Course Overview and Schedule
Costa Rica Seminar 2005
Course Objectives:
This course is designed to familiarize you with global environmental challenges businesses face,
especially in the Latin American context, and to provide you with tools as to how to deal with
those challenges. You will learn about global environmental problems and policies and about the
methods corporations are employing to cope and respond.
Some of the issues with which this course deals are the following:
1. What is the threat posed by global climate change and other environmental problems?
2. To what extent can market mechanisms be relied upon to deal with these problems?
3. To what extent can the environment be a core competency in an organization?
4. What is meant by eco-efficiency?
5. What is the case for corporate sustainability?
Faculty Overview:
The Costa Rica Seminar is taught jointly by INCAE and Carlson faculty.
 Sustainable Development 1 (SD1) – Taught by Professor Sarah Cordero, INCAE
 Sustainable Development 2 (SD2) – Taught by Professor Rene Castro, INCAE
 Environmental Strategy (ES) – Taught by Professor Lawrence Pratt, INCAE
 Negotiating Environmental Agreements (NEA) – Taught by Professor Alfred Marcus,
Carlson School of Management
 Professor Luis Umana of INCAE coordinates the program.
Readings:
Carlson students will receive the foundational readings in a packet in November. Reading must
be completed prior to arrival in Costa Rica. A few additional readings and cases will be handed
out during class in Costa Rica.
Class Participation:
Active participation is expected of all students. Students should prepare for each class by
completing the readings and being ready to respond to and ask questions about the reading(s) for
the class. Unless you are too sick to get out of bed, you are expected to attend each class period.
Student Evaluation:
Group paper for week one = 25%
Group paper for week two= 25%
Final exam (individual)= 30%
Class participation= 20%
SD1:
Sustainable Development 1
SD2:
Sustainable Development 2
ES:
Environmental Strategy
NEA:
Negotiating Environmental Agreements
*As of October 15; Final schedule will be available in Costa Rica.
-1-
Tuesday
Monday
Schedule At-A-Glance
8:00 – 9:20
SESSION # 1
Introduction Prof. Luis Umaña
 Introduction to INCAE
 Seminar's objectives
 Seminar's program
 Introd. and expectations
 General guidelines
SESSION # 4
Class 2 SD1
Sustainability
9:30 – 10:50
SESSION # 2
11:00 -12:20
SESSION # 3
Class 1 SD1
Economy and Environment
Class 1 NEA
An Introduction to Negotiations
Prof. Sarah Cordero
Prof. Alfie Marcus
SESSION # 5
SESSION # 6
Class 3 SD1
Examining and correcting policy
and market failures
Class 2 NEA
Rainforest Negotiation
Prof. Sarah Cordero
Thursday
Wednesday
SESSION # 7
Class 4 SD1
Business and the Environment
Prof. Alfie Marcus
Prof. René Castro
SESSION # 8
Prof. Lawrence Pratt
Class 5 SD1
Corporate Social Responsibility
Environmentally responsible
industries.
SESSION # 10
Prof. Sarah Cordero
SESSION # 11
Class 1 SD2
Water Resources. Blue Flag
program in Costa Rican coastal
towns
Class 2 SD2
Natural Resources Conservation
and Preservation: Eco-tourism
SESSION # 9
FIELD TRIP #1
SESSION # 12
FIELD TRIP #2
Prof. René Castro
Friday
Prof. René Castro
FIELD TRIP #2
FIELD TRIP #2
SD1:
Sustainable Development 1
SD2:
Sustainable Development 2
ES:
Environmental Strategy
NEA:
Negotiating Environmental Agreements
*As of October 15; Final schedule will be available in Costa Rica.
-2-
FIELD TRIP #2
Monday
Week 2
SESSION # 1
SESSION # 2
Class 1 ES
Understanding the EnvironmentCompetitiveness Link
Class 3 NEA
Global Warming
Soccer game
CARLSON vs. INCAE
Prof. Alfie Marcus
Tuesday
Prof. Lawrence Pratt
SESSION # 3
Class 3 SD2
Global Climate Change and the
CDM
SESSION # 4
Class 4 SD2
Bioprospection and
commercialization of genetic
material.
SESSION # 5
FIELD TRIP #3
INBIO
Prof. Lawrence Pratt
Wednesday
SESSION # 6
Class 5 SD2
Trade and Environment
Prof. René Castro
SESSION # 7
Class 2 ES
Environment as a Strategic
Element in Company Strategy
Prof. René Castro
SESSION # 8
Class 3 ES
Ecoefficiency. Profiting from
environmental improvement in
business.
Friday
Thursday
Prof. Lawrence Pratt
Prof. Sarah Cordero
SESSION # 11
SESSION # 9
SESSION # 10
Class 4 NEA
Regulatory Reform,
Class 4 ES
The Sustainable Company.
Integrating the economic,
ecological, and social
aspects
Night: SOCIAL ACTIVITY
Prof. Sarah Cordero
SESSION # 12
SESSION # 13
Prof. Alfie Marcus
Free session
Class 5 ES
Green Seals
Afternoon: FINAL EXAM
Class 5 NEA
Issues and Conclusion of
Seminar
Prof. Lawrence Pratt
Prof. Alfie Marcus
SD1:
Sustainable Development 1
SD2:
Sustainable Development 2
ES:
Environmental Strategy
NEA:
Negotiating Environmental Agreements
*As of October 15; Final schedule will be available in Costa Rica.
-3-
Class Details
Week 1
Monday
SESSION # 1
Introduction
Prof. Luis Umaña
*Library orientation from 8:00am to 8:30am for CSOM students only. Class at 8:40am
 Introduction to INCAE
 Seminar's objectives
 Seminar's program
 Introd. and expectations
 General guidelines
SESSION # 2
Class 1 SD1
Prof. Sarah Cordero
Economy and Environment
Readings:

The Sustainable Economy. In Pearce, David and Turner, R Kerry. (1990). Economics of
Natural Resources and the Environment. Chapter 3, The John Hopkins University Press:
Maryland, pp. 43-58.

Case: Bridge Over the Tempisque River, Costa Rica. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard
University, C18-95-1292.0
SESSION # 3
Class 1 NEA
Prof. Alfie Marcus
An Introduction to Negotiations
Reading:

Examining Barriers to Negotiated Environmental Agreements, Catherine A. Ramus and
Alfred A. Marcus, 2004.
Tuesday
SD1:
Sustainable Development 1
SD2:
Sustainable Development 2
ES:
Environmental Strategy
NEA:
Negotiating Environmental Agreements
*As of October 15; Final schedule will be available in Costa Rica.
-4-
SESSION # 4
Class 2 SD1
Prof. Sarah Cordero
Sustainability
Readings:

Sustainability: An Economist's Perspective. Solow, Robert. In Dorfman and Dorfman (Eds.).
(1993). Economics of the Environment. Selected Readings. Third Edition. Norton &
Company: New York, pp. 179-187.

The Tragedy of the Commons. (1968). Hardin, G. Science. Vol. 162. December 13, (URL:
www.sciencemag.org).

Case: The Introduction of charges on water use to pay for environmental services in Costa
Rica. By Sarah Cordero, 2002.
SESSION # 5
Class 3 SD1
Prof. René Castro
Examining and correcting policy and market failures
Readings:

The Causes of Environmental Degradation: How Markets Work and How They Fail, Chapter
5.

Market-based Mechanisms for Forest Conservation and Development. Pagiola S., LandellMilss and Bishop J. Published by Earthscan Publications, 2002.

Case: Brazilian Fuel Cell Buses by Dr. Rene Castro, PhD Sarah Cordero (cand) and Bruno
Miller (cand)- From the book “Climate Change and Development”, edited by Drs René Castro
and Sarah Cordero. Published by UNDP and INCAE, 2003.
SESSION # 6
Prof. Alfie Marcus
Class 2 NEA
Rainforest Negotiation
Reading:
 Rainforest Negotiation Exercise from Beckenstein, et. al. Stakeholder Negotiations (Irwin Press)
Wednesday
SESSION # 7
Class 4 SD1
Instructor: Juan Pablo Buchert
SD1:
Sustainable Development 1
SD2:
Sustainable Development 2
ES:
Environmental Strategy
NEA:
Negotiating Environmental Agreements
*As of October 15; Final schedule will be available in Costa Rica.
-5-
Understanding the Environment-Competitiveness Link
Readings:

Rethinking the Private Sector-Environment Relationship in Latin America
SESSION # 8
Class 5 SD1
Prof. Sarah Cordero
Corporate Social Responsibility Environmentally responsible industries.
Readings:

Corporate Social Responsibility. Making Good Business Sense. WBCSD, 2000.

Case: The Greening of Portico by Sarah Cordero.
SESSION # 9
FIELD TRIP #1
Thursday
SESSION # 10
Class 1 SD2
Prof. René Castro
Water Resources. Blue Flag program in Costa Rican coastal towns
Readings:

Priceless. A survey of water (pp.3-16) . The Economist, July 19th, 2003.

Water: moving from a free good to a tradable one. By Dr. René Castro, article presented at the
World Water forum in Japan, March 2003.
SESSION # 11
Class 2 SD2
Prof. René Castro
Natural Resources Conservation and Preservation: Eco-tourism, The Case of Galapagos.
Readings:

Importance of Public Protected Areas in the Development of Tourism in Costa Rica. J.R.
DeShazo y Luis Monestel Vega, Development Discussion Paper, Harvard University (#679,
February 1999).
SESSION # 12
FIELD TRIP #2
SD1:
Sustainable Development 1
SD2:
Sustainable Development 2
ES:
Environmental Strategy
NEA:
Negotiating Environmental Agreements
*As of October 15; Final schedule will be available in Costa Rica.
-6-
Friday
FIELD TRIP #2
Week 2
Monday
SESSION # 1
Class 1 ES
Prof.
Environment as a Strategic Element in Company Strategy
Readings:

Case: Cultivos Orgánicos S.A. #25178
SESSION # 2
Prof. Alfie Marcus
Global Warming
Class 3 NEA
Readings:

Case: Global Climate Change After Marrakech (A) and Country Notes for International
Negotiation (B) Harvard Business School Cases
Soccer game
CARLSON vs. INCAE
Tuesday
SESSION # 3
Class 3 SD2
Prof.
Global Climate Change and the CDM
Readings:

Case: Argentine Oil Company
SESSION # 4
Class 4 SD2
Prof. René Castro
Bioprospection and commercialization of genetic material.
SD1:
Sustainable Development 1
SD2:
Sustainable Development 2
ES:
Environmental Strategy
NEA:
Negotiating Environmental Agreements
*As of October 15; Final schedule will be available in Costa Rica.
-7-
Readings:

Government Policy and Sustainability of Biodiversity in Costa Rica (pp. 500-505). By René
Castro. Proceedings of Forum on Biodiversity (1997: National Academy of Sciences).
Published by National Research Council, USA.

Case: INBio/Merck Agreement: Pioneers in Sustainable Development, Published by Harvard
Business School, October 23, 1992. 1-593-015.
SESSION # 5
FIELD TRIP #3
INBIO
Wednesday
SESSION # 6
Class 5 SD2
Prof. René Castro
Trade and Environment
Readings:

Global Trade for Local Benefit: Financing Energy for All in Costa Rica (pp.516-531) by Dr.
Rene Castro and PhD Sarah Cordero (cand.) . Article extracted from Providing Global Public
Goods. Edited by Inge Kaul et al. Published by Oxford University Press, 2003.
SESSION # 7
Class 2 ES
Prof.
Business and the Environment
Readings:

Posada Amazonas
SESSION # 8
Class 3 ES
Prof. Sarah Cordero
Ecoefficiency. Profiting from environmental improvement in business.
Readings:

Eco-efficiency. Creating More Value with Less Impact. WBCSD, 2000.

Case: Biofert #21698
Thursday
SESSION # 9
Class 4 NEA
SD1:
Sustainable Development 1
SD2:
Sustainable Development 2
ES:
Environmental Strategy
NEA:
Negotiating Environmental Agreements
*As of October 15; Final schedule will be available in Costa Rica.
-8-
Prof. Alfie Marcus
Regulatory Reform
Readings:

3M, EPA, and Project XL, from Marcus et. al. Reinventing Environmental Regulation (Resources
for the Future, 2002), pp. 1-57
SESSION # 10
Class 4 ES
Prof. Sarah Cordero
The Sustainable Company. Integrating the economic, ecological, and social aspects
Readings:

Environment as a Core Competency in World-Class Organizations.

Beyond the Business Case for Corporate Sustainability. Business Strategy and the
Environment. # 11, 130-141 (2002)
SESSION # 11
Afternoon: FINAL EXAM
Night: SOCIAL ACTIVITY
Friday
Early Morning
Free session
SESSION # 12
Prof.
Green Seals
Readings:
Class 5 ES

Web page of Costa Rica’s Certificate for Sustainable Tourism Program (www.turismosostenible.co.cr) and “Categorization Manual for CST Evaluation”
SESSION # 13
Class 5 NEA
Prof. Alfie Marcus
Issues and Conclusion of Seminar
SD1:
Sustainable Development 1
SD2:
Sustainable Development 2
ES:
Environmental Strategy
NEA:
Negotiating Environmental Agreements
*As of October 15; Final schedule will be available in Costa Rica.
-9-