Thomas Lyon
Thomas P. Lyon is the director of the Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise at the University of Michigan. He holds the Dow Chair of Sustainable Science, Technology and Commerce, with appointments in both the Ross School of Business and the School of Natural Resources and Environment. Tom is a leader in using economic analysis to understand corporate environmental strategy and how it is shaped by emerging government regulations, non-governmental organizations, and consumer demands. His book "Corporate Environmentalism and Public Policy," published by Cambridge University Press, is the first rigorous economic analysis of this increasingly important topic. His current research focuses on corporate environmental information disclosure, greenwash, the causes and consequences of renewable energy policy, and voluntary programs for environmental improvement.
Why CSR is Essential in the Real World of Business
In a recent op-ed piece in The Wall Street Journal, one of my colleagues explained why he thinks corporate social responsibility is at best irrelevant and probably socially damaging. Yet when corporations blatantly work to cause government to fail in its task of solving collective problems, how can we not demand CSR? How can we not support environmental activists who work to hold such corporations accountable? Read More