Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is high on the research and policy agenda. Globalization put pressure on corporations to meet the expectation of society that corporations achieve the efficient use of society’s resources and maximizing human well-being. Social responsibility by companies might go beyond short-term economic efficiency due to the fact that societal needs are not otherwise adequately addressed, negative externalities are significant, distributive concerns exist such as the effect of international trade on workers or –most recently- the economic effects due to the global financial crises are significant. From this perspective social responsibility arises from the needs and legitimate concerns of individuals and society, and business must assess those needs and concerns to determine the extent of its responsibility.

The conference will focus on key issues related to the most current discussion on CSR.  For instance: (1) How do companies interact with a number of constituencies, including employees, suppliers, customers, the communities in which it operates, and the public in general?  (2) How is corporate social performance related to corporate financial performance or, put it differently, could doing good be connected to doing well? (3) How do different corporate governance systems motivate CSR-policies? (4) Why are some companies socially responsive by acting in proportion to the pressure its faces while other companies are socially responsible to avoid moral infringements or breaches of duties?

The conference will bring together the best minds in the field of CSR from Asia and elsewhere. It is the first  joint conference of Peking University and Humboldt-University and will take place bi-annually in close coordination with the global International Conference on CSR at Humboldt-University Berlin.