Global Systems + Global Governance Case Study Pack - A Level
Geography
By eGeographyMan
This case study pack contains:
● 1x Detailed TNC Case Study (Apple)
● 2x Detailed Trade in a Global Commodity Case Study (Bananas and Coffee)
● 1x Detailed Antarctica Case Study
● 1x Detailed UN Case Study
, TNC - Apple
- Started in 1976 and has experienced phenomenal growth since 2000 especially
- Apple has a market cap of around $2.3 trillion, making it the most valuable company
in the world
- Sell products and operate stores worldwide, particularly in MEDCs, hiring people to
work at these stores. Over 500 stores in 25 countries. Apple sold 1.3 billion devices in
2018
- 164,000 employees worldwide
- HQ in Cupertino, California
- Research and development based in Silicon valley, California, as this is where there
is an agglomeration of IT setups and lots of qualified IT specialists go to work
- European HQ in Ireland due to the low (12.5%) rate of corporation tax
- Apple outsources production to a Taiwanese company called Foxconn that operate in
China due to the low cost labour and less restrictions
- As Apple is so rich and can contribute hugely to countries’ economies, they have
received favourable treatment from national governments. For example, the Irish
government gave Apple a tax break of around 13 billion euros
- Apple has received criticism for how they source their natural resources. For
example, the extraction of tin they get from Indonesia has degraded over 5000
hectares of coral reef, damaged over 400 hectares of mangrove forest and limited
fishing opportunities. Also, the mines are dangerous and unregulated and some
children have been found working in them
- Poor working conditions in Chinese factories - in 2010, 50 workers poisoned by a
toxic chemical used to clean iPad screens. 14 people committed suicide in 2010,
linked to these poor working conditions. Wages are also low at around $100 a month,
much of which are spent on living costs. In some cases, children have been found
working in these factories
- Criticisms of Apple from environmental groups such as Greenpeace on their lack of
recyclable products, use of toxic chemicals and reliance on non renewable sources
of energy
Geography
By eGeographyMan
This case study pack contains:
● 1x Detailed TNC Case Study (Apple)
● 2x Detailed Trade in a Global Commodity Case Study (Bananas and Coffee)
● 1x Detailed Antarctica Case Study
● 1x Detailed UN Case Study
, TNC - Apple
- Started in 1976 and has experienced phenomenal growth since 2000 especially
- Apple has a market cap of around $2.3 trillion, making it the most valuable company
in the world
- Sell products and operate stores worldwide, particularly in MEDCs, hiring people to
work at these stores. Over 500 stores in 25 countries. Apple sold 1.3 billion devices in
2018
- 164,000 employees worldwide
- HQ in Cupertino, California
- Research and development based in Silicon valley, California, as this is where there
is an agglomeration of IT setups and lots of qualified IT specialists go to work
- European HQ in Ireland due to the low (12.5%) rate of corporation tax
- Apple outsources production to a Taiwanese company called Foxconn that operate in
China due to the low cost labour and less restrictions
- As Apple is so rich and can contribute hugely to countries’ economies, they have
received favourable treatment from national governments. For example, the Irish
government gave Apple a tax break of around 13 billion euros
- Apple has received criticism for how they source their natural resources. For
example, the extraction of tin they get from Indonesia has degraded over 5000
hectares of coral reef, damaged over 400 hectares of mangrove forest and limited
fishing opportunities. Also, the mines are dangerous and unregulated and some
children have been found working in them
- Poor working conditions in Chinese factories - in 2010, 50 workers poisoned by a
toxic chemical used to clean iPad screens. 14 people committed suicide in 2010,
linked to these poor working conditions. Wages are also low at around $100 a month,
much of which are spent on living costs. In some cases, children have been found
working in these factories
- Criticisms of Apple from environmental groups such as Greenpeace on their lack of
recyclable products, use of toxic chemicals and reliance on non renewable sources
of energy
