Environmental Aspects of Danish Direct Investment in Developing Countries: Managing the Environment in an Open Economy

This occasional paper serves as an introducing part to the project ‘Cross Border Environmental Management in TNCs’. The objective of the paper is to provide the reader with a general understanding of the interface between the internationalization of Danish industry and the environment. Historically, companies’ environmental conduct outside Denmark’s borders has not been a major issue in the Danish debate. Increasingly, however, companies, NGOs, politicians, and the media participate fiercely in the “game” of communicating this issue to the public. Consequently, the interface between internationalization of Danish industry and environmental responsibilities of firms has by the mid-nineties captured public attention, and led to the emergence of a new policy area. This paper sheds light on, how the Danish polity and Danish firms have sought to tackle this new challenge, and outlines how Denmark has reconciled this new policy area with the Danish liberal stance in international trade and investment negotiations.