Corporate social responsibility and sustainable development

Abstract

Abstract Given today's concerns about the impact of globalisation on the developing world, companies must demonstrate that they are operating responsibly, and work to become more accountable to stakeholders. At the same time there is continuing debate as to the proper role and responsibilities of companies in relation to that of governments when it comes to sustainable development. A cornerstone of British American Tobacco's corporate social responsibility strategy is the initiation of partnerships with non‐governmental organisations (NGOs) to address issues of mutual concern that impact on sustainable development. This paper describes in detail two such partnerships, one focused on preserving biodiversity, the other on trying to eliminate child labour in tobacco growing. it is argued that business‐NGO partnerships such as these can add an extra dimension to the contribution that companies can make themselves in terms of helping the communities and countries in which they operate meet their sustainable development needs. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.