a) I found the passage on the pressure on Walmart to become for environmentally friendly particularly interesting. To me, this is a great example of the "Environmental Kuznets Curve." As Walmart grew into a multi-national corporation, they became more and more concerned with the amount of waste they produce. While this may have been the result of public pressures (the company had earned the label of "environmental despoiler"), it still shows that as income increases past a certain point, pollution decreases.
b) From the article, we see that multi-national (such as Walmart) can have a significant impact on the economics and culture of a country (such as China). As Walmart started to move in to China, new environmental standards began to develop. Not only did Walmart have to comply with these standards, but so did its competitors and suppliers.
c) Multinational firms play a huge role in integrating various cultures. Not only do multinational firms bring in goods from other cultures, but often times bring in workers from other countries as well. As a developed country, New Zealand hosts many multinational firms. These firms make up a significant portion of New Zealand's GDP.
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