Restructuring The Personal-Public Gain Relationship: a solution to the battle between personal interests & society’s interests
By: Kanksha Mahadevia Ghimere
Abstract: The European Union’s Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) is mired in corruption. The paper discusses corruption, focusing on gaming, using the EU ETS as a case study. The discussion on vice and virtue is based on Adam Smith’s Theory of Moral Sentiments. The paper proposes a system to restructure the personal-public gain relationship. The system legally obligates businesses to find the right balance between the profits and interests of society and the maximization of profits at the expense of society.
In March 2013, the United Nations Environment Programme issued a bulletin (Bulletin) highlighting the prevalent existence of corruption (fraud, bribery, abuses of power, etc.) in emissions trading, discussing corruption pertaining to the European Union’s Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) as one example. Corruption undermines the emissions trading mechanism and weakens its chances to act as an effective incentive for entities to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
It is a sad truth that regardless of what mechanism is implemented, it becomes a victim of corruption, despite implementation of methodologies to identify and curtail corruption.
In this paper I discuss several forms of corruption and certain vices of men responsible for indulgence in such ‘corrupt’ activities. I propose to discuss vice and virtue by referring to Adam Smith’s thoughts as set out in The Theory of Moral Sentiments (TMS). In the TMS he writes about ethics that must govern our economic world.
Last, I propose a system, the implementation of which aims at legally obligating businesses to find the ‘right’ balance between profits (personal gain) and interests of society as against the current scenario where many businesses are in a constant race to maximize profits at the expense of society including the environment.
* Kanksha Mahadevia Ghimire is a corporate lawyer, with 6½ years experience in India’s foremost multi-disciplinary law firms. She is currently working in Vanuatu as a legal specialist advising on regulation of basic utilities.
