How the UN pushed to make business more responsible

For over 50 years, the United Nations has been urging companies to be more respectful of human rights. Political scientist Gilles Carbonnier examines the key UN processes and milestones in the slow acceptance of corporate social responsibility, as Switzerland prepares to vote on the issue in the coming months.  Corporate social responsibility has been around for years. According to a recent article by French historian Catherine Kikuchi, published on The Conversation website, the concept emerged in the late 13th century with the growth of powerful city states, merchants and international trade.  But the idea only really gained wider interest in the second half of last century. The creation of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in 1964 played a key role. UNCTAD provided a forum where developing countries could discuss global efforts to reduce disparities with richer countries and put the spotlight on multinationals’ responsibilities abroad. Despite ...