Category: News

I wanted to let you know that we routinely make short videos on relevant and timely topics that are, in some way, related to our work.

The most recent videos we’ve done include:

–The Psychology of Money
–Honesty and Valuation
–The Business Roundtable and Short-term Capitalism

I would be very interested in your thoughts and feedback.

If you’d like to view more of our videos, our YouTube channel can be found here.

Our colleague Isabella Bunn asked that we inform you of the following opportunity:

An upcoming special event being hosted by the U.N. Global Compact to mark the 75^thanniversary of the U.N. and the 20^th anniversary of the U.N. Global Compact.  Uniting Business Live takes place online over three days: Private Sector Forum (Monday, September 21), Global Impact Forum (Tuesday, September 22), Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Business Forum (Wednesday, September 23).  This note provides further information and registration details, in case it may be of interest to participants in the Caux Round Table network.

U.N. GLOBAL COMPACT FOR UNITING BUSINESS

DESCRIPTION OF UNITING BUSINESS SPECIAL EVENT:

To mark the opening of the 75^th session of the U.N. General Assembly, our special event Uniting Business LIVE from September 21 to 23 will virtually convene leaders from business, government and civil society to showcase their commitment to the U.N.’s mission.

Over a series of three forums, leading chief executives, corporate sustainability experts and business leaders will come together to take stock of the state of the world, address gaps in progress, drive business ambition on the SDGs and highlight cooperative and actional solutions that are ready — today.  These themes will run throughout multi-stakeholder panels, live General Assembly presentations and CEO interventions and will encourage a global, cross-sector dialogue through programme-themed meet-ups, interactive breakout-sessions and exposition booths.

As the world moves from reflection to action, join us to learn how business can take clear steps and demonstrate bold leadership for the Decade of Action to transform business models and economies to become more just and inclusive, ensuring we leave no one behind. 

REGISTRATION PROCEDURE:

Complimentary 3-day passes are available to certain designated categories of individuals.  Please refer to the registration tab on the site noted above.  A written request for a pass must be sent to unga@unglobalcompact.org.  Otherwise, the registration fee is $299 (USD).

INFORMATION ON CEO STATEMENT:

On the link, there is a tab marked “CEO Statement.”  For your reference, I have also attached United in the Business of a Better World – A Statement from Business Leaders for Renewed Global Cooperation.  The statement was developed through the U.N. Global Compact Action Platform on Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions, which reinforces SDG #16.  It is well worth reviewing.

I hope you can participate.

Unfortunately, due to the coronavirus and uncertainties surrounding it, we’ve decided to cancel our October 19th Global Dialogue in Caux, Switzerland. We apologize for any inconvenience this causes you.

With that said, we are planning a plan B which would include an abbreviated global dialogue over Zoom for sometime in November or December.

Here is the August edition of Pegasus.

In this issue, we include an article by yours truly on the interdependence among enterprise, government and civil society that the coronavirus has exposed and how we can create and sustain a balance between these sectors. We then, in the second article, specify the alignment with Catholic Social Teachings.

Thirdly is a review by our colleague Rich Broderick on Albert Camus’ The Plague. We thought it timely, given the virus.

Lastly, we include the proceedings from our workshop on policing, held last month.

As usual, I would be very interested in your thoughts and feedback.

Here is the July edition of Pegasus.

This issue contains a very detailed and comprehensive study of the history of slavery and its continuing effects on contemporary political, social and economic structures, from its origins in the ancient world right up to today’s precarious state of affairs.  Its author is our Global Executive Director, Steve Young.

Even though the sources used are in the public domain, a lot of this information is not widely known and may be surprising to you.

We would be most interested in your thoughts and feedback.

Here is the June edition of Pegasus.

In this issue, we include country rankings for accumulation of social capital.

We also have two pieces from our editor, Rich Broderick, on how the Caux Round Table principles can help us recover from the coronavirus and a reflection on the insights of Hannah Arendt on the 1930s and 1940s.

I would be most interested in your thoughts and feedback.

Here is the May edition of Pegasus.

In this issue, we apply our Principles for Business and Government in how we could respond to the coronavirus pandemic.

We also include two additional short pieces about the virus, reflections on the Book of Job and a book review of The Art of Leading, our newly published book.

I would be very interested in your thoughts and feedback.

We have moved our office to the Landmark Center in St. Paul, Minnesota.

The Landmark Center was built in 1902 as a federal courthouse.  The exterior is pink granite ashlar with a hipped red tile roof, steeply pitched to shed St. Paul’s snows and enlivened by numerous turrets, gables and dormers with steeply peaked roofs; cylindrical corner towers with conical turrets occupy almost every change of projection.  There are two massive towers, one of which houses a clock.

The interior features a five-story courtyard with skylight and rooms with 20-foot ceilings, appointed with marble and carved mahogany finishes.  Its Richardsonian Romanesque is similar to the Old Post Office Building in Washington, D.C.

In 1972, a group of determined citizens saved the building from the wrecking ball and restored it to its previous grandeur.  It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places and reopened to the public as Landmark Center in 1978.  Today, it serves as a cultural center for music, dance, theater, exhibitions, public forums and hosts countless special events.  Owned by Ramsey County, it is managed by Minnesota Landmarks, a not-for-profit organization.

Landmark Center also houses Anita’s Cafe, Landmarket Gift Shop, five gallery spaces and a number of St. Paul’s premier arts and culture organizations.

Our new address is: 75 West Fifth Street, Suite 219, St. Paul, Minnesota 55102.

Secondly, as around the world we are getting accustomed to using Zoom and other internet platforms for meetings, we would like to convene round tables using such technology.

Zoom and similar technologies are particularly well designed for a global network like ours.  At minimal expense, we can convene thoughtful leaders from around the world.  The internet, sadly, does not permit the personal exchanges, formal and informal, of gathering in a place, such as Mountain House in Caux, and which lead to new friendships and deeper learning from one another at tea breaks and during meals.

Our plan for these round tables is to propose topics and set reasonable dates and times for the discussions.  At first, I think we should open them to a limited number of participants.  We would ask those interested in participating to RSVP, with the first 25 to register to be admitted to the session.  We will send invitations to those so registered.  If a larger number would like to participate in that discussion, we would then consider convening a separate session later to accommodate their interest.

We now are thinking about a series of round tables on 1) the most important lessons learned from the coronavirus pandemic and 2) on the application of our principles going forward, as we adjust our global community to living with the virus and its potential mutations for some years to come.

We would like to have our round tables facilitate the drafting of proceedings on the topics discussed for subsequent distribution.

Please send us your suggestions regarding how best to structure such events and what topics you believe should be tabled for consideration by participants.

The Caux Round Table for Moral Capitalism (CRT) has resumed its podcasts. We interviewed Klaus Leisinger, the author of The Art of Leading, just published by the CRT and available on Amazon.

You can meet Klaus by watching above or watching the podcast here.

I think after watching the video, you’ll be inclined to get a copy of his book.

We live now in very trying times, which may continue for some time. Quite timely comes Klaus Leisinger with a book on the art of leadership. The Caux Round Table for Moral Capitalism is very honored to be authorized by Klaus to publish his new book, The Art of Leadership.

There are many trite phrases about the need for leadership in trying times: “When the going gets tough, the tough get going;” American philosopher William James advocated national service to serve the common good as the “moral equivalent of war.” “Be not afraid of greatness. Some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon ‘em.”

In his book, Klaus sets forth a practical agenda for every person to put into effect leadership skills. Klaus transposes the personal ideals which Erich Fromm notably articulated in his book, The Art of Loving.

Professor Jeffrey Sachs has written an endorsement and Professor Ulrich Lehner has kindly written a trenchant foreword. Prof. Lehner was Chairman of the Supervisory Boards of Deutsche Telekom and Thyssen-Krupp.

The paperback is available here.

The Kindle version is here.

In addition, Klaus has written a commentary on the requirements of good leadership, which you can read here.

Klaus is one of the best minds I know in business ethics. He is a Professor of sociology at the University of Basel. He worked for Novartis and served for many years as the Director of the Novartis Foundation, where I first met him. Klaus has advised the U.N. Global Compact and Hans Kung on ethical principles for global application.

You can learn more about Klaus here.

I invite you to read Klaus’s book and, if you enjoy it, please return to Amazon and leave a review.