General Call For Paper
The International Network for Research into Organization and Sustainable Development (RIODD) is an international, multidisciplinary scientific association, open to every epistemological position, theoretical current and methodological diversity.
It places the emphasis on an understanding, interpretation and construction of knowledge in order to provide standard reference guidelines.
As part of its annual conference, RIODD therefore welcomes papers in French and English from the various social science disciplines, such as management, economics, law, political science, sociology, history, communication and philosophy, and even contributions from the engineering sciences.
The conference is open to any theme that examines sustainable development and corporate social responsibility.
However, the organization committee for the 7th RIODD conference particularly encourages contributions on the theme:
“Public governance – private governance: what balances are required for Corporate Social Responsibility?”
Analysing the processes companies use to integrate economic, social and environmental issues into their strategies and activities raises the question of the different forms of public and private governance, and how they operate together.
A study of public governance highlights the difficulties in regulating the activities of companies that go beyond national borders and are organized in a network. While public regulation is developing at a local, national and international level, the instruments used are varied, often inadequate and insufficiently linked together to cope with the transverse challenges. They therefore produce contrasting results. Research into these inadequacies in the public governance of company activities may therefore help to explain some of civil society’s criticisms of companies and their various proactive initiatives, and also of the public authorities themselves. Research may, however, also show how public governance may place constraints on companies or prompt them to adopt more responsible practices, either through tax measures or clauses in public contracts.
A study of private governance helps to provide a better understanding of how sustainable development and corporate social responsibility strategies and practices are drawn up and implemented. It offers an opportunity to compare whether, and to what extent, certain forms of governance encourage a better integration of economic, social and environmental issues into corporate strategies and activities. It may in particular focus on stakeholder dialogue or the third sector. Finally, it may lead to questions as to how it fits together with public governance and the new definition of post-modern regulation.
As part of its 7th annual conference, RIODD therefore invites researchers to offer empirical or theoretical contributions exploring the different forms of public and private governance in the field of sustainable development and corporate social responsibility. This general theme may include the following themes and questions (the list is not exhaustive):
- What are the different forms of public or private governance in the field of sustainable development and corporate social responsibility? How are they built up? How do they develop? What are the levers for value creation?
- How do the financial markets react to changes in public and private governance? Do public and private governance influence the way in which companies are financed? What are the strategies of the different stakeholders (companies, civil society, unions, public authorities, …) to encourage the emergence of new forms of governance and develop the existing forms?
- What are the different levels (local, national, international) of public or private governance involved in the field of sustainable development and corporate social responsibility? How do these levels fit together?
- Do modern changes in public and private governance require a rethink of certain basic principles (economic, financial, legal, etc.) and a new debate on the role of regulation?
- Is public governance built around information or constraint? Does its level (local, national, international) affect its nature? Is private governance detached from any links with public governance? What is the link? How does it develop?
- What forms of governance are used to oversee sustainable development and corporate social responsibility standards (Global Compact, Global Reporting Initiative, ISO 26000, …)?
- Are there alternative forms of governance to the “limited company” model that would be more likely to encourage the emergence of responsible environmental and/or social practices?