Kofi Annan, then secretary-general of the UN, had announced the creation of the UN Global Compact at the World Economic Forum on 31 January 1999, and the Global compact was officially launched at the UN Headquarters in New York on 26 July 2000.
Kofi Annan had understood the crucial role companies of all sizes, from SMEs to big multinational corporations could and should play in the development of a better world. He felt that the corporate world was more agile and able to act quicker than the political world.
Mr. Annan asked corporate leaders to commit publicly to Ten Principles in the areas of human rights, labor, the environment and anti-corruption, encouraging businesses worldwide to adopt sustainable and socially responsible policies, and to report on their implementation.
This initiative was very successful and more than 12’000 companies in over 160 countries, both developed and developing, are now members of the UNGC.
UNGC played a key role in establishing the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals).
BSL became a member of PRME (Principles of Responsible Management Education) in November 2010.
I explained the reason why we decided to join UNGC and PRME in the following way in the latest issue of our Sharing Information on Progress Report:
“We chose these two affiliations, amongst others, because BSL has always been aware of the important role education can and should play in developing future responsible leaders, in helping businesses to become more sustainable and in engaging in the public social debate”.
Belonging to both organizations has offered us the opportunity to create many contacts over the years, especially through GC Network Switzerland and Liechtenstein, to exchange best practices, which helped us developing relevant programs for a better world.
My participation in Rio + 20 conference in 2012 with our former Dean, Dr. Katrin Muff, where she presented a first draft of the 50 + 20 Agenda Management Education for the World, was an important step in BSL’s history.
If you want to learn more about what we did over the last two years, you can have a look at the Reports we produced in March and April 2022 for both organizations. I am sure you will enjoy reading them and discover what makes BSL unique:
https://www.bsl-lausanne.ch/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/UN-Global-Compact-2022-web.pdf
https://www.bsl-lausanne.ch/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/PRME_2022.04.11.pdf
