Using business to make the world better
Author: Peter Krouse
Cleveland Plain Dealer
Date: 10/23/2006
Annotation: Using business to make the world better
450 from 37 countries at Case to ponder how
Monday, October 23, 2006
Peter Krouse
Plain Dealer Reporter
How can business make the world a better place and still turn a profit?
That will be on the minds of some 450 professionals from 37 countries gathered at Case Western Reserve University this week.
The Business as an Agent of World Benefit Global Forum, which runs through Wednesday, is the brainchild of David Cooperrider, chairman of the department of organizational behavior at Case's Weatherhead School of Management.
He has been working toward this moment since 2004, when he used his method for organizational change, called "appreciative inquiry," to inspire the U.N. Global Compact, a collection of businesses around the world dedicated to specific United Nations development goals.
Appreciative inquiry encourages people to build on the positive rather than dwell on the negative, said Betty Vandenbosch, associate dean for external relations and executive education at Weatherhead. It brings all players together for a discussion that explores what's possible, rather than what's wrong.
Corporate executives, academicians, nonprofit representatives and government officials will be on hand to discuss ways that business can reduce poverty and pollution without ignoring the bottom line. The conference also will address ways to teach management students how to become better stewards of the planet and its people.
Among the prominent speakers will be Patrick Cescau, chief executive of global consumer products giant Unilever.
The public can experience the conference over the Web by going to www.bawbglobalforum.org. It will cost $70 to register. Cuyahoga County Library branches in Maple Heights and Mayfield will show the conference for free, Vandenbosch said.
To reach this Plain Dealer reporter:
pkrouse@plaind.com, 216-999-4834
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