1. Using at least two terms from the unit, summarize the United States’ connection to the history of bananas, as documented in this TED talk. 2. In addition to their illegal methods of gaining land in Central America, what other mistake did the United Fruit Company make, which resulted in the rapid spread of a banana fungus? What general business lesson could be learned from this mistake?

3. The United Fruit Company had an opportunity to reassess their business methods when the fungus arrived. How did they respond to the fungus? What was the result of their response?

4. According to this presentation, early in the United States’s banana history, medical doctors endorsed the banana. What did the medical community’s endorsement likely do for banana companies?

5. Imagine that you are a Guatemalan farmer, working on a United Fruit Company farm around the time that the fungus spread through the region. You no longer have family land to fall back on because a government official sold your land to the banana company without your permission a few years ago. You lose your job when the United Fruit Company abandons their plantation to the fungus. What might you do to make sure your family has money to survive on? (Keep in mind that at this point, United Fruit Company owns over 40 percent of the arable land in your country.)

6. In the unit, you read that someone interested in international business should study history, geography, economics and languages, as well as have cultural awareness and knowledge of legal principles. Choose three of these subject areas and explain how the United Fruit Company might have had a more positive influence in Central America if they had made use of these subject areas.

7. What did you learn about the interconnectedness of business choices and processes from this presentation?