David Grayson recently gave an interview to Toby Webb from Ethical Corporation on the development of teaching CSR at universities. David has quite an interesting background: He has been involved in CSR for quite some time, convincing businesses to integrate sustainability and social issues in their agenda. He has also been a social entrepreneur, involved in successful projects such as Housing21 and is still active in the Business in the Community.  In the podcast a lot of hot issues are touched upon. Amongst others, David discusses the critique that business schools have focused too much on shareholder value approaches. He also elaborates on the changes in business schools during recent years, such as the integration of the principles of responsible management education or the Beyond Grey Pinstripes survey.

The podcast is definitely a ‘Must Hear’. It illustrates well the CSR discussions and issues that education institutions face. You can listen to it here. What do you think about the points that David raises? He gives several examples from the UK, but I guess these are equally relevant to Europe as well.

CSR is not just a business issue; it’s an overall issue. Our future managers need considerable education in CSR in order to stand up to the latest developments and civil society demands. We have been trying to contribute to a different education in business schools by supporting the Ashridge Sustainable Innovation Award together with EABIS and WWF. Our goal is to get post-graduate students to think about how we need to be innovative today in order to create a low-carbon economy for tomorrow. A jury is currently reviewing the best essays submitted for the Ashridge Sustainable Innovation Award and we will announce the winners in the Autumn. You can read more about the award here.

Enjoy listening to the podcast.

Jeannette Weisschuh, Director Global Citizenship, HP EMEA