Abstract

The case describes Honda Motor Co.’s initiatives to reduce the environmental impact of its products and operations. It discusses ‘environmentology’, the company’s term for all its environment-related initiatives. The case gives details of the seven domains of product development, purchasing, production, transportation, sales, disposal and recycling, and administration, where efforts were being made to improve the environmental performance of the company. It also discusses some of the criticisms against the company, and ends with a brief discussion on the future of the company’s environmental initiatives.

Learning Objectives

The case is structured to achieve the following Learning Objectives:

• Study the efforts made by a company to reduce its impact on the environment: Understand the rationale behind the company’s environment conservation initiatives.

Keywords

Honda, Environmentology, Corporate social responsibility, Fuel cell technology, Environment initiatives, Automobile industry, Fuel efficiency, Union of concerned scientists