• Mena Sebastien

• Monnier Margot

The role and responsibility of business for a sustainable development of the Earth systems and its societies have been discussed for many centuries through the lenses of religious, cultural, economic and political beliefs. More recently, engagement with sustainability has become a key issue for business. This engagement in more sustainable practices may be the result of changes in national laws (e.g. due diligence laws in the EU and beyond; quota of female board members in Norwegian companies), political and social change (e.g. divestment from Russia after the start of the war in Ukraine; DEI policies), an affirmative decision to reduce environmental impacts (e.g. the efforts of manufacturers to reduce carbon footprint), defensive strategies to improve damaged reputations (e.g. BP and Shell), or the introduction of cultural and ethical values into finance (e.g. socially responsible investment, Islamic banking). Crucially, sustainability means different things to different constituents: there is no single accepted definition and is often and too readily re-defined for convenience and window-dressing.

The aim of this course is to equip you with a comprehensive understanding of the responsibilities of a modern business organization in relation to sustainable development. This course provides you with frameworks and practical examples on how to assess and address the complex issues of (corporate) sustainability in a systematic way. You will learn about the role of business in sustainable development, the notion of corporate sustainability and the associated complex social, ethical and environmental responsibilities of business organizations towards a range of stakeholders across global value chains. You will learn to assess the impact of corporations on their social and natural environments. You will also examine the cross-sectoral challenges of and requirements for building sustainable products and sustainable value chains across a wide range of contexts and industries. Finally, you will learn about alternative ways of organizing and doing business that try to tackle the sustainability challenges of our times.

After the course, students will be able to:

• demonstrate a sound and critical understanding of the role of the firm in early 21st century society and with regard to sustainable development in particular;
• assess the sustainability (social and environmental) performance of firms;
• analyse critically social and environmental issues across value chains from both business and stakeholder perspectives;
• demonstrate a sound understanding of a range of external demands and expectations for more sustainable development that corporations face;
• demonstrate an awareness of potential conflicts between business and stakeholders over sustainable development;
• and grasp the different strategies that businesses put in place to manage stakeholders around these issues, and what stakeholders’ responses can be.

Carroll, A. B. & Brown, J. A. 2023. Business & Society: Ethics, Sustainability, and Stakeholder Management (11th ed.). Stamford: Cengage.

Additional material available on Moodle during the course.

Examination time: 60 Min.

Re-take exam only

Examination time: 60 Min.

Course with continuous evaluation: after the registration period, you can no longer cancel your registration (see session calendar on the Faculty's website).