In today's economic and social environment, issues related to social responsibility and sustainability are gaining more importance, especially in the business sector. Business goals are inseparable from the societies and environments within which they operate. Whilst short-term economic gain can be pursued, the failure to account for longer-term social and environmental impacts makes those business practices unsustainable.

A recent study on Sustainability and Innovation by the MIT Sloan Management Review and the Boston Consulting Group has revealed that sustainability has a permanent place on 70% of management agendas. The majority of the 3,000 respondents to the study also mentioned that sustainability activities are adding to profits, with companies making changes to their organisational structure and business models in order to support more sustainable business practices.

At the international level, the United Nations launched in 2000 the Global Compact to align business operations and strategies with ten universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labour standards, the environment and anti-corruption. With almost 8,000 corporate participants in over 140 countries, the UN Global Compact is the world’s largest voluntary corporate sustainability initiative.

This course aims to introduce participants to the concept of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). CSR is presented as a management concept and a process that integrates social and environmental concerns in business operations, and a company’s interactions with the full range of its stakeholders.