Big business, whose lust for profit is seen as anathema to sustainable development, must contribute to next month’s global summit on poverty and the environment, the man leading corporate interests there said. Mark Moody-Stuart, former chairman of Anglo-Dutch oil giant Royal Dutch/Shell, told Reuters in an interview late on Tuesday that business was essential if the United Nations World Summit on Sustainable Development next month is to succeed.
"You can’t have sustainable development without business, it’s just not practical," said Mr Moody-Stuart, chairman of Business Action for Sustainable Development, a group set up to promote business interests at the Johannesburg summit.
Some business lobby groups argue that by investing in society and improving the environment, firms can save money and boost productivity while improving their image. "Over the last 10 years or so, business has come to realise that it’s not just a question of the economic impact, but the environmental and the social benefits...are very important," Mr Moody-Stuart said. But critics counter that little has been done since the last Earth summit in Rio 10 years ago and that big companies are just engaging in "greenwash" -- using an environmentally friendly veneer to disguise continued poor practice.
One instance is the UN Global Compact, a development accord between business and the United Nations, seen as giving big companies the UN stamp of approval without a monitoring mechanism to ensure compliance with the compact’s principles. "Accusations of greenwash you have to look at...case by case. If there are companies doing that, then there are lots of people watching and there will be people accusing them...then, the accusation can be examined in the court of public opinion," Mr Moody-Stuart said. Pressure groups like US-based CorpWatch are urging more should be done. They argue that active monitoring, rather than self regulation by companies, is needed to stop greenwash. "Is there a role for a body outside companies looking at what companies and individuals do? Absolutely, and it’s called government," said Mr Moody-Stuart. "You clearly need global governance structures for certain global things, for climate for example... (and) to regulate trade...but day-to-day business happens in countries and what you need is local governance.