Merrick School of Business Joins U.N. Pact for Sustainability
October 3, 2008
Contact: University Relations
Phone: 410.837.5739
The University of Baltimore's Merrick School of Business has adopted a series of principles related to the teaching and practice of corporate social responsibility worldwide, as proffered by a group of scholars and leading academic organizations at the United Nations Global Leaders Summit in July 2007.
The Merrick School of Business is the first business school in the University System of Maryland to sign the document.
The Principles for Responsible Management Education provide a framework for academic institutions to advance the broader cause of corporate social responsibility and incorporate universal values into curricula and research. The PRME is meant to guide a school's effort to continuously improve curricula and research with regard to issues of corporate citizenship and sustainability. The School of Business is fully accredited by AACSB-International; the PRME agreement is not a substitute for this accreditation or other quality assurance systems.
"We believe that sustainability in all areas of our lives, from the ways we impact the environment to how we influence societies, is a vital part of life in the 21st century and beyond," said Darlene B. Smith, dean of the Merrick School of Business. "Not only do we have a special responsibility to foster this core value in our teaching and learning, but as a business school we can offer a great deal of talent, ideas and tools that tie directly to both the strategy and tactics behind sustainability. I believe that 'responsible' is the key word in this compact, and our signature means that we will own each of the principles therein. We will make them a part of our overall contribution to business and society."
The initiative was developed by an international task force of 60 deans, university presidents and official representatives of leading business schools. It was co-convened by the United Nations Global Compact, the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International), the European Foundation for Management Development, the Aspen Institute's Business and Society Program, the European Academy for Business in Society, the Globally Responsible Leadership Initiative and Net Impact.
"The Principles for Responsible Management Education have the capacity to take the case for universal values and business into classrooms on every continent," said U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in his closing remarks at the 2007 Global Compact Leaders Summit.
In its first year of development, the initiative seeks to give adopting academic institutions a leading role: to define a set of good practices on implementation and reporting of the PRME. This will set the ground for a Global Forum of Responsible Management Education to be convened by the end of 2008, where business schools and academic institutions that have adopted the principles will be the main actors.
The following are the Principles for Responsible Management Education:
- Principle 1. Purpose: We will develop the capabilities of students to be future generators of sustainable value for business and society at large and to work for an inclusive and sustainable global economy.
- Principle 2. Values: We will incorporate into our academic activities and curricula the values of global social responsibility as portrayed in international initiatives such as the United Nations Global Compact.
- Principle 3. Method: We will create educational frameworks, materials, processes and environments that enable effective learning experiences for responsible leadership.
- Principle 4. Research: We will engage in conceptual and empirical research that advances our understanding about the role, dynamics, and impact of corporations in the creation of sustainable social, environmental and economic value.
- Principle 5. Partnership: We will interact with managers of business corporations to extend our knowledge of their challenges in meeting social and environmental responsibilities and to explore jointly effective approaches to meeting these challenges.
- Principle 6. Dialog: We will facilitate and support dialog and debate among educators, business, government, consumers, media, civil society organizations and other interested groups and stakeholders on critical issues related to global social responsibility and sustainability.
More information about the PRME is available here.
The University of Baltimore is a member of the University System of Maryland and comprises the School of Law, the Yale Gordon College of Liberal Arts and the Merrick School of Business.