Chapter 5 examines the trade-offs of c1orporate governing from both corporate and societal perspectives. Internally, it can enhance recruitment, morale, branding, and profitability – but also risks alienating stakeholders with conflicting political views. Externally, while corporate governing may offset political gridlock and support social change, it raises concerns about accountability, uneven influence, and democratic legitimacy. Companies may disengage, act opportunistically, or adopt positions that run counter to broader public goals. This chapter identifies two core challenges. First, corporate governing often falls short in advancing genuine social progress where business interests diverge from public needs – such as labor rights, antitrust, taxation, privacy, corporate and financial reform, and AI – underscoring the risks of stakeholderist reforms that expand executive discretion. Second, it may erode democratic processes by sidelining dissent and shifting policymaking into private hands. While the first concern may be mitigated by greater transparency, the second is more difficult. As public authority recedes, participatory democracy risks being displaced by corporate decision-making.

Chapter 2 explores the drivers behind corporate governing, spanning internal organizational dynamics, and broader societal pressures. Within firms, Millennial and Gen Z employees have emerged as a force for change, leveraging social media to advocate for prosocial commitments and ESG priorities. Investors, increasingly treating ESG factors as financially material, have further reshaped strategic expectations. These pressures have begun to challenge shareholder primacy and expand the perceived boundaries of corporate purpose. This chapter also considers the influence of corporate political spending and lobbying in shaping public positioning. In Section B, attention turns to the cultural and political shifts of the mid-to-late 2010s. Movements like Black Lives Matter, #MeToo, the Climate Movement, and March for Our Lives heightened demands for corporate engagement, as did high-profile federal policies under the first Trump administration. Faced with polarization, institutional dysfunction, and declining government responsiveness, many companies stepped into policy vacuums – assuming roles once thought to belong solely to public institutions.

In Corporate Power and the Politics of Change, Matteo Gatti examines how corporations have taken on roles traditionally reserved for governments – advocating on social issues, setting internal norms, and stepping in where public institutions fall short. This phenomenon, called corporate governing, takes two forms: socioeconomic advocacy, when companies take public stances, and government substitution, when they deliver services or protections the state does not provide. Drawing on legal doctrine and insights from the social sciences, Gatti shows how this shift reflects broader pressures within firms and deep dysfunction outside them. The rise of corporate governing has also triggered political, legal, and cultural backlash that challenges its legitimacy and reach. Clear-eyed and timely, this book offers a framework for understanding how corporate power reshapes policymaking and what that means for business and democracy.

Corporate Power and the Politics of Change introduces the concept of “corporate governing” – the rising tendency of corporations to intervene in public life. It distinguishes between two core forms: corporate socioeconomic advocacy, where firms take public stances on contested issues, and government substitution, where they perform quasi-public functions in the face of political inaction. Through examples like Nike’s Kaepernick campaign, Disney’s clash with Florida over LGBTQ+ rights, Apple’s racial equity efforts, and Meta’s retreat, the Introduction shows how corporations increasingly shape public discourse and deliver policy-like outcomes. This expanding role has triggered backlash, raising concerns about democratic legitimacy, political polarization, and executive overreach. This chapter identifies the core legal and normative questions driving the inquiry, surveys the relevant literature, and presents the analytical framework that structures the book – providing a detailed roadmap for the chapters that follow.

Chapter 1 examines the evolving phenomenon of corporate governing, distinguishing between two forms: government substitution, where corporations fill gaps left by public institutions, and corporate socioeconomic advocacy, where firms engage in public discourse on contested issues. Section A traces the historical arc of corporations taking on public functions, particularly under external pressure during the Progressive and Civil Rights eras. Section B surveys the landscape of contemporary initiatives – spanning racial equity, women’s and reproductive rights, LGBTQ+ advocacy, climate, voting rights, and gun control – and highlights both prosocial and conservative forms of corporate governing. It illustrates how firms like JPMorgan Chase, Apple, and Microsoft have acted on these fronts, and how some like Meta and Amazon have scaled back in the face of political resistance. Section C considers the growing conservative backlash – accelerated by recent legal developments and federal political shifts – and evaluates whether corporate governing is in retreat or undergoing recalibration. The chapter captures the scope, complexity, and volatility of this corporate transformation.

Zooarchaeological research is guided by the scientific method. Zooarchaeologists distinguish between primary data, which are descriptive observations, and secondary data, which are analytical products derived from primary data. As much primary data as possible should be clearly recorded during the initial study, and these data should be accessible to future researchers.

The ultimate goal of zooarchaeological analysis is to use animal remains, alongside other evidence, to make inferences regarding the biological, cultural, and ecological behavior of people in the past. Secondary data, which are often mathematically derived from primary data, link primary observations about zooarchaeological specimens to larger cultural and ecological processes.

A key dimension of human–animal relationships is predation. People pursue animal resources that support life and health, while ensuring that the costs required to find, catch, transport, process, distribute, and consume these foods do not exceed the benefits they offer. Animals play a key role in human subsistence strategies, and their use and meaning is woven into all other facets of human life, from the sacred to the profane.