Leaders Summit Photos Now Online

(Photo: UN Global Compact/Michael Dames)

All photos taken at the Global Compact Leaders Summit 2010 are now available online.  Click here to view.

Videos of all plenary sessions, press briefings and Leaders Livestream commitments are also archived here.

Matten’s Take – The Wrap-Up

For a concluding perspective by Prof. Dirk Matten, the official blogger of the Leaders Summit, visit his excellent blog.

Global Compact Leaders Summit Issues New York Declaration by Business

In the Leaders Summit’s closing session today, Global Compact participants adopted, by acclamation, a “New York Declaration by Business”, pledging to renew their commitment to the Global Compact principles, deepen their engagement, strengthen their support for critical development goals, and increase transparency and dialogue. The Declaration further calls on governments to “cultivate enabling environments for entrepreneurship and innovation” and to set clear regulatory signals, especially on climate change.

Download the New York Declaration by Business.

GRI and UN Global Compact Join Forces in New Alliance

The world’s two largest corporate social responsibility initiatives forged an alliance to help build a universal standard on corporate sustainability and disclosure. The alliance hopes to transform business practices on a global scale.

Under the terms of the Memorandum of Understanding, GRI, which is subject to due process, will integrate the Global Compact’s 10 principles and issues in its next Sustainability Reporting Guidelines. Similarly, the Global Compact will use the GRI Guidelines as the recommended framework for companies to communicate on progress.

Together, the two initiatives hope to provide companies with clear direction to sustainable performance and transparency.

Read the specific commitments of the alliance here.

Sustainability is in the Investor’s Hands, Says New Study by Global Compact, Accenture

CEOs believe investors are the key in creating a more sustainable global economy, according to a new study by Accenture and the UN Global Compact.  The results of a survey of more than 766 CEOs found that 86% of CEOs want investors to value sustainability in their long-term investments. 

“The momentum is there from both companies and investors to create a sustainable economy. In particular it is remarkable that in just four years over US$20 trillion of assets have been signed to the Principles for Responsible Investment,” said Gavin Power, deputy director of the UN Global Compact.

Since 2006 the UN-backed Principles for Responsible Investment Initiative (PRI) have been encouraging investors to integrate environmental, social and governance issues in their investments.

Download the study here: A New Era of Sustainability: UN Global Compact-Accenture CEO Study 2010

Read more about the sustainability tipping point here.

Speeches and Statements – Leaders Summit Day 1 (24 June)

Earlier today, the UN released the official transcript of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s opening address to the Global Compact Leaders Summit. Also available: the Secretary-General’s remarks at the press conference following the opening session. To follow the webcast of today’s meeting, including Mayor Bloomberg’s speech, visit the UN webcast site for the Leaders Summit.

Matten’s Perspective

Prof. Dirk Matten, the Leaders Summit’s official guest blogger, has spent day a hard day’s work following plenary sessions, press briefings, roundtable discussions and side events. To read his take on the Summit, visit the Crane and Matten blog.

UN Secretary-General Opens Proceedings Along with Mayor Bloomberg

(Photo: UN Global Compact/Paulo Filgueiras)

More than 1,200 corporate leaders from around the world convened today in New York City for the tenth anniversary of The UN Global Compact Leaders Summit. The two-day summit was kicked off by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

In his address, The Secretary General urged the business, civil society and government leaders to lead a “race to the top”, embracing openness, anchoring profit-making in social principles and favouring long-term horizons over pursuit of short-term profits.

Mayor Bloomberg – noting that he was speaking as a former CEO as well as an elected official – said that good corporate citizens recognize that support for human rights is in their enlightened self interest.

Watch the live webcast.

Read today’s complete announcement.

Businesses Asked to Help Protect and Promote Children’s Rights

At the UN Global Compact Leaders Summit, UNICEF, the UN Global Compact and Save the Children called on the business community to work together to build universal principles that will place children’s rights at the top of the global corporate responsibility agenda.

The three organizations are asking business leaders to work with them to develop principles – to be known as the Children’s Principles for Business – so that they can avoid the negative impacts that their activities may have on children, and contribute to a better future for everyone.

Watch the live webcast.

Read today’s complete announcement.

Leaders Summit Official Broadcast Partner CNBC to Host First-ever Live Broadcast from the Floor of the UN General Assembly

As the Official Broadcast partner of the UN Global Compact Leaders Summit, leading business cable network CNBC will broadcast a live special “CNBC Global Summit: The World’s Financial Future”—the first-ever live show from the floor of the UN General Assembly at 8 p.m. tonight.

From CNBC:  “Hosted by CNBC’s Erin Burnett, the special will bring together world business leaders to provide insight on topics such as the future of oil; whether BRIC nations can still be the growth engines they once were and continue to lead the way; and what CEOs think is a critical factor to the future success of their companies.”

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is the keynote guest for the program, which will be hosted by anchor Erin Burnett. Other Summit participants who will appear on the program include Jamshed Irani, Director of Tata Sons; Andrei Galaev, CEO of Sakhalin Energy; Martha Tilaar of The Martha Tilaar Company; and Antonio De Abreau, CEO of EDP Brazil.

CNBC’s coverage of the Summit will continue throughout the Global Compact Leaders Summit on Thursday, 24 June.

Leaders Summit 2010: The Countdown Begins

With just a few days until the UN Global Compact Leaders Summit 2010 convenes in New York City, registration has closed and more than 1,200 executives from nearly 100 countries are confirmed to attend this historic event. Final preparations are being made, including a number of exciting side events to take place at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in Times Square and other locations.

Already, the first two of an array of new resources have been launched – the 10th anniversary edition of the Global Compact Annual Review and the Global Compact Management Model, developed in collaboration with Deloitte.

In addition, widely acclaimed author and blogger Dirk Matten will serve as an official Summit blogger, delivering independent coverage and analysis through the highly respected Crane and Matten Blog. An expert on issues of corporate social responsibility, Professor Matten holds the Hewlett-Packard Chair in Corporate Social Responsibility and is a Professor of Strategy at the Schulich School of Business (York University, Toronto), which is ranked number one globally by the Aspen Institute for integrating issues of social and environmental stewardship into curricula and research. Dirk was recently ranked among the ‘Top 100 CSR Leaders’ globally in an independent poll by the Cambridge based think tank CSR International.

As a reminder, for those unable to participate in person, the Leaders Summit will be streamed live on the UN Webcast site and here on the Global Compact blog. You can also follow the Summit on Twitter (#GCLS2010) and Facebook.

Global Compact’s New Management Model Helps Signatories to Align with 10 Principles

The Global Compact has launched the UN Global Compact Management Model, which is designed to help participants align their operations and strategies with both the letter and spirit of the Global Compact’s ten universally accepted principles.

The Management Model, developed in collaboration with Deloitte, will also be highlighted as a key management tool at the upcoming Global Compact Leaders Summit on 24-25 June 2010. Deloitte is a founding signatory to the UN Global Compact.

For an in-depth overview of the model, please click here.

Read today’s complete announcement.

Leaders Summit 2010: Two Weeks to Go

Leaders Summit Registration Passes 1,000

With the Global Compact Leaders Summit 2010 on 24-25 June fast approaching, registration has now passed 1,000 participants. The Leaders Summit marks the 10th anniversary of the Global Compact and will be the largest UN-business event ever held.  UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will chair the Summit and will be joined by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, as well as CEOS and other top executives from more than 80 countries.

Among the confirmed Summit attendees:

• Mark Foster, Group Chief Executive, Accenture, United Kingdom
• Masaaki Fujita, President and Chief Executive Officer, Mitsui & Co. USA, United States
• José Sergio Gabrielli de Azevedo, Chief Executive Officer, Petrobras, Brazil
• Hugh Grant, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, Monsanto Company, United States
• Chad Holliday, Chairman, Bank of America, United States
• Hugh Johnston, Chief Financial Officer, PepsiCo, United States
• Ali Y. Koc, Group President, Koc Holding A.S., Turkey
• Anne Lauvergeon, Chief Executive Officer, Areva, France
• Xu Lejiang, Chairman, Baosteel Group, China
• Paolo Scaroni, Chief Executive Officer, ENI, Italy
• Peter Y. Solmssen, Executive Vice President, member of the Managing Board and Counsel, Siemens AG, Germany

Visit the Leaders Summit website for a more complete list of featured attendees.

This year’s Leaders Summit will feature a broad array of new resources, initiatives and practical tools. Highlights include: a special 10^th anniversary edition of the Global Compact Annual Review; the world’s most extensive survey of CEO perspectives on the state and future of corporate sustainability.

Check back here for frequent updates leading up to and during the Summit, including a live webcast, and visit the official Leaders Summit website at www.leaderssummit2010.org.