is sentient can strike engage in slowdowns At the local level availability and cost of land are the most important Accessibility nearness to city is primary determinant of the cost of land CBD central business district land can be leveraged for 35 floors of office Land space Capital Fixed capital tangible machinery equipment plant buildings Financial capital intangible revenues savings loans Most mobile factor of production Can be transferred instantaneously with almost no cost Crucial advantage over labor is mobility Capital intensification when capital substitutes for labor GM hires a bunch of workers and now they re all unionized and they ve driven up their wages GM can t replace labor force and they strike but demand is so high that they cant keep up So they mechanize and replace labor with Managerial and Technical Skills Management Allocated resources raises capital negotiates financial markets monitors competition government rules and policies makes investments personnel decisions marketing etc Technical Innovation research and development R D