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At present, corporate social responsibility (CSR) for some may be not much more than an attitude. Can it be more? What degree of commitment can we reasonably expect of corporations in the struggle to eradicate poverty, promote human rights, halt climate change, and reverse ongoing environmental destruction? It is not a question of power; more than half of the world’s top 100 economies are corporations, not nation-states. Whatever can be done to ‘fix’ the world’s problems, corporations are in the best position to do. That they should act accordingly does not seem unwarranted, and for more and more corporations CSR is in fact a stated objective. In this impassioned work the well-known international lawyer Ramon Mullerat suggests that one of the root problems faced by CSR is one of definition. Various interested parties define the term differently, and their definitions clash. However, Dr Mullerat clearly shows in these pages that this very multiplicity of perspectives in fact enhances our ultimate comprehension of CSR. It is through an honest appreciation of the motivations and hopes behind each point of view - and of the nature of their conflict - that the way forward emerges. And as we examine these various perspectives, we inevitably come to a clear awareness of the role of corporations in the 21st century world order. Among the perspectives the author brilliantly elucidates are the following: - Ethics, philanthropy and CSR - sustainable livelihoods (provision of drinking water, health care, literacy); - opportunity (jobs, training, education); - legal and regulatory reform; - human rights; - the triple bottom line - the perception of CSR as ‘virtue in the service of avarice’; - the efficacy of ‘codes of conduct’; and - the problem of corruption and corporate criminal behaviour. Although this book will attract any general reader concerned with the state of today’s world, it is sure to be taken up and pondered by lawyers, business executives, investors, and officials in positions to engage productively with its many powerful insights and ideas.
