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By 2002, the euphoria that accompanied the grandest achievement to date of Europe's 50-plus years of integration--full monetary union--was fading fast. European policy makers completed the historically unprecedented monetary integration of 12 countries, and then they turned their attention to an equally challenging issue: enlarging the European Union (EU). By the beginning of the 21st century, 13 countries clamored for membership in this most exclusive club of rich, democratic, European states. With so many prospective members knocking on the door, European policy makers were forced to decide quickly whom to let in and under what conditions.

Presents the fundamentals of GDP accounting (including definitions, etc.), examines the history of national accounting, and surveys the international debate over "Green GDP." The first section explains the basic rules and definitions of national economic accounting and the meaning of GDP versus NDP. The second section provides historical context for the development of national income estimates, 1886 to 1940, culminating in the creation of GNP by the U.S. Department of Commerce in the 1940s. The third and final section discusses the standard imputations currently made to reflect nonprice economic activity (e.g., for owner-occupied housing and government services) and explores the debate over imputations for natural resources and environmental quality.

Cargill is one of the world's leading marketers, processors, and distributors of agricultural, food, industrial, and financial products. In 1998, the company decided to develop a strategic intent to restructure and refocus the company. It did so in response to the consolidation of the industry, globalization, and the impact of the genetic revolution. It had to change its focus from the producer to the consumer and market solutions.

Describes three different approaches to electronic purchasing taken by a state government: 1) ERP-to-ERP by State Health (the state government's largest spender); 2) a central catalogue (the state government Buyers' Catalogue) maintained by government purchasing officers; and 3) an outsourced gateway hub known as JEBI (the government's Joint eBusiness Initiative project), intended for use initially by government agencies and eventually by small and medium-size businesses (SMEs) across the state. The gateway hub approach needs to incorporate the other systems' transaction volumes for it to be viable and to realize the longer term goal of creating an e-business marketplace for the state's SMEs. How will the JEBI project manager co-opt the other electronic purchasing projects to its cause?

Fonterra was a cooperatively owned dairy company--New Zealand's largest company and the world's largest exporter of dairy products. To maintain its leadership, Fonterra had to respond to increased competition, new consumer tastes, consolidation of its customers, and increasing subsidies on milk by developing countries. This futuristic case identifies trends that the cooperative has to take into account for its future success. It can be examined as a model for other cooperatives in other commodity systems.

Monsanto is the biotechnology leader in agriculture. How does it use its leadership in Round Up to fund long-term research and development in biotechnology that is acceptable to the priority system of consumers in different parts of the world? Includes color exhibits.

Collectively owned township and village enterprises (TVEs) played a pivotal role in China's rapid growth during the 1980s and 1990s. Although they originated in the policies and institutions of the Maoist era, TVEs thrived only after Deng Xiaoping's economic reforms redistributed property rights, taxing powers, and responsibility for the provision of public goods. These reforms made local governments dependent on their TVEs for tax revenues and gave party cadres powerful incentives to promote economic growth. Local officials often helped TVEs under their jurisdiction to gain access to technologies, capital, and production permits. Instead of rapidly privatizing its state-owned enterprises (SOEs), China gradually liberalized aspects of its economy in a controlled manner, often establishing a "market track" alongside its planned system. As the SOEs' share of output and employment shrank, that of the TVEs dramatically increased. By the mid- to late 1990s, TVEs accounted for nearly 40% of China's industrial output and had created about 100 million jobs. Nevertheless, party officials questioned whether the TVEs were a viable form of organization for an economy with ever-larger firms, more complex products and production processes, and the need for more capital and more skilled managers.

In December 1998, Ron Wilson, chief executive of Mobil Oil Indonesia (MOI), considered how he should respond to allegations made by a group of nongovernmental organizations that Mobil had been complicit in serious human rights abuses in Aceh, Indonesia. MOI, established in 1968, was a joint venture between Mobil and the Indonesian oil company Pertamina. Based in Lhokseumawe, MOI was responsible for setting and managing the terms of the various contracts with Pertamina and the Indonesian government and for establishing and managing the exploration and exploitation operations. As a location, Aceh was far from convenient. But could any of the team at Mobil have imagined just how challenging managing operations in Aceh would be?

In December 1998, Ron Wilson, chief executive of Mobil Oil Indonesia (MOI), considered how he should respond to allegations made by a group of nongovernmental organizations that Mobil had been complicit in serious human rights abuses in Aceh, Indonesia. MOI, established in 1968, was a joint venture between Mobil and the Indonesian oil company Pertamina. Based in Lhokseumawe, MOI was responsible for setting and managing the terms of the various contracts with Pertamina and the Indonesian government and for establishing and managing the exploration and exploitation operations. As a location, Aceh was far from convenient. But could any of the team at Mobil have imagined just how challenging managing operations in Aceh would be?

The United States and Mexico face the challenges of managing shared water resources. The supply is limited and demand is growing on both sides of the border as a result of increased irrigated acreage and population growth.

Biodiversity is being lost due to the delegation of the ability to store and maintain various types of plants to governments and foundations with no or little financial base. How does one develop the resources to maintain plant diversity for the future benefit of society?

Official data that suggest economic inequality has been mounting in the United States on various dimensions since 1979. Many causes of such inequality have been postulated: technological change, globalization, demographic factors, and changes in public policy (notably changes in taxation during the Reagan presidency). Whether rising inequality is even a cause for concern is an open question. Some dimensions of inequality may be of concern, whereas other dimensions may be viewed as less problematic. To the extent that rising inequality is seen as a social problem that needs to be addressed, various policy proposals have been advocated.

The strife between Israel and the Palestinians is largely viewed as a political problem requiring a political solution. But it's also economic, says this researcher, who asserts that Japan's role in the development of South Korea can inform economic relations between Israel and the Palestinians.

The U.S. Social Security system is in deep trouble--and that's not just bad news for your friends and family. It's also bad news for your company. Unless the Social Security system is changed, by 2041 the system will be utterly insolvent. In the next decade, the very prospect of the rising deficit will mean serious pressure on recent tax cuts, higher long-term interest rates, increased pension-funding costs, and other punishing conditions for U.S. businesses. Executives need to participate in the growing debate about Social Security reform, says Robert Pozen, a visiting professor at Harvard Law School who served on the President's Commission to Strengthen Social Security. In this article, he urges business leaders to take a stance on how the system should be reformed, suggesting they work with interest groups to make their voices heard. Pozen outlines the three main alternatives executives might choose to support: increasing contributions to Social Security, decreasing the growth of benefits for more affluent workers, and increasing investment returns on Social Security assets. What's needed to fix the current system, he contends, is a careful balance of all three.

Briefly reviews motivations and trends behind foreign direct investment and multinational corporations as well as the policy debate that surrounds them.

Codex Alimentarius is a set of international food standards devised by the Codex Commission, a body within the United Nations jointly sponsored by the FAO and WHO. The purpose of the standards is to harmonize global trade in food products and agricultural commodities, protect the health of consumers, and promote fair trade practices in foods. A subset of the commission's work involved establishing international food labeling standards. The most disputed issue in food labeling dealt with the topic of genetically modified ingredients and how to treat them.

Gazprom, the Russian natural-gas production and distribution firm that, by some measures is the largest energy company in the world, and has been very cheaply valued ever since its privatization. Reasons for this include the general uncertainty prevailing in Russian equity markets and the alleged corruption in the company, including serious asset-stripping by management. Hermitage Capital Management, a Russia-focused hedge fund run by William Browder, began investing in Gazprom in 1998, hoping that shrewd activism would increase its performance as well as its share price. This case looks at Gazprom's halting efforts at reform and discusses issues Browder must consider in deciding how to proceed.

Hong Kong's first avian flu crisis started in March 1997, when close to 7,000 chickens on three rural farms were wiped out by an H5 strain. To contain the outbreak, the Hong Kong government ordered a mass slaughter of all poultry. Altogether, the first outbreak led to 18 confirmed H5N1 cases in humans, resulting in 6 deaths. The decision to slaughter the chickens was controversial at the time. Poor coordination and inefficiency characterized the first cull and damaged the Hong Kong government's credibility. The crisis put pressure on the chief executive, Mr. Tung Chee-wah, to find new solutions to curb the avian flu. Against the background of the first bird flu crisis, the Environment and Food Bureau and the Hong Kong government faced repeated bird flu outbreaks in May 2001 and February 2002. With the recurrence of the avian flu, there was an opportunity for the Hong Kong government to show the public how it learned to manage the continuing crises.

William Browder, the top executive of the Hermitage Fund, the best-performing international equity fund over the last five years, attributed much of his funds' strong returns to its focus on shareholder activism and corporate governance. In 2001, he was putting this approach to the test by accusing the Russian oil and gas giant Gazprom and the international accounting firm Price Waterhouse Coopers of not stemming governance problems. Although the press provided extensive coverage of Gazprom's problems and the share price rose, Browder failed in his other efforts to get a board seat, and his lawsuits were dismissed. Was it time to refine or change this activist strategy? These were the questions Browder (and his investors) considered as he left on a long overdue vacation.

The Swedish Model--sometimes presented as a third way between savage capitalism and unrealistic socialism--was much lauded in the 1960s. It was viewed as a strategy that addressed social concerns while supporting economic growth. However, the financial and currency crisis of the early 1990s threw the model into doubt and prompted much soul searching and reform among Sweden's establishment. The welfare state introduced in Sweden imposed a high tax burden on individuals and business. By the late 1990s, some concerns were emerging that these costs were acting as a deterrent to doing business in Sweden. In an international market for labor and capital, Sweden was a less attractive home for high-flying MBAs or multinational companies than other countries.