The paradox at the base of the pyramid: environmental sustainability and market-based poverty alleviation

2012 ◽  
Vol 60 (1/2) ◽  
pp. 44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Denis G. Arnold ◽  
Laura H.D. Williams
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Poverty Alleviation ◽  
Base Of The Pyramid

Rural Household Livelihood and Tree Plantation Dependence in the Central Mountainous Region of Hainan Island, China: Implications for Poverty Alleviation

Forests ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 248 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ruida Li ◽  
Hua Zheng ◽  
Cuiping Zhang ◽  
Bonnie Keeler ◽  
Leah H. Samberg ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Poverty Alleviation ◽  
Rural Livelihoods ◽  
Hainan Island ◽  
Rural Household ◽  
Farm Income ◽  
Mountainous Region ◽  
Tree Plantation ◽  
Mountainous Regions ◽  
Household Livelihood

Plantations support local economies and rural livelihoods in many mountainous regions, where poverty and a fragile environment are often interlinked. Managing plantations sustainably and alleviating poverty is a major challenge. This study reports on the findings of a household livelihood survey in the central mountainous region of Hainan Island, a global biodiversity hotspot. The survey aimed to identify rural household livelihoods, strategies to lift rural households out of poverty and potential environmental consequences of different livelihood strategies. Households were divided into five groups based on their main source of income: plantations, crops, livestock, local off-farm income and remittances. Plantations were the main source of income for 74% of households and provided 46% of the total income. Plantation land area, planting diverse tree species and intercropping were significantly associated with higher income. Reallocating land by family size could increase the proportion of households above the poverty line in the plantation group from 51.3% to 85.3%, while making only 3.3% of households worse off. Lower income households tended to apply more chemicals to plantations, which suggests that they create more strain on the environment. Improving household income through dynamically allocating plantation land and diversifying planted species could therefore be beneficial both socially and environmentally. Our results emphasize the importance of dynamic plantation land allocation and diverse plantation planting in poverty alleviation and environmental sustainability.

Unintended Consequences of Business with 4 Billion

2012 ◽  
pp. 42-54 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nancy E. Landrum
Keyword(s):  
Emerging Economies ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Business Models ◽  
New Products ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Unintended Consequences ◽  
Economic Conditions ◽  
Base Of The Pyramid ◽  
Social Environmental ◽  
International Strategies

In the past, there has historically been a pursuit of profit as the motive for multinational corporation (MNC) international strategies in emerging economies. We have long known of some of the unintended and controversial consequences of MNC international strategies on emerging economies. By contrast, base of the pyramid strategies (BOP) are aimed at the poorest residents in emerging economies and seek to improve social, environmental, and economic conditions for all, ideally addressing many of the problems encountered with more traditional MNC international strategies. Anecdotal examples continue to accumulate of businesses with success in the base of the pyramid, fueled by innovation in new products, services, and/or business models. However, academic research is emerging that does not support this image of BOP success. This chapter will discuss unintended consequences or outcomes of BOP strategies which may not always result in environmental sustainability, improved lives in the BOP, and improved economic conditions. This presentation focuses specifically on the unintended consequences of base of the pyramid strategies within emerging economies. Even with the recent interest in BOP strategies, closer scrutiny of current examples of BOP successes still reveal some of the same negative unintended consequences as MNC international strategies; that is, there is still an emphasis on profit ahead of responsibility and sustainability. Literature and research reviewed in this chapter reveals that BOP strategies have resulted in the promotion of stereotypes, an anticipated increase in e-waste under already hazardous recycling conditions in India and Africa, a loss of social capital, and worsened economic conditions.

Cocreation at the Base of the Pyramid

2016 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 416-437 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tytti Nahi
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Social Transformation ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The Other ◽  
Base Of The Pyramid ◽  
Deep Process ◽  
Central Tenet ◽  
Low Income Consumers ◽  
Considerable Range

The base of the pyramid (BOP) approach suggests that business with low-income consumers or producers can simultaneously foster well-being, environmental sustainability, and profits. A central tenet of the BOP approach is cocreation between companies, low-income communities, and other actors. However, recent research has strongly questioned the necessity and feasibility of such cocreation. This article undertakes a systematic review of BOP research on cocreation and finds a considerable range in the proposed participants and purpose of cocreation: Cocreation can refer to a deep process of social transformation or, at the other extreme, arms-length cooperation that merely legitimizes a corporation as a development agent. Drawing on development studies, this review proposes a framework for organizing the diverse conceptualizations, and shows how the framework facilitates elaboration on the necessity and feasibility of cocreation at the BOP.

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