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Abstract

Banks might now seem odd candidates for the role of global sustainability regulator. Nonetheless, in limited areas of their operation, where global banks kept risk on their balance sheets and were financially exposed to many types of risk often otherwise treated as “externalities,” banks began to enact policies to encourage what they construe as “sustainable” banking. A small number of these banks have started to extend these principles of responsible action more broadly, across many of their business lines, as conditions of lending to their corporate clients. To this extent, it is possible to talk about (some) global banks as global sustainability regulators. The “law of unintended consequences” as used in the legal literature almost always refers to the unintended negative consequences of a regulation or policy. In this article, however, we discuss a potentially positive unintended consequence of the deregulatory and privatization trend of the 1980s and 1990s that was fueled by neoliberal political commitments: some private banks have taken a leadership role in regulating development. Specifically, these banks are enacting policies that attempt to mitigate the potentially negative social and environmental consequences of infrastructure development in politically unstable or environmentally fragile landscapes. The vehicle for doing this is a voluntary agreement called the Equator Principles (EPs). The article describes and analyzes the EPs and reports the initial results from an interview‐based study of the various EPs stakeholders, including bankers, government officials, lawyers, consultants, and critics from nongovernmental organizations. We address - from the perspective of these stakeholders - such questions as why the participating banks decided to join the EPs, what effects, if any, the EPs are having on development practice, and whether the EPs will ultimately prove to be more than a public relations exercise.

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... Before sustainability was a serious issue, banks were wrapped around common but impractical paradigms of risk management that presumed no single institution could influence the market (Ashby, 2019). With that said, extremely difficult and complicated links of systemic risk was established by a small number of giant global banks and its facilitators, which has yet to be entirely undone (Conley & Williams, 2011). However, these banks have come to a point where they could not tolerate such complicated series of systemic risk because of developments in one specific area in finance: project finance. ...
... However, these banks have come to a point where they could not tolerate such complicated series of systemic risk because of developments in one specific area in finance: project finance. This area involves providing private funding for big projects involving the building of infrastructure that're sponsored privately, from power plants to oil/gas pipelines and telecommunications (Conley & Williams, 2011). The kinds of risks involved in project finance range from operating and building of facilities on project site and reliability of technology to the legislative structure of the host nation and the state of the financial market (Eisenbach et al., 2014). ...
... Moreover, there exists a variety of communication problems due to the underdeveloped and underinformed environmental and social vocabulary of investors. The EPs have helped immensely in solving these communication troubles and greatly increased interactivity with non-government organizations (NGOs) and sponsors of projects (Conley & Williams, 2011). ...
Article
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Financial institutions have a huge part to play when it comes to dealing with social and environmental issues. In the past, the impractical models of risk management did not take into consideration environmental or social risks, and these accumulated to form complicated links of systemic risk especially in project finance. After enough sustainability awareness had been developed, banks rose to adopt the Equator Principles code of conduct, which overtime, allowed them to reduce the environmental and social risks and find ways to achieve greater reputation and benefits, abandoning the ways of the past. Moving onwards to the future, technology came into the picture and green fintech now holds a key role in achieving next-level financial sustainability of the current generation. This paper aims to report on the impact of sustainability on financial institutions by investigating related literature and looking at how the Equator Principles impacted financial institutions. Green Fintech will also be explored, specifically in the ways it can impact financial institutions.
... A number of studies have focused on the economic motivations and rationales behind adoption and commitment, with different self-regulatory codes of conduct for ESG risks in the project finance market (Wright and Rwabizambuga, 2006;Chih et al., 2010;W€ orsd€ orfer, 2015;Conley and Williams, 2011). The existing studies find that the main impetuses of financial institutions are primarily to strengthen corporate reputation benefits and legitimacy (Wright and Rwabizambuga, 2006), gain a competitive advantage when the banking market competitiveness is more intense (Chih et al., 2010), mitigate various form of risk exposure and improve credit risk (W€ orsd€ orfer, 2015), and strengthen and level the playing field between banks (Conley and Williams, 2011). ...
... A number of studies have focused on the economic motivations and rationales behind adoption and commitment, with different self-regulatory codes of conduct for ESG risks in the project finance market (Wright and Rwabizambuga, 2006;Chih et al., 2010;W€ orsd€ orfer, 2015;Conley and Williams, 2011). The existing studies find that the main impetuses of financial institutions are primarily to strengthen corporate reputation benefits and legitimacy (Wright and Rwabizambuga, 2006), gain a competitive advantage when the banking market competitiveness is more intense (Chih et al., 2010), mitigate various form of risk exposure and improve credit risk (W€ orsd€ orfer, 2015), and strengthen and level the playing field between banks (Conley and Williams, 2011). ...
Article
This paper investigates the determinants of the green credit ratio (GCR), and the impact of green credits on the profitability and credit risk of Chinese banks. This study uses bank-level data over the period 2011–2018 and it applies the Generalized Method of Moments (GMM). The present paper contributes to the understanding of green credit policy in China by examining the determinants of GCR, and its relationship with bank’s profitability and credit risk. Our findings document that large and profitable banks tend to lend more green credits. Interestingly, there is no significant impact of bank risk on GCR. In other words, risk management is not a significant barrier for banks issuing green credits. We show that state-owned banks are more likely to lend green credits, which is supported by our finding that China’s decisive attitude towards green credit policy is so strong that the bank’s risk does not matter for the green credit lending policy. Moreover, green lending practices have a significant impact on the profitability and risk faced by these banks. One of the most striking findings of this paper is that while green lending increases the profitability of non-state-owned banks and reduces their risk, state-owned banks provide green credits at the expense of their profitability. This can be attributed to the Chinese government’s ambition to push state-owned banks to play a key role in green lending.
... The second highly cited paper by Raut et al. (2017) implemented Multi-Criterion Decision Making (MCDM) model to evaluate the impact of sustainability practices on the banking industry and found that internal business processes, customer relationship management system, and financial stability had a major impact on the sustainability practices of the banking industry than an environmentally-friendly management system. Another article by Conley and Williams (2011) concluded that banks act as global sustainability regulators. Therefore, the authors highlighted the significance of the banking industry in promoting sustainability globally. ...
Article
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Introduction Green banking (GB) strategies are a set of financial practices and activities implemented by banks to encourage sustainability, environmental responsibility, and low-carbon impact. This bibliometric study examines the present state of research in this field by utilizing the Scopus database for data retrieval and VosViewer for network analysis. Method A total of 149 researches were retrieved from the Scopus and analyzed using the VosViewer software following the PRISMA guidelines. The study examines year-by-year publication patterns, top-cited articles, contributing countries, journals, co-citation analysis of authors, and co-occurrence analysis of keywords. Result Strategies such as online banking, solar ATMs, construction of green buildings, and making provisions for green loans are identified as the key GB strategies that can be adopted by the banks. Furthermore, the fundamental challenges banking organizations encounter while implementing GB strategies are underlined. Discussion The study suggests that “green brand image,” “green audit,” “environmental economics,” and “carbon footprint” can be considered as an area of interest in future. The study provides researchers, policymakers, regulators, and financial institutions with valuable insights by presenting the current state of green banking research and identifying emerging areas for further exploration. These findings will help others to discover the areas of interest in GB and advancing sustainable finance practices that can foster environmental responsibility in the financial sector.
... The Equator Principle, designed to assess, identify, and handle social and environmental risks in project financing, applies to examining green banking. The banking institutions have adopted the GBPs to mitigate ecological problems by conserving limited resources (Conley & Williams, 2011;Pareek et al., 2022). ...
Chapter
Purpose: This chapter examines the effect of green banking practices (GBPs) on environmental performance (EP), specifically focussing on the Sri Lankan banking industry. Additionally, the study explores the mediating impact of green finance in the association between GBPs and the EP of banks listed in the Colombo Stock Exchange in Sri Lanka. Methodology: The survey included 233 banking employees from Sri Lanka, and data for this study were collected via questionnaires. The formulated hypotheses were tested employing a regression analysis. Findings: GBPs such as employee, customer, operation, and policy-related practices significantly predicted the banks' EP. Furthermore, the study highlights that green finance partially mediates the relationship between GBPs and banks' EP in Sri Lanka. Implications of the study: The study's results indicate that banks should pri-oritise integrating GBPs in their organisations to enhance environmental and overall performance. Moreover, strategically utilising green financing techniques might be a substantial channel for banks to further strengthen their ecological dedication and influence. Originality: This is the first study to investigate the impact of GBPs on banks' EP with the mediating effect of green finance in the Sri Lankan context.
... Some of the researchers, Y. Belghitar Sustainable investment has steadily increased over the past few years (Global Sustainability Investment Review 2020). Banks [7,23,24], companies [25,26], stock exchanges [4,5], mutual funds [27], regulators [28], and other agents interested in sustainable investment participation and promoting initiatives to speed the growth of these investments. P. T. Chan and T. Walter [29] used 748 green company samples listed on U.S. stock exchanges to examine how socially responsible investing (SRI) affects stock investment returns, Initial Public Offerings (IPOs), and Equity Offers. ...
Article
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Sustainability Indices and Calendar Effect
... If the bank is not effective in the management of the environmental risk of the enterprise, the environmental pollution in the production process of the enterprise, the real estate pollution of the mortgage assets, the pollution of the land of the enterprise and other pollution will affect the profitability of the enterprise, the difficulty of loan repayment, and the adverse impact on the operation of the bank. As the first Equator Bank in China, IB regards environmental risk management as the core content of bank risk management [2]. In 2020, IB revised the Sub-Strategy on Environmental and Social Risk Management, and used it as a long-term mechanism to consolidate sustainable finance and improve the structure, tools and methods of enterprise environmental risk management. ...
Article
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With the frequent occurrence of corporate environmental incidents and the intensification of bank credit risks, the banking industry urgently needs to strengthen the prevention, control and management of corporate environmental risks. Based on the analytic hierarchy process, this paper takes the three enterprises that have been granted credit by IB as samples, selects the enterprise environmental risk model of four sub-indicators: carbon emissions, basic environmental management, environmental risk management measures, and environmental risk emergency management, and selects the appropriate green credit objects according to the calculation results. It also puts forward suggestions on environmental risk management to improve the collection and transmission of enterprise environmental information, strengthen the supervision of enterprise risk management measures, and formulate a unified enterprise environmental risk rating standard, so as to provide reference for the banking industry to carry out enterprise environmental risk management.
... Second, it can be reasonably expected that the distance between the equator and each country has a direct positive relationship with the host country's GDP per capita. This is because previous research has concluded that countries that are further from the equator are richer and have better government performance (Conley and Williams, 2011;Hauner and Kyobe, 2010). ...
Article
Purpose This paper aims to investigate the primary motivations for China’s outward foreign direct investment (ODI) decisions. Design/methodology/approach Using a panel data sample covering the period 2003–2012 and a comprehensive set of 176 host countries. Findings This study finds that market size, trade variables and natural resource variables are strongly related to the Chinese ODI stocks. This indicates that Chinese ODI decisions are driven by both market- and resource-seeking motives. The subperiod sample test results lend even stronger support to the market-seeking motive for ODI. Originality/value These results seem to emerge from the policy changes that were undertaken during the sample period. Consistent with subgroup tests, this study finds that the main purposes of China’s ODI in the top 100 countries are natural resource explorations and production line replacements.
... While a comprehensive comparison of the three sets of principles and their regulatory impacts (Conley & Williams, 2011;Meyerstein, 2013) is outside the scope of this article, overlaps and differences in their contents are illustrated (Fig. 3). While all three sets incorporate elements of ESG and reporting, the stringency varies. ...
Article
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China’s Belt and Road Initiative is now the world’s largest infrastructure initiative, with long-term climate change effects, and the Green Investment Principles for Belt and Road (GIPs) have been promoted as a key instrument to green the Belt and Road. This article focuses on the question: What role do the GIPs play in building a green Belt and Road and addressing relevant regulatory challenges? Based on the theory of nodal governance, it is argued that the GIPs’ two-layered networks facilitate China to influence investment decisions over many countries along the Belt and Road indirectly through fund providers as key nodes to transition toward green investment. China also avoided direct interference with the domestic policies of host countries through the GIP network. As a framework agreement, the GIPs also provide opportunities for signatories to contribute to the design and negotiation of specific implementation standards, enhanced capacity building, and the prospect of more stringent and prescriptive environmental standards in the future.
... It includes policies, institutional arrangements, and practices that promote environmental improvements and energy conservation through credit instruments (Lian et al., 2022). Green credit originated from the Equator Principles and is referred to as the international green credit policy (Aizawa and Yang, 2010), which is a voluntary agreement to mitigate environmental consequences and fulfill corporate social responsibility (Conley and Williams, 2011). Although not legally binding, the Equator Principles have gradually become the sector standard for financial institutions in practice, and the basic bottom line for green credit operations internationally (Lian et al., 2022). ...
Article
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This study uses the introduction of the Green Credit Guidelines in 2012 as a quasi-natural experiment. We selected Chinese A-share listed enterprises from 2004 to 2020 as the sample and applied PSM-DID to examine the impact of green credit policy on the performance of construction energy-saving enterprises. The study revealed that: 1) green credit policy has a significant contribution to the performance of construction energy-saving enterprises. In addition, it still holds after the robustness tests (replacing the PSM matching method and adding or subtracting the two methods of control variables) and the placebo test. 2) A positive correlation between the performance of construction energy-saving enterprises and short-term debt. Meanwhile, short-term debt is a mediating variable between green credit policy and the performance of construction energy-saving enterprises. 3) The impact of green credit policy on the performance of non-state-owned (non-SOEs) is more pronounced compared to state-owned (SOEs). This study reveals the micro effects of green credit policy from the perspective of the performance of construction energy-saving enterprises. It not only helps to understand the economic effects of green credit policy, but also provides corresponding insights for the subsequent promotion of green credit policy and construction energy-saving enterprise development systems.
... This is because climate change and its related risks pose potential impacts on their earnings and asset quality in mid to long-term. On the contrary, Conley and Williams (2011) state that the financial institutions routinely, in fact, fund projects which produce significant amounts of greenhouse gases and consume extensive energy like construction and manufacturing. Currently, financial institutions are increasingly facing societal pressures to adopt sustainable business practices and to increase the disclosure of the projects they finance (van Putten, 2008). ...
Article
In India, the lack of financing mechanisms has been identified as a major impediment in achieving energy efficiency (EE) and requires focused research to identify barriers and propose innovative financial models. This paper presents details of selected Government of India initiatives that highlight interlinking strategies of energy efficiency renovations, their financing models, and institutional policies needed for their implementation. These initiatives show that residential buildings have tremendous scope for retrofitting as they successfully attract finances through Energy Service Companies (ESCOs) and Renewable ESCO (RESCO) routes. This research highlights understanding of financial and technical barriers in energy efficiency retrofitting for existing residential buildings. Additionally, it discusses financial models and technical interventions being employed in energy efficiency residential retrofitting projects and demonstrates a retrofitting cost model for an actual case study project for composite climate using various physical and technological interventions. The work includes developing retrofitting scenarios through Government initiatives of technical interventions, then performing energy saving calculations, and finally developing cost model explaining the actual savings and payback periods for the potential intervention’s investments. These steps led to the development of a potential cost model which can assist both homeowners and energy professionals in identifying and implementing energy retrofitting measures in the residential building sector.
... According to Deva et al. (2019, p. 206), "global finance and capital are levers for advancing corporate respect for human rights" and banks in particular, it has been argued, can play a role as global sustainability regulators (Conley & Williams, 2011). However, the financial sector has been relatively slow to understand its own responsibilities for human rights under the UNGPs. ...
Article
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This paper critically investigates the implementation of the UN guiding principles on business and human rights (UNGPs) into the corporate setting through the concept of ‘translation’. In the decade since the creation of the UNGPs, little academic research has focussed specifically on the corporate implementation of human rights. Drawing on qualitative case studies of two multinational corporations—an oil and gas company and a bank—this paper unpacks how human rights are translated into the corporate context. In doing so, the paper focuses on the “resonance dilemma” translators encounter, the strategies used to make human rights understandable and palatable, and the difficulties that emerge from this process. We contend that the process of making human rights understandable and manageable can change their form and content, which may act as an obstacle to human rights realisation and corporate accountability for human rights.
... Globalization and the spread of neoliberal policies have not only accelerated this 'globalization of capital', but have also shaped the systems of 'global governance', which now seek to deliver citizenship and accountability mechanisms through international instruments like the EP. Conley and Williams (2011) identify a positive outcome of the neoliberal political commitments to deregulate and privatize: some EPFIs have stepped up to lead the regulation of development projects. This voluntary use of a self-regulation approach is a significant step in extending global EPFIs' 'corporate citizenship' (Hemphill, 2004, p.82). ...
Research
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Since the Equator Principles (EP) were introduced in 2003 their overall effect on promoting sustainable development, as per the stated objective, has remained controversial. The literature is replete with debates about the instrument’s governance structure and monitoring mechanism because they both have major implications on the EP’s effectiveness. This essay evaluates the EP and its ability to deliver accountability to citizens within the context of current globalization discourses. It argues that despite the EP putting players in the financial sector in a proactive social and environmental role it is unable to promote better citizenship rights. It begins with providing an overview of the EP, then examines the key debates that underpin it, before analysing its strengths and weaknesses and concluding on its usefulness in today's global landscape.
... For example, more and more banks and stock exchanges have become aware of their role in promoting the principles of sustainable development and offer financial products and services that include certain ESG aspects (Forgione & Migliardo, 2020). In addition, financial institutions also have at their disposal specific principles such as the Equator Principles through which they can model the behaviour of borrowers in the sense that they must meet certain social and environmental criteria in order to receive the requested financing (Scholtens & Dam, 2007;Conley & Williams, 2011;Wright, 2012). Stock markets are also taking important steps in this regard, because they have either launched sustainability stock market indices or created special market segments where only companies that meet certain ESG criteria can be listed (Missbach, 2004;Wright & Rwabizambuga, 2006). ...
... For example, more and more banks and stock exchanges have become aware of their role in promoting the principles of sustainable development and offer financial products and services that include certain ESG aspects (Forgione & Migliardo, 2020). In addition, financial institutions also have at their disposal specific principles such as the Equator Principles through which they can model the behaviour of borrowers in the sense that they must meet certain social and environmental criteria in order to receive the requested financing (Scholtens & Dam, 2007;Conley & Williams, 2011;Wright, 2012). Stock markets are also taking important steps in this regard, because they have either launched sustainability stock market indices or created special market segments where only companies that meet certain ESG criteria can be listed (Missbach, 2004;Wright & Rwabizambuga, 2006). ...
Conference Paper
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Financial Consumers – Promoters of Sustainable Development? Evidences from Europe and Central Asia
... Bank operations do not pose a risk to the environment and society. However, banks play a role on whether or not to support clients whose products and services may have a detrimental impact on the environment and society (Conley and Williams 2011). Most banks assess the environmental and societal impact of their clients' activities to avoid liability from contamination and clean-up costs, and negative publicity. ...
Article
This is an exploratory study which investigates the governance mechanisms created by banks to support the implementation of sustainable lending. A content analysis of the websites of the 62 members of the Global Banking Alliance on Values reveals that evidence-based disclosures demonstrate the commitment of some banks to govern their sustainable lending activities. The publication of the list of loan borrowers emerged as a governance-by-disclosure mechanism in the implementation of sustainable lending. The publication of loan borrowers has contributed to the improvement of information asymmetry in the banking industry. It was also demonstrated how shared values among stakeholders could contribute to the development ofeffective governance mechanisms. Based on the content analyses, the study concludes with two recommendations. First, the banking industry should consider the publication of loan borrowers to promote discipline within the banking sector. Second, the published information provides evidence to the promotion of sustainability practices.
... However, the literature has emphasized the role of self-regulatory and industry-led drivers for sustainability in mining (Dashwood, 2014;Fonseca, 2010;Tregidga & Milne, 2006). Specifically, large-scale mining companies have embraced international standards such as the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 14001, and International Finance Corporation (IFC) performance requirements as their voluntary response to promoting sustainability in developing countries marred by institutional voids (Conley & Williams, 2011;Milne & Gray, 2013;Psomas, Fotopoulos, & Kafetzopoulos, 2011). Yet these voluntary reporting standards for sustainability have received criticisms regarding their effectiveness in promoting improved social and environmental outcomes (Moran et al., 2014;Sorensen, 2012). ...
Article
This paper examines the environmental sustainability practices of multinational mining companies in addressing their impacts and promoting the sustainable development of local communities in Ghana. Although large‐scale mining companies have embraced environmental sustainability, the drivers and the mechanisms for addressing their impacts throughout the mine life cycle is not fully understood because of the limited research in this area. The focus in this study involves an examination of the drivers for environmental sustainability in a weak and non‐enabling institutional context and the mechanisms for addressing impacts on biodiversity, water quality and quantity, and ambient climate. The findings show that the environmental sustainability practices of multinational mining companies are determined by regulatory compliance and corporate environmental responsibility based on perceived ethical obligation. Additionally, we find gaps in mine closure planning and rehabilitation because of the limited requirement for biodiversity restoration in the domains of flora repopulation and active fauna reintroduction. This paper provides empirical and theoretical insights for academics and practitioners in industry and policymaking.
... Through partnerships in such schemes, members of NGOs think tanks and international organisations were progressively 'acculturated' to business methods, practices and vocabulary (Conley and Williams 2008: 14, 15). The spread of CSER is also associated with a process of private 're-regulation' (Logsdon and Wood 2002;Conley and Williams 2011), whereby businesses became recognised sources of policy proposals at the international level (Müller 2013). International organisations followed suit over the next decades and increasingly adopted 'soft' and 'experimental' governance methods (Sabel and Zeitlin 2012;Eckert and Börzel 2012). ...
Article
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The 2015 Paris agreement represents a deep-rooted change in global climate governance. While existing scholarly assessments highlight central institutional features of the Paris shift, they tend to overlook its symbolic and discursive dimensions. Our analysis shows that the Paris architecture combines two core elements: an iterative pledge and review process to stimulate global climate action, and a ‘performative’ narrative aimed at aligning actors’ expectations on the prospect of a low-carbon future. We therefore suggest calling it an incantatory system of governance. We then examine the origins of the new approach and find that the rise of ‘soft law’ approaches and communicative techniques in global climate governance are both indicative of a broader process: the entry of management culture in international organisations. Against this backdrop, we examine the prospects, limitations and caveats of the new approach and discuss its wider implications for global politics.
... Regulierungsgründe. In der Literatur werden verschiedene Wege beschrieben, auf denen Unternehmen mit Gesetzgebern interagieren: Unternehmen versuchen teilweise, durch die Teilnahme an Collective-Action-Initiativen (1) die Schaffung neuer Gesetze oder die Verschärfung bestehender Regulierungen gänzlich zu verhindern (Auld, Renckens, & Cashore, 2015;Conley & Williams, 2011;Héritier & Eckert, 2009), (2) den Zeitpunkt für die Schaffung neuer Regulierungen zu verschieben (Bowman & Hodge, 2009;Young, 2013) oder (3) den Inhalt und die Stringenz neuer Regulierungen zu beeinflussen (Bowman & Hodge, 2009;Gamper-Rabindran & Finger, 2013). Der Gesetzgeber kann andererseits auch Unternehmen dazu bewegen, sich an kollektiven Initiativen zu beteiligen -entweder (4) durch positive Anreize (Balzarova & Castka, 2012;Engert, 2010) oder (5) indem er den Unternehmen explizit mitteilt, dass neue Regulierungen geschaffen würden, falls die Unternehmen nicht imstande wären, das betreffende Problem selbst zu lösen (Baron, 2014;Dawson & Segerson, 2008;Lyon & Maxwell, 2003). ...
... Most project financing in the Dutch hospitality and tourism industry does not comply with the Equator Principles, but many banks still demand that potential clients attain Green Key certification, to signal their sustainability. This requirement highlights the banks' evident belief in the certification scheme's ability to mitigate information asymmetries between firms and stakeholders (Conley & Williams, 2011;Weber, 2012). Especially when it is difficult to differentiate firms that are genuinely committed to sustainability from those that are not, banks can rely on the sustainability certification schemes, in an effort to exclude firms that are not genuinely committed to sustainability . ...
Article
Drawing on club theory, this study examines the challenges and opportunities facing a sustainability certification program, the Green Key scheme, in terms of its recruitment and retention of members within the Dutch tourism and hospitality industry. Extant literature on sustainability certification in this industry tends to focus narrowly on motivations and retention problems at the firm level, or else on drivers of or barriers to the adoption of sustainability certification schemes. The links between scheme design characteristics and scheme effectiveness and their implications for recruitment and retention thus have remained relatively unexamined. To address this gap, this study proposes a theoretical framework that highlights how different design features of sustainability certification schemes might inform the recruitment and retention challenges that scheme managers often face
... , practitioners and financial institutions have promoted environmental and social impact studies and mitigation plans (ESIA) as an important tool to promote sustainable infrastructure development including ports(IFC 2012; GPHA 2015; van Zyl 2015). This stems from its ability to, through participatory processes that engages relevant stakeholders, identify and capture potential environmental and socialconcerns and motives of all relevant stakeholders as part of the planning processes for port infrastructure projects (van Zyl 2015; Le 2016; IFC 2012; Slinger, Taneja, and Vellinga 2017; Coutinho et al. 2019).It has become an important criterion for accessing funds for projects (IFC 2012) and many financial institutions have gone a step further to develop a framework based on what they call the 'equator principle', a standard for ensuring due diligence on the part of managers in order to avoid adverse risks on society and the environment(Conley and Williams 2011; van Zyl 2015). The social impact assessment (SIA) component of ESIA for e.g. is said to have developed as an element of environmental impact assessments (EIA) with roots in social justice concerns across the world(Vanclay 2014) and aimed at protecting vulnerable groups and people against infrastructural, extractive and developmental projects.Yet,Le (2016) as well asVanclay (2014) have noted that research has not adequately paid attention to analysing whether concerns of stakeholders (particularly local communities) captured during ESIA are prioritised and if project proponents keep track with the commitments they make in ESIAs.Vanclay and ...
Thesis
The dissertation analyses the transitioning of the port sector towards sustainability in environmental and social terms. In specific, it explores how port authorities in Europe and West Africa engage with the globalising green port idea, and what role is played by contextual factors in determining the choice of policy measures and technological tools they adopt or implement. The dissertation further examines the extent to which sustainability-oriented network(ing) bring to bear positive influence on sustainability practices of participating ports (authorities) and facilitates environmental upgrading along the maritime value chain. Finally, it interrogates outcomes of stakeholder-inclusive port development discourses and mechanisms. It does this by combining concepts and theories such as policy mobilities, sustainability fix and critical debates on network theory and network governance. Methodologically, the dissertation draws on information collected through a triangulation of qualitative research methods and document analysis. The findings show that sustainability schemes and green initiatives of ports are crucially 'translocal', and draws attention to contested outcomes in port networks and stakeholder-inclusive initiatives and discourses of ports.
... Sustainable banking concept had been described (Scholtens, 2002;Coulson, 2003;Butzbach and Von Mettenheim, 2015;Relano, 2008;Carlucci et al., 2018). The important variables under research are drivers, qualities and characteristics of sustainable banking (Tan et al., 2017;McCormick, 2012;Moechdi et al., 2016) the financial, environmental and legal aspects of sustainable banking (Yeoh, 2009;Relaño, 2011;Mykhayliv and Zauner, 2018) the role of profitability (Costa-Climent and Martínez-Climent, 2018) and regulation in sustainable banking (Conley and Williams, 2011). Sustainable banking involves a lot of challenges and problems (Islam et al., 2014). ...
Article
Abstract: This research paper presents the systematic review analysis of sustainable finance and the challenges of financing for sustainability. In this systematic review, 181 articles in 110 journals, related to sustainable finance (1999–2019) had been reviewed from the source of Scopus and Web of Science. This review had identified six major sub-themes of climate finance, sustainable banking, impact investment, crowd financing, micro finance, and sustainable asset classes. These researches indicate a major interest shown by academia and industry in sustainable finance. This research had concluded by identifying sub-themes of climate finance; and sustainable banking as the most promising niches for future research in the area of sustainable finance. Keywords: sustainability; sustainable finance; climate finance; banking; ESG; crowd financing impact finance; micro finance; green bonds; sustainable asset classes.
... They are the key actors in our transition towards a green (carbon-free) economy. By voting with their money, they ideally help in catalyzing the transitional process towards economic, ecological, and social sustainability (Conley & Williams, 2011). ...
... Scholtens and Dam 2007;Macve and Chen 2010;Conley and Williams 2011). The second component is 'Adoption of GRI' most widely used sustainability reporting standard globally(Milne and Gray 2013). ...
Article
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A healthy, robust and sustainable banking system is the key for achieving inclusive growth in Indian economy. This paper is aimed at determining the status quo of banking sector in India towards adoption of sustainable banking practices. The findings reveal that Indian banking industry has responded relatively slowly to sustainability issues. The public sector banks are more involved in addressing the social dimensions of sustainability through various microfinance schemes, gender-specific loan schemes, community development programme, etc., whereas the private sector banks in India have adopted relatively more comprehensive approach in addressing environmental care dimension like green building, ISO 14000 certification, innovative products and services, etc. They are more active in subscribing to the voluntary international guidelines and framework on sustainable development like UNEP FI, EPs, GRI, CDP, etc. For integrating sustainable banking, the Indian banking industry has to be more proactive in its approach and should adopt at least the established sustainable banking code of conducts.
... It has become an important criterion for accessing funds for projects (IFC 2012) and many financial institutions have gone a step further to develop a framework based on what they call the 'equator principle', a standard for ensuring due diligence on the part of managers in order to avoid adverse risks on society and the environment (Conley and Williams 2011;van Zyl 2015). The social impact assessment (SIA) component of ESIA for e.g. is said to have developed as an element of environmental impact assessments (EIA) with roots in social justice concerns across the world (Vanclay 2014) and aimed at protecting vulnerable groups and people against infrastructural, extractive and developmental projects. ...
Article
Balancing economic activities with socio-environmental considerations has become a global standard for the construction of large scale infrastructure projects, including ports. In this discourse, stakeholder participation and environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA) have been stressed as important tools that can help port managers to co-create values, avoid conflicts and promote inclusive growth. Drawing on qualitative research tools and stakeholder theory, this paper explores whether and to what extent local stakeholders' inclusion has substantial influence on addressing their socio-cultural concerns and interest. This is illustrated with a case study of an ongoing port expansion project at Ghana's largest port of Tema. The findings suggest that although the port authority conducted an ESIA and engaged local stakeholders as part of the planning process, this did not translate into preventing the loss of valuable cultural resources of the local communities. The port authority did not place 'value' on cultural resources of the local communities that cannot be expressed in monetary terms. Further, lack of good faith engagement with local stakeholders led to conflicts in some cases that triggered a court action and delays. The paper concludes that stake-holder participation if not applied well, can become a 'post-political' tool.
... Confirming this, Conley and Williams [2011] found that one of the major themes, emerged from their study, and was the related role of NGOs pressure and risk management in motivating the financial institutions, which implement EPs, to form this initiative. They stated that banks participate in the EPs "in response to NGOs pressure, real or threatened" Conley and Williams [2011, p. 567]. ...
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This chapter uses a survey of personnel in Libyan commercial banks, including general managers and credit managers, to investigate how banks perceive and process social responsibility and sustainability information declared by potential borrowers in their credit applications and other documentation. In particular, the chapter considers how the backgrounds and experiences of key bank staff in lending decisions may bias toward or against lending with the disclosure of potential borrower information on social responsibility and sustainability. We also consider the impact of institutional features, particularly the stance of government, in shaping these perceptions and links with action via regulation and the possible influence of business ethics through industry associations.
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In a period of rising threats to constitutional government within countries and among them, it is a crucial time to study the rule of law in transnational context. This framework chapter defines core concepts, analyzes the relation between national and international law and institutions from a rule-of-law perspective, and assesses the extent to which rule-of-law practices are shifting at the domestic and international levels in parallel. Part I explains our conceptualization of the rule of law, necessary for the orientation of empirical study and policy responses. Following Martin Krygier, we formulate a teleological conception of the rule of law in terms of goals and practices, which, in turn, calls for an assessment of institutional mechanisms to advance these goals, given varying social conditions and contexts. Part II sets forth the ways in which international law and institutions are important for rule-of-law ends, as well as their pathologies, since power is also exercised beyond the state in an interconnected world. Part III examines empirical indicators of the decline of the rule of law at the national and international levels. It notes factors that could explain such decline, and why such factors appear to be transnationally linked. Part IV discusses what might be done given these shifts in rule-of-law protections. In conclusion, we note the implications of viewing the rule of law in transnational context for conceptual theory, empirical study, and policy response.
Article
In a period of rising threats to constitutional government within countries and among them, it is a crucial time to study the rule of law in transnational context. This article defines core concepts, analyzes the relation of national and international law and institutions from a rule-of-law perspective, and assesses the extent to which rule-of-law practices are shifting at the domestic and international levels in parallel. Part I explains our conceptualization of the rule of law, necessary for the orientation of empirical study and policy responses. Following Martin Krygier, we formulate a teleological conception of the rule of law in terms of goals and practices, which, in turn, calls for an assessment of institutional mechanisms to advance these goals, given varying social conditions and contexts. Part II sets forth the ways in which international law and institutions are important for rule-of-law ends, as well as their pathologies, since power also is exercised beyond the state in an interconnected world. Part III examines empirical indicators of the decline of the rule of law at the national and international levels. It notes factors that could explain such decline, and why such factors appear to be transnationally linked. Part IV discusses what might be done given these shifts in rule-of-law protections. We then conclude, noting the implications of viewing the rule of law in transnational context for conceptual theory, empirical study, and policy response.
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Sustainable finance regulation, a new type of regulation, preoccupied by ad hoc concerns and pursued by novel instruments is emerging around the world. Sustainable finance regulation itself closely follows the rise of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) markets, which gained momentum after the conclusion of the Paris Agreement and due to growing investor pressures. While ESG markets have first operated under self-regulatory regimes, greenwashing controversies, growing climate-related risks, and environmental policy objectives have motivated regulatory responses at both national and international levels. Remarkably, the international coordination of these regulatory responses occurs largely outside the sphere of traditional standard-setters. This contribution explores the singularity and extent of the international regulation and coordination of sustainable finance, showing significant differences in the content and process of the international regulation and coordination of sustainable finance.KeywordsESGSustainable financeFinancial regulationClimate riskGreen taxonomyTCFDISSBBasel Committee
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Non-state law is playing an increasing role in both public and private ordering. Numerous organizations have emerged alongside the nation-state, each purporting to provide their members with rules and norms to govern their conduct and organize their affairs. The nation-state increasingly finds itself sandwiched, between two broad and contrasting categories of non-state law. The first - law above the state - captures legal systems that function across the territorial borders of nation-states. The second category - law below the state - includes forms of local customary, religious, and indigenous law. As these forms of non-state law persist and proliferate alongside the nation-state, the relationship between state and non-state law becomes more complex, multifaceted, and tense. This volume addresses this relationship considering whether and to what extent state and non-state law can coexist and how each form of law seeks to influence as well as transform the other.
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Harnessing Foreign Investment to Promote Environmental Protection investigates the main challenges facing the implementation of environmental protection and the synergies between foreign investment and environmental protection. Adopting legal, economic and political perspectives, the contributing authors analyse the various incentives which encourage foreign investment into pro-environment projects (such as funds, project-finance, market mechanisms, payments-for-ecosystem services and insurance) and the safeguards against its potentially harmful effects (investment regulation, CSR and accountability mechanisms, contracts and codes of conduct).
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Set against the origins and consequences of the global financial crisis, this timely book offers an enriching and revealing narrative of the role that the state plays in regulating markets. Focusing on core areas of private law such as corporate, labour and banking law, the contributors offer a conceptual framework in which to examine the central tenets of the role of private law in today's global economy. In the current climate of ever increasing economic inequality and austerity measures, the authors highlight the urgent need for a comprehensive analysis of the continuing tension between ideas of market liberalism and theories of society. With a focus on both the domestic and transnational dimensions of market governance, the authors offer a crucial insight into the co-existence and interaction between state and market-based economic governance.
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In this era of globalisation, different legal systems and structures no longer operate within their own jurisdictions. The effects of decisions, policies and political developments are having an increasingly wide-reaching impact. Nowhere is this more keenly felt than in the sphere of European Union law. This collection of essays contributes to the co-operative search for interpretative and normative grids needed in charting the contemporary legal landscape. Written by leading lawyers and legal philosophers, they examine the effects of law's de-nationalisation by placing European law in the context of transnational law and demonstrate how it forces us to rethink our basic legal concepts and propose an approach to transnational law beyond the dichotomy of national and international law.
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This investigation of the barriers to and opportunities for promoting environmental sustainability in company law provides an in-depth comparative analysis of company law regimes across the world. The social norm of shareholder primacy is the greatest barrier preventing progress, and it also helps explain why voluntary action by companies and investors is insufficient. By deconstructing the myth that shareholder primacy has a legal basis and challenging the economic postulates on which mainstream corporate governance debate is based, Company Law and Sustainability reveals a surprisingly large unexplored potential within current company law regimes for companies to reorient themselves towards sustainability. It also suggests possible methods of reforming the existing legal infrastructure for companies and provides an important contribution to the broader debate on how to achieve sustainability.
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This chapter discusses the relevance and ethical responsibilities of financial institutions in the context of climate change mitigation and adaptation. It does so by analyzing the business link between banks and the fossil fuel industry as well as the latest market trends and developments, including the emergence of the climate bond market. It also provides theoretical and empirical arguments for a business case for climate finance and, hence, for corporate social and environmental responsibility. The chapter shows that banks are an essential element in achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement and argues, from a business perspective, for banks’ divesting from fossil fuels and investing in renewable energies.KeywordsClimate financeClimate risksClimate impactsClimate bondsStranded assetsBusiness case
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The purpose of this paper is to examine companies’ business model disclosures in their integrated reports and to explore the possible determinants of more detailed business model disclosures. Content analysis is used to identify disclosure themes in the integrated reports of 40 companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. Descriptive statistics are generated for each disclosure theme/item and hypotheses are tested, using non‐parametric testing. The results suggest that financial performance does not have a material effect on how companies explain their business model. This is not the case when it comes to environmental performance as firms with strong environmental performance devote more attention to explaining how financial and non‐financial elements are managed. This is consistent with an emerging body of research which suggests that higher‐quality integrated reporting can be used to lower information asymmetry and reinforce investors’ ability to understand a firm's performance. This paper complements a growing body of work which has considered the determinants of better‐quality environmental or sustainability reporting and answers the call for more research on the factors that may influence the nature and extent of disclosures found in an integrated report.
Thesis
Sustainability in mining has received much global attention in recent years from academics, policy makers, and industry leaders, and other players. However, scant attention has been paid to examining the sustainability practices of mining companies within developing countries in addressing the proximate and long-term social and environmental impacts of mining activities. To address this knowledge gap, this study examines how large-scale mining companies address their social and environmental impacts through their sustainability practices. This study is situated within an interpretivist paradigm and employs a qualitative research methodology based on multiple cases, drawing on data from interviews with six (6) managers of multinational mining companies operating in Ghana, and 12 key stakeholder groups. This thesis contains four empirical findings chapters. The first of these examines the sustainability practices of large-scale mining companies in addressing environmental impacts throughout mine lifecycle. The findings indicate that the environmental sustainability practices are determined by regulatory compliance and corporate environmental responsibility. Although the environmental sustainability practices are predicated on the requirements in relevant policies and legislation, the findings demonstrate that regulatory pressures drive large-scale mining companies to embrace beyond compliance initiatives based on perceived ethical obligations. The second findings chapter examines the barriers to environmental sustainability implementation in large-scale mining in Ghana. The findings demonstrate that both institutional and corporate challenges are hindering effective sustainability implementation. The third findings chapter investigates the sustainability practices of large-scale mining companies in addressing social impacts throughout mining development. The findings show that large-scale mining companies have embraced a broader scope of social sustainability implementation based on a changing institutional environment. Drawing on stakeholder theory, the findings indicate that mine managers address social sustainability challenges based on instrumental and normative considerations. The fourth and final findings chapter examines the drivers for and barriers to mining companies’ social sustainability practices by drawing on stakeholder theory and institutional theory. The findings suggest that regulatory evolution, institutional pressures, post-closure legacies, transparency and disclosures, and managerial cognition are key drivers for the social sustainability implementation of large-scale mining companies. On the contrary, the barriers to social sustainability implementation stem from institutional voids and divergent stakeholder interests. Thus, by doing a critical reflection of the findings, this study contributes to theory by offering a series of propositions and suggesting a holistic framework for social and environmental sustainability implementation. Regarding stakeholder theory, the findings show that Large-scale mining companies experience fewer pressures from local communities and activists because of their lack of proactive engagement on environmental sustainability issues. Drawing on institutional theory, the findings suggest that multiple and contradictory logics within various institutional arrangements undermine social and environmental sustainability implementation. Additionally, this study provides a frame of reference for practitioners including mining companies and mine managers, regulatory officials, policy makers, and mining pressures groups who are involved in social and environmental sustainability implementation. Future research may consider data sets from other empirical domains, which might uncover differences in the emerging framework for sustainability implementation
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O estudo analisou informações relacionadas à responsabilidade socioambiental registradas nos relatórios anuais dos seis maiores bancos que atuam no Brasil no ano de 2016. Observou também a existência de padrões de isomorfismo na forma de atuação desses bancos em face das práticas de gestão para a sustentabilidade. Foram utilizados dados secundários, coletados nos relatórios de sustentabilidade dos seis maiores bancos em atuação no Brasil. Restou evidenciado que os relatórios de sustentabilidade dispostos sob as facetas técnica e institucional, estão imersos no isomorfismo, tendo em vista a grande quantidade de práticas semelhantes entre as seis instituições financeiras investigadas. Palavras-Chave: bancos, relatórios de sustentabilidade, isomorfismo ABSTRACT The study analyzed information related to socio-environmental responsibility in the 2016's annual reports of the six largest banks operating in Brazil. It also observed the existence of isomorphism patterns in the way these banks operate in the face of management practices for sustainability. Secondary data, collected in the sustainability reports of the six largest banks, were used in Brazil. It was evidenced that the sustainability reports arranged under the technical and institutional facets are immersed in the
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Purpose This study examines the factors which affect the adoption of corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure practices in line with Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) guidelines in Brazil's banking industry. Design/methodology/approach The analysis comprised the deposits (demand and savings), fee income, employee expenses, regulatory capital (Basel ratio) and ownership structure of all Brazilian banks from 2006 to 2017. The sample totalled 1,613 firm-year observations. The authors used three binary regression models (logit, probit and complementary log-log) in order to choose the one that best fits the model proposed. The authors controlled for size, profitability, leverage and liquidity. Findings The main results show positive relationships between CSR reporting and both savings deposits and fee income. The authors also found that state-owned (foreign private-owned) banks have a positive (negative) relationship with probability of CSR disclosure. A negative relationship was found between CSR disclosure and regulatory capital, indicating that banks are more likely to publish GRI reports as they approach the minimum levels of the Basel ratio. Research limitations/implications Some banks may disclose CSR reports which do not adhere to the GRI guidelines; these were not captured in this study. Practical implications The estimated model aids understanding of factors influencing CSR disclosure in the banking industry in an emerging economy, which may help bank regulators to adopt new approaches in their supervisory and regulatory roles. Originality/value This work is the first to document that both fee income and banks' regulatory capital are related to CSR disclosure. Furthermore, this study investigates the entire banking industry of a Latin American country over the longest and most up-to-date period the authors are aware of.
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The purpose of this study is to analyse the extant literature on sustainable financial products (SFP) with a comprehensive understanding of the status quo and research trends as well as characterise the existing SFP in the Latin America banking industry. In this way, research papers derived from Scopus as well as institutional reports such as main documents, sustainability reports, and product portfolios publicly available on webpages from public, private, and development banks are used to create a database of SFP where their main characteristics are included and classified. Based on the research trends identified, the results show the development of financial products focused on environmental, social, and government (ESG) matters, mainly from the credit side, of more sustainable financial markets and products under fintech ecosystems. The results show that because of regulatory and government support through mechanisms such as green protocols and social and environmental responsibility policies, private financial institutions of Brazil, Colombia, and Argentina have led the development of both social and green financial products. These study’s findings may be used for several policymakers to broaden the opportunities available in sustainable financing and thus, provide a roadmap that researchers and practicing professionals can use to improve their understanding of SFP. Finally, the study presents the potential for further research in the field, both with a qualitative and a quantitative approach.
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Environmental rights, also known as the human rights or constitutional rights that are used for the protection of the environment, have proliferated over the last 45 years.However, the precise levels of protection that they represent has since been a major question associated with this phenomenon. Environmental Rights: The Development of Standards systematically investigates this question by analyzing the emerging standards of environmental protection that are associated with such rights and the way that those associations are becoming formalized. It covers all of the relevant human rights treaties to illustrate how environmental rights standards are emerging in this dynamic area.Bringing together an elite group of scholars, this book discusses significant new insights into the way that environmental rights are developing, the standards of protection that they confer, and the way that standards in the field of environmental rights can potentially be further developed in the future.
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In recent years, transnational and domestic nongovernmental organizations have created non–state market–driven (NSMD) governance systems whose purpose is to develop and implement environmentally and socially responsible management practices. Eschewing traditional state authority, these systems and their supporters have turned to the market’s supply chain to create incentives and force companies to comply. This paper develops an analytical framework designed to understand better the emergence of NSMD governance systems and the conditions under which they may gain authority to create policy. Its theoretical roots draw on pragmatic, moral, and cognitive legitimacy granting distinctions made within organizational sociology, while its empirical focus is on the case of sustainable forestry certification, arguably the most advanced case of NSMD governance globally. The paper argues that such a framework is needed to assess whether these new private governance systems might ultimately challenge existing state–centered authority and public policy–making processes, and in so doing reshape power relations within domestic and global environmental governance.
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Recent years have seen abundant literature, in law and the social sciences, addressing the significance of "soft law," "self-regulation, " and "private law-making" and analyzing the potential implications of "governance" in general for the trajectory of law. This Article is grounded in and oriented towards this broad theoretical and conceptual terrain by pointing at empirical phenomena that mark a shift towards market-embedded forms of social regulation. I specifically discuss the Equator Principles, a self-regulatory blueprint for overseeing the social and environmental performance of project-finance initiatives. I argue for an understanding of the process in terms of a general moralization of markets, in and of itself a product of neo-liberal conceptions of governance. I posit that one implication of this process is that socially-oriented norm-making and norm-enforcement merge with the instrumental and utilitarian logic of markets.
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This article, based on two years of participant observation, in-depth interviews, and informal exchanges, offers an ethnographic account of a nonprofit organization that promotes the idea of corporate social responsibility. It follows the ways and means by which midlevel corporate executives are initiated into the universe of “corporate citizenship,” learning to deploy terms such as “stakeholders,” “brand loyalty,” “social investment,” and “community empowerment.” Through an analysis of workshops, lectures, and ceremonial events, I show how the idea of social responsibility is transformed into a managerial tool, designed to enhance employee loyalty and to improve brand loyalty. From a constructivist sociological perspective, I also show that the idea of corporate social responsibility, when framed and advocated by a corporate-friendly organization, fits the neoliberal emphasis on corporate self-regulation.
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This paper investigates the increased shareholder activism by labor unions and their pension funds, who are now the most aggressive institutional shareholders. Sometimes unions propose traditional corporate-governance measures through procedures familiar to shareholders. Only the union sponsor is novel. But recently unions have pushed innovative methods to get corporations to listen to shareholder complaints. These methods include mandatory amendment of corporate by-laws by shareholders and floor proposals submitted for a shareholder vote at the annual meeting. Unions as shareholders have conflicting roles. We distinguish union-shareholder initiatives designed to further unions' traditional organizing and collective bargaining goals from those that enhance unions' role as a participant in strategic corporate decisions, a newer vision of the union role. With either the traditional or new role, the union shareholder can fight management in ways that benefit other shareholders, or can benefit workers at the expense of other shareholders.We use this framework to describe labor unions' current voting initiatives. From the labor perspective, unions themselves recognize the need for new approaches - including approaches that do not reflexively regard efficiency and profitability as goals of "enemy" shareholders. From the corporate perspective, unions need new approaches because they have remained peripheral players in the boardroom despite their vast stock holdings. We find legal reform to be unnecessary, because existing legal and market checks adequately constrain potential opportunistic union behavior. These checks include the fiduciary structure of Taft-Hartley union pension funds; the need to persuade other self-interested shareholders to vote for union initiatives; and the disciplinary power of capital markets, product markets, and the market for corporate control. These forces adequately limit labor unions' ability to expropriate more corporate value for their members, if they would choose to pursue that course of action.Finally, we suggest that union-shareholder activism may have long-lasting effects on unions' role in corporate governance, but only if unions focus their shareholder voting initiatives in areas where they have special advantages in monitoring management. If unions can package their proposals in ways that emphasize to other shareholders ways in which the two groups' interests are aligned, then union-shareholder activism may become an important force in corporate governance.
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Studies of global governance typically claim that the state has lost power to nonstate actors and that political authority is increasingly institutionalized in spheres not controlled by states. In this article, we challenge the core claims in the literature on global governance. Rather than focusing on the relative power of states and nonstate actors, we focus on the sociopolitical functions and processes of governance in their own right and seek to identify their rationality as practices of political rule. For this task, we use elements of the conception of power developed by Michel Foucault in his studies of “governmentality.” In this perspective, the role of nonstate actors in shaping and carrying out global governance-functions is not an instance of transfer of power from the state to nonstate actors but rather an expression of a changing logic or rationality of government (defined as a type of power) by which civil society is redefined from a passive object of government to be acted upon into an entity that is both an object and a subject of government. The argument is illustrated by two case studies: the international campaign to ban landmines, and international population policy. The cases show that the self-association and political will-formation characteristic of civil society and nonstate actors do not stand in opposition to the political power of the state, but is a most central feature of how power, understood as government, operates in late modern society.
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Traditional approaches to corporate governance focus exclusively on shareholders and neglect the large and growing role of creditors. Today's creditors craft elaborate covenants that give them a large role in the affairs of the corporation. While they do not exercise their rights in sunny times when things are going well, these are not the times that matter most. When a business stumbles, creditors typically enjoy powers that public shareholders never have, such as the ability to replace the managers and install those more to their liking. Creditors exercise these powers even when the business is far from being insolvent and continues to Pay its debts. Bankruptcy provides no sanctuary, as senior lenders ensure that their powers either go unchecked or are enhanced. The powers that modem lenders wield rival in importance the hostile takeover in disciplining poor or underperforming managers. This Essay explores these powers and begins the task of integrating this lever of corporate governance into the modern account of corporate law.
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In this article, I propose five ways to move beyond the analytical scheme of James Scott's Seeing Like a State (1998). I question the spatial optic that posits an “up there,” all-seeing state operating as a preformed repository of power, spread progressively outward to “nonstate” spaces beyond its reach. I highlight the role of parties beyond “the state” that attempt to govern—social reformers, scientists, and the so-called nongovernmental agencies, among others. I look beyond authoritarian high modernism to the more general problematic of “improvement” emerging from a governmental rationality focused on the welfare of populations. I explore the recourse to mētis (contextualized, local knowledge and practice) situated beyond the purview of planning. Finally, I reframe the question posed by Scott—why have certain schemes designed to improve the human condition failed?—to examine the question posed so provocatively by James Ferguson: What do these schemes do? What are their messy, contradictory, conjunctural effects?
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Conflict plays a crucial role in social interactions, and representations of conflict are an important aspect of language. Stories and narratives involving everything from war to playground disputes generate, sustain, mediate, and represent conflict at all levels of social organization. Still, despite the vast amount of research on conflict and narrative in a number of disciplines, no one has yet examined how these play off of each other; in fact, most studies treat narrative merely as a source of information about conflict rather then as a part of conflict's process. The contributors to this collection argue that language consists of socially and politically situated practices that are differentially distributed on the basis of gender, class, race, ethnicity, and other categories. Each of them, writing from the perspective of their own disciplines, challenges previous assumptions about narrative and social conflict as they interpret a range of disputes that emerge in a variety of settings. Taken in total, these essays substantially further our theoretical and methodological understanding of narrative and conflict and how they intersect.
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This article considers the Equator Principles, a voluntary code for environmentally responsible project financing by commercial and investment banks. The value of voluntary environmental approaches is increasingly recognised in the European Union, and in its Sixth Environment Action Programme, the European Commission advocated a voluntary initiative with the financial sector to promote harmonised standards for green lending and investing. The article begins by explaining the broader relevance of financial institutions to sustainable development. The nature and effectiveness of voluntary environmental measures to engage the private sector is canvassed before looking at the Equator Principles in detail. The article explains what the Principles demand of lenders, assesses their implementation, and makes some observations on their adequacy for the promotion of environmentally sustainable finance.
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Fully revised and updated throughout, the new edition of Discourse Analysis is a user-friendly textbook for students taking their first course in linguistic approaches to discourse.Second edition of a popular introductory textbook, combining breadth of coverage, practical examples, and student-friendly features Includes new sections on metaphor, framing, stance and style, multimodal discourse, and Gricean pragmatics Considers a variety of approaches to the subject, including critical discourse analysis, conversation analysis, interactional and variationist sociolinguistics, ethnography, corpus linguistics, and other qualitative and quantitative methods Features detailed descriptions of the results of discourse analysts’ work Retains and expands the useful student features, including discussion questions, exercises, and ideas for small research projects.
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To tackle China’s profound environmental problems, Chinese leaders are now incorporating environmental targets in 5-year plans and experimenting with market-based mechanisms to supplement their traditional command and control mechanisms for environmental protection. In the recent years, China has produced a series of green policies, including green tax, green procurement, as well as green policies relevant to the financial sector, namely, green credit, insurance, and security policies. Of the three, the green credit policy is the most advanced, with three agencies (the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the Peoples’ Bank of China, and the China Banking Regulatory Commission) sharing the responsibility for implementation. The policy, approaching its fourth year of implementation, has proved resistant to China’s massive economic upheaval following the global financial crisis. Its future success depends on effective environmental data collection and dissemination, technical guidance, and provision of true financial incentives for banks. The continued success in implementation could potentially provide China with the experience and confidence to address new challenges, such as the environmental and social conduct of its enterprises overseas.
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Why have systems of "transnational private regulation" recently emerged to certify corporate social and environmental performance? Different conceptions of institutional emergence underlie different answers to this question. Many scholars argue that firms create certification systems to solve problems in the market-a view rooted in a conception of institutions as solutions to collective action problems. The author develops a different account by viewing institutions as the outcome of political contestation and by analyzing conflict and institutional entrepreneurship among a wide array of actors. Using a comparative case study design, the analysis shows how these arguments explain the formation of social and environmental certification associations. Both theoretical approaches are needed, but strong versions of the market-based approach overlook an important set of dynamics that the author calls the "political construction of market institutions." The analysis shows how both problem solving in markets and political contention generate new institutional forms.
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In this paper we situate the rise of corporate social responsibility in the context of a re-casting of the boundaries between corporate- and state-centred regulation. We argue that this process can be understood in a theoretical framework of “rolling-out” neoliberalisation. We focus firstly upon an emergent CSR consultancy industry within the UK context, demonstrating that there is now a network of organisations dedicated to making profit out of socially-responsible corporate behaviour. These organisations have helped to re-define the nature and meaning of the private sector. Then we interpret global framework agreements on corporate behaviour (such as the UN Global Compact, the Equator Principles, and the World Economic Forum’s Global Corporate Citizenship Initiative) as examples of how neoliberalism is created in and through new “in-between” spaces that set the rules of political action. Subsequently, we note that some NGOs have recently recognised the limits on campaigning for more socially responsible corporate activity, and re-connect these concerns with longer-term debates on corporate voluntarism versus state-centred regulation. We conclude that demonstrating how hegemony is constructed in and through neo-liberalising corporate social responsibility remains to be fully explored, but argue that it is beneficial to consider the diversity of political projects involved in this ongoing process.
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List of tables and figures Preface Acknowledgements 1. Introduction: corporate self-regulation in the new regulatory state 2. The potential for self-regulation 3. Motivating top management commitment to self-regulation 4. Cultivating self-regulation leadership 5. Self-regulating methodology and social harmony 6. The pathologies of self-regulation 7. Model corporate citizens: the role of self-regulation professionals 8. The three strategies of 'permeability' in the open corporation 9. Meta-regulation: the regulation of self-regulation 10. Conclusion Appendix Notes References Index.
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The author proposes a framework for self-regulation in a global setting, concentrating on the industry level of economic activity. He first reviews industry self-regulation in a domestic setting and then extends the discussion to the global setting. He concludes with a discussion of his framework, which can serve as a springboard for further theory development and research.
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This paper provides a multi-level theoretical model to understand why business organizations are increasingly engaging in corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives, and thereby exhibiting the potential to exert positive social change. Our model integrates theories of micro-level organizational justice, meso-level corporate governance and macro-level varieties of capitalisms. Using a theoretical framework presented in the justice literature, we argue that organizations are pressured to engage in CSR by many different actors, each driven by instrumental, relational and moral motives. These actors are nested within four "levels" of analysis: individual, organizational, national and transnational. After discussing the motives affecting actors at each level and the mechanisms used at each level to exercise influence, as well as the interactions of motives within levels, we examine forces across levels to propose the complex web of factors, which both facilitate and impede social change by organizations. Ultrimately, this proposed framework can be usd to systematize our understanding of the complex social phenomenon of increasing CSR engagement, and to develop testable hypotheses. We conclude by highlighting some empirical questions for future research, and develop a number of managerial implications.
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Stakeholder dialogue, participation, and partnership have become mainstream concepts in international development policy, in particular in the field of corporate social responsibility (CSR). However, the accountability of multi-stakeholder initiatives on CSR to their intended beneficiaries in the global South is increasingly questioned. This paper looks at how the agendas of some initiatives in the areas of ethical trade and sustainability reporting are driven by what Western NGOs push for, what large companies consider feasible, and what consultants and accountants seek to provide. It describes how the resulting practices and discourse restrict change and marginalise alternative approaches developed by Southern stakeholders. It is argued that enthusiasm for stakeholder dialogue, participation, and partnership in CSR matters, and beyond, needs to be reconceived with democratic principles in mind. ‘Stakeholder democracy’ is offered as a conceptual framework for this endeavour, and some recommendations are made for NGOs, companies, and governments.
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Based on Michel Foucault's 1978 and 1979 lectures at the College de France on governmental rationalities and his 1977 interview regarding his work on imprisonment, this volume is the long-awaited sequel to Power/Knowledge. In these lectures, Foucault examines the art or activity of government both in its present form and within a historical perspective as well as the different ways governmentality has been made thinkable and practicable. Foucault's thoughts on political discourse and governmentality are supplemented by the essays of internationally renowned scholars. United by the common influence of Foucault's approach, they explore the many modern manifestations of government: the reason of state, police, liberalism, security, social economy, insurance, solidarity, welfare, risk management, and more. The central theme is that the object and the activity of government are not instinctive and natural things, but things that have been invented and learned. The Foucault Effect analyzes the thought behind practices of government and argues that criticism represents a true force for change in attitudes and actions, and that extending the limits of some practices allows the invention of others. This unique and extraordinarily useful collection of articles and primary materials will open the way for a whole new set of discussions of the work of Michel Foucault as well as the status of liberalism, social policy, and insurance.--Publisher description.
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This paper reviews recent developments in economic anthropology. It argues that an underlying concern with the cultural constitution of material life unites many current studies - and not just the few works offered to date as studies in cultural economics. Such current work has to be recognized for what it is, namely an emergent, broadly based culturalist school in economic anthropology.
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Increasingly, corporations are proactively managing environmental impacts in response to pressures from the consumer, business-to-business, financial, and government procurement markets. In many cases, these efforts have produced results well beyond what could be required under public regulations. Although the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency began a process of regulatory reinvention in the 1990s as a means of promoting such innovations, the results have been somewhat disappointing. This article examines the recent trends in corporate environmental management and regulatory reform. It concludes with a discussion of changes in regulatory design that could promote ongoing gains in corporate environmental performance through the creation of a hybrid system combining elements of public regulation, government-supervised corporate self-regulation, mandatory information disclosure, and green procurement.
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In this exploratory article, we ask how states come to be understood as entities with particular spatial characteristics, and how changing relations between practices of government and national territories may be challenging long-established modes of state spatiality. In the first part of this article, we seek to identify two principles that are key to state spatialization: verticality (the state is "above" society) and encompassment (the state "encompasses" its localities). We use ethnographic evidence from a maternal health project in India to illustrate our argument that perceptions of verticality and encompassment are produced through routine bureaucratic practices. In the second part, we develop a concept of transnational governmentality as a way of grasping how new practices of government and new forms of "grassroots" politics may call into question the principles of verticality and encompassment that have long helped to legitimate and naturalize states' authority over "the local."
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The financial transparency for which U.S. capital markets are renowned derives primarily from mandatory disclosure of operating results under the federal securities laws. In this Article, Professor Williams defends the view that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) can and should require expanded social disclosure by public reporting companies to promote corporate social transparency comparable to the financial transparency that now exists. As used in this Article, "social disclosure" refers to disclosure of specific information about a reporting company?s products, the countries in which a company does business, and the labor and environmental effects of a company?s operations in the United States and around the world. Professor Williams shows that the SEC has the statutory authority in fashioning proxy disclosure under Section 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to require disclosure either to promote the public interest or to protect investors. To construe the SEC?s public interest disclosure power, she examines the intellectual derivation of the securities laws and their legislative history, demonstrating that increasing corporate accountability to shareholders and to the public was a central goal of Congress in 1933 and 1934, as was constraining the exercise of corporate power and inculcating a greater sense of public responsibility in corporate managers. The legislative history of Section 14(a) indicates that Congress?s purpose in enacting that section was to strengthen the power of shareholders in the corporate governance relationship, and in particular to require companies to provide shareholders with information about management policies and practices. Thus, she argues that it is fully consistent with the language, purpose, and legislative history of the securities laws for the SEC to use its authority under Section 14(a) to require expanded disclosure about management?s policies and practices with respect to social and environmental issues. A close examination of the SEC?s rejection of expanded social disclosure in the 1970s buttresses this conclusion. Professor Williams concludes by making the affirmative case for expanded corporate social transparency and for the SEC?s legitimate role in promoting such transparency, both from the perspective of the "economic" investor, who is assumed to be interested primarily in the financial returns from an investment, and from the perspective of the "social" investor, who is concerned more broadly with the social and environmental effects of corporate conduct.
Article
The past decade has witnessed the emergence of a large set of voluntary corporate social responsibility (CSR) standards. However, our knowledge is limited on how and why certain CSR initiatives diffuse extensively whereas others do so only partially or not at all. One of the rare examples of a rapidly and widely spreading CSR standard are the "Equator Principles" (EP), a global standard in international project finance to base investment decisions for large infrastructure projects (e.g., a river dam) on social and environmental criteria. In our qualitative study, we explore the constitutive conditions which facilitated the EP standardization process. First, we track the initiative’s evolution in form of a historical analysis. Second, we conduct 20 semi-structured interviews with relevant actors, e.g., representatives of banks or NGOs. Our study shows that the EP’s diffusion is fostered by dynamic negotiation processes. Instead of viewing organizational fields as relatively stable, we conceptualize them as relational, fragmented and open issue spaces where subject matters are prone to negotiation, interpretation, and contestation.
Article
Traditional approaches to corporate governance focus exclusively on shareholders and neglect the large and growing role of creditors. Today's creditors craft elaborate covenants that give them a large role in the affairs of the corporation. While they do not exercise their rights in sunny times when things are going well, these are not the times that matter most. When a business stumbles, creditors typically enjoy powers that public shareholders never have, such as the ability to replace the managers and install those more to their liking. Creditors exercise these powers even when the business is far from being insolvent and continues to pay its debts. Bankruptcy provides no sanctuary as senior lenders ensure that their powers either go unchecked or are enhanced. The powers that modern lenders wield rival in importance the hostile takeover in disciplining poor or underperforming managers. This essay explores these powers and begins the task of integrating this lever of corporate governance into the modern account of corporate law.
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This paper analyzes the ways in which jurors use everyday storytelling techniques in their deliberations. It begins by reviewing the literature on how jurors receive and process evidence, emphasizing narrative and storytelling. It then presents some new, qualitative linguistic data drawn from actual jury deliberations, which shed light on jurors' standards of evidence and proof, as well as on the persuasive tactics they use in dealing with each other. Although these data are limited, they provide an interesting basis for assessing existing ideas about jury evidence-processing and thinking more broadly about the strengths and weaknesses of the jury system.
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This article uses the techniques of anthropology and linguistics to assess the behavior of corporations, non-governmental organizations, and other principals as they participate in the burgeoning worldwide movement to improve the social and environmental conduct of multinational companies. On a theoretical level, the article analyzes the corporate social responsibility movement as an exercise in "the new governance," a term coined by political scientists to describe a recent trend (especially prominent outside of this country) toward diffusing regulatory authority among governmental agencies, private actors such as NGOs, and regulated companies themselves. The ultimate question is whether the new behaviors demanded by CSR advocates will amount to substance or mere form. Over the past two years we have interviewed large numbers of CSR specialists and participants, have participated in and observed a number of CSR events, and have done detailed linguistic analyses of corporate CSR reports. Our conclusion is mixed: while the CSR movement has clearly brought more transparency to the non-financial performance of large corporations, it has also created subtle but significant opportunities for those corporations to manage criticism and debate and thereby enhance their power. Testing the new governance theoretical model against these same developments, we conclude that some of the major concerns of new governance critics - especially problems with representation and accountability - are in abundant evidence in the CSR movement.
Article
Can global governance be democratic? The public debate on this issue largely assumes that the modernist conception of democracy as tied to an identifiable territory and polity cannot be globalized without a world government. Various post-modernist theorists offer a set of alternatives based on a redefinition of democracy, the state, democracy, and law. Individuals with plural selves can govern themselves through participation in multiple networks of public and private actors that together define the state. The results are heady, exciting, and likely to be unintelligible to the vast majority of policymakers, activists, and citizens who seek to achieve specific goals in an age of globalization, information, and politicization. This essay instead develops a typology of more concrete and prosaic accountability problems connected with a rapidly growing form of global governance -- transgovernmental regulatory networks. These "government networks" are networks of national government officials exchanging information, coordinating national policies, and working together to address common problems. After a brief overview of the literature on transgovernmentalism since the 1970s in Part I, Part II sets forth a typology of three different categories of government networks. Part III then seeks to pinpoint the specific accountability concerns associated with each type. Part IV offers one approach to answering some current accountability concerns by adapting the concept of "information agencies" from the European Union to the global level. Part V briefly surveys various reconceptualizations of democracy and distills various elements of these visions that could be useful in strengthening the democratic pedigree of government networks. It concludes with an appeal to add global legislative networks to the pluralist mix of global governance mechanisms.
Chapter
IntroductionParticipation as ActionStories as Participation FieldsParticipation in Linguistic AnthropologyConclusion
Article
This article examines the various ways in which the relationship between anthropology and development has been established in anthropological practice especially in the last few decades. The change in mainstream development theory towards the inclusion of social and cultural considerations paved the way, in the 1970s, for the increasing participation of social scientists in development, resulting in the emergence of 'development anthropology' within development institutions. In the 1980s, in the wake of post-structuralist critiques of culture and representation, another field - the 'anthropology of development' - came into existence. The article reviews the concepts, experience and predicaments of these two fields, taking their respective views of both anthropology and development as a point of departure. Today, it is argued, it is difficult to maintain the boundaries between the two fields; novel forms of engaging anthropology and development are, in fact, appearing. These emerging practices are analysed by focusing on the work of a handful of anthropologists who are crafting a new theory of practice and a new practice of theory at the intersection of anthropology and development. The article concludes with some thoughts for the future on the anthropology of globalization and postdevelopment.
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This article analyzes the meanings and practices of corporate personhood through ethnographic examination of the changing relationship between the Shell oil company and residents of the neighborhood surrounding the company's refineries in Argentina. The article scrutinizes the Shell public relations staff's work to remake the company into a good corporate citizen and caring neighbor with a benevolent public “face.” It argues that Shell's shift from corporate philanthropy to corporate social responsibility (CSR) reconfigured the “legal fiction” of corporate personhood and the historical relations of patronage and paternalism. This reconfiguration was achieved through the regendering of the public face of the company.
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Drawing from two ethnographic case studies, both from Haiti, this article argues that nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), as intermediaries, “glue” globalization in four ways. First, in their “gap filler” roles NGOs provide legitimacy to globalization, representing alternatives to states fragmented by neoliberalism. Second, NGOs, in the contemporary neoliberal aid regime, can undermine the governance capacity of states in the Global South, eroding the Keynesian social welfare state ethos and social contract that states are (or should be) responsible for service provision. Third, NGOs provide high-paying jobs to an educated middle class, reproducing inequalities inherent to and required by the contemporary neoliberal world system. Fourth, NGOs, as an ideologically dependent transnational middle class, constitute buffers between elites and impoverished masses and can present institutional barriers against local participation and priority setting. Drawing on recent anthropological scholarship that moves away from reifying NGOs and their professed ideologies, this article focuses on NGO practice.
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In this article, I seek to identify a limitation in the analysis James Scott offers in Seeing Like a State (1998) by asking to what extent his account of the follies of schemes for planned improvement by states provides critical leverage on the present world of neoliberal global capitalism. Scott has claimed that a dynamic of standardization, homogenization, and grid making applies not only to developmentalist states but also equally to the contemporary world of downsized states and unconstrained global corporations. I contest that claim by tracing how recent capital investment in Africa has been territorialized, and some of the new forms of order and disorder that have accompanied that selectively territorialized investment. Because such investment has been overwhelmingly in mineral resource extraction—particularly in oil—a contrast will become visible between the homogenizing, standardizing state optic Scott analyzed and a rather different way of seeing, proper to the contemporary global oil company.
Chapter
In this exploratory article, we ask how states come to be understood as entities with particular spatial characteristics, and how changing relations between practices of government and national territories may be challenging long‐established modes of state spatiality. In the first part of this article, we seek to identify two principles that are key to state spatialization: vertically (the state is "above"society) and encompassment (the state "encompasses" its localities). We use ethnographic evidence from a maternal health project in India to illustrate our argument that perceptions of verticality and encompassment are produced through routine bureaucratic practices. In the second part, we develop a concept of transnational governmentality as a way of grasping how new practices of government and new forms of "grassroots" politics may call into question the principles of vertical ity and encompassment that have long helped to legitimate and naturalize states' authority over "the local." [states, space, governmentality, globalization, neoliberalism, India, Africa]
Article
Purpose – The equator principles constitute an international voluntary code developed by banks to encourage consideration of environmental and social issues in project financing. Such codes can flexibly bridge the gap between individual companies' sustainability initiatives and mandatory, legal regulation. However, concerns continue to be expressed that the equator principles reporting of banks is not fully satisfactory, so the aim of this paper is to investigate both the nature of the success and the shortcomings of equator principles reporting. Design/methodology/approach – The paper is based on academic literature on motivations for corporate social responsibility and various publications by non-government organisations and professional accounting and legal organisations, together with analysis of the disclosures made by Barclays and HSBC. In addition, access was gained for semi-structured interviews with some senior executives/consultants. Findings – While the voluntary equator principles initiative has been remarkably successful in matching banks' strategic motivation, the environmental benefit may primarily be a by-product of the risk management processes of banks, consistent with enlightened shareholder theory. This does not mean the environmental benefits may not be real but, without more detailed project-level disclosure and a standardised performance evaluation system, it is difficult to measure the extent to which the equator principles have had a positive effect on the environment. Research limitations/implications – Further research is needed to gauge how the equator principles impact front-line decision making. There could usefully be further standardisation of equator principles reporting formats, with more detail about project-level implementation. With respect to reports of external assurers, it remains an open question as to whether these should be made compulsory, subject to further specification of the independence and competence standards. Originality/value – The study helps to illuminate the effectiveness of a voluntary code such as the equator principles in the social construction of how enlightened shareholder theory is to be interpreted and implemented. It makes an initial response to recent calls by Bebbington et al. and Adams for further empirical corporate social responsibility research and more direct engagement with organisations.