Davos Annual Meeting 2009 - The Global Compact and the Corporate Citizen

TL;DR

The Global Compact is a large and influential initiative in corporate social responsibility, focusing on human rights, labor, the environment, and the fight against corruption. It has made significant progress in the past decade but faces challenges in today's economic crisis and climate change threat.

Transcript

good afternoon everybody welcome to this afternoon session on the global compact creating sustainable markets as you know the global compact was was launched 10 years ago here at the world economic Forum by the then un Secretary General coffee Anan under his leadership and that of his success it's become perhaps the largest and most influential of ... Read More

Key Insights

• 🍝 The Global Compact has made significant progress in the past decade, fostering partnerships and improving corporate social responsibility.
• 👨‍💼 There is a need to integrate the Global Compact's principles into business practices and create a common standard for evaluating companies' performance.
• 👨‍💼 The Global Compact can help rebuild trust and confidence in business during the economic crisis by demonstrating long-term commitment to sustainable development.
• ◾ Small and medium enterprises can indirectly benefit from the Global Compact through supply chain partnerships and collaborations with larger companies.

Questions & Answers

Q: How can the Global Compact address the challenges of the current economic crisis?

The Global Compact can play a role in rebuilding trust and confidence in business by integrating its framework into business practices, making it a common standard for evaluating companies' performance.

Q: What impact has the Global Compact had on the behavior of businesses?

The Global Compact has brought about a sea change in business attitudes, with companies embracing its principles and working towards sustainable development. It has fostered partnerships and improved collaboration between companies, governments, and civil society.

Q: How can businesses measure the success of their human rights policies?

While the Global Compact is not a compliance mechanism, it provides a learning and improvement framework. Businesses can measure the success of their human rights policies by ensuring accessible mechanisms are in place to address grievances and by continuously improving their procedures.

Q: What is the future of the Global Compact?

The Global Compact should continue to evolve, building on its successes and addressing new challenges. Integration with standards like ISO 26000 can provide guidance and consistency in sustainability efforts across various industries.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• The Global Compact, launched 10 years ago, has become the largest and most influential initiative in corporate social responsibility.

• It has over 6,000 participants in more than 130 countries, working on human rights, labor, the environment, and anti-corruption efforts.

• The Global Compact has pioneered new standards of best practice and undertaken numerous projects in health, education, and infrastructure.