Please note: In order to keep Hive up to date and provide users with the best features, we are no longer able to fully support Internet Explorer. The site is still available to you, however some sections of the site may appear broken. We would encourage you to move to a more modern browser like Firefox, Edge or Chrome in order to experience the site fully.

Supporting your high street Find out how »
The Drug Company Next Door : Pollution, Jobs, and Community Health in Puerto Rico, Paperback / softback Book

The Drug Company Next Door : Pollution, Jobs, and Community Health in Puerto Rico Paperback / softback

Paperback / softback

Available to Order - This title is available to order, with delivery expected within 2 weeks

Description

"This fascinating and most timely criticalmedical anthropology study successfully binds two still emergent areas ofcontemporary anthropological research in the global world: the nature andsignificant impact of multinational pharmaceutical manufacturers on humansocial life everywhere, and the contribution of corporations to the fast-paceddegradation of our life support system, planet Earth. . . . Focusing on apharmaceutically-impacted town on the colonized island of Puerto Rico, Dietrichably demonstrates the value of ethnography carried out in small places inframing the large issues facing humanity."—Merrill Singer, University of ConnecticutThe production of pharmaceuticals is among themost profitable industries on the planet.

Drug companies produce chemicalsubstances that can save, extend, or substantially improve the quality of humanlife.However, even as the companiespresent themselves publicly as health and environmental stewards, theirfactories are a significant source of air and water pollution--toxic to peopleand the environment.

In Puerto Rico, the pharmaceutical industry is thebackbone of the island’s economy: in one small town alone, there are over adozen drug factories representing five multinationals, the highestconcentration per capita of such factories in the world.

It is a place wherethe enforcement of environmental regulations and the public trust they ensureare often violated in the name of economic development. The Drug Company Next Door unites the concerns ofcritical medical anthropology with those of political ecology, investigatingthe multi-faceted role of pharmaceutical corporations as polluters, economicproviders, and social actors.

Ratherthan simply demonizing the drug companies, the volume explores the dynamicsinvolved in their interactions with the local community and discusses thestrategies used by both individuals and community groups to deal with the consequencesof pollution. The Drug Company Next Door puts a human face on agrowing set of problems for communities around the world.

Accessible and engaging, the book encouragesreaders to think critically about the role of corporations in everyday life,health, and culture.

Information

Other Formats

Save 18%

£27.99

£22.75

Available to Order - This title is available to order, with delivery expected within 2 weeks
Add to Basket
Sign in to add to wishlist
 
Free Home Delivery

on all orders

 
Pick up orders

from local bookshops

Information