New report charts Faculty of Business and Law impact

In December 2019, The University of Northampton’s Faculty of Business and Law became a signatory of the UN (United Nations) Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME), which serves as a global network for leading business schools to collaborate on shared sustainability aspirations globally, and to create positive collective impact.

The UN PRME has a mission to transform management education through research, and thought leadership globally, by providing the Principles for Responsible Management Education framework, developing learning communities, and future responsible decision-makers, and promoting awareness about the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The UN PRME and the University’s commitment to Transform Lives and Inspire Change through our Changemaker ethos both support and amplify each other. The University of Northampton is pleased to submit the first Share Information on Progress (SIP) report, which reflects on our work over the last two years.

In this progress report, the Faculty of Business and Law, and several departments across the University reflect on the academic, research, and student experience developments at the heart of the Faculty’s activities in support of the SDGs, as well as the wider University activities. The report provides a careful alignment of these activities with the six UN Principles.

Professor Amin Hosseinian-Far, Professor of Systems Thinking, Chair of Centre for Sustainable Business Practices, which leads on the UON PRME activities for the Faculty said: “This report reflects our efforts, contributions, and progression with the six UN PRME principles, as well as focusing our attention on the direction of travel.

“Throughout the Faculty and across the University, we are focused on enhancing our understanding of sustainability and responsible business management, and sets the tone for our strategic approach to the integration of the principles into curriculum, research, service, and the way we support the community.”

You can read the Share Information on Progress (SIP) report here.

The University of Northampton is committed to the six UN Principles for Responsible Management Education (UNPRME):

Principle 1 – Purpose: We will develop the capabilities of students to be future generators of sustainable value for business and society at large and to work for an inclusive and sustainable global economy.

Principle 2 – Values: We will incorporate into our academic activities, curricula, and organisational practices the values of global social responsibility as portrayed in international initiatives such as the United Nations Global Compact.

Principle 3 – Method: We will create educational frameworks, materials, processes and environments that enable effective learning experiences for responsible leadership.

Principle 4 – Research: We will engage in conceptual and empirical research that advances our understanding about the role, dynamics, and impact of corporations in the creation of sustainable social, environmental and economic value.

Principle 5 – Partnership: We will interact with managers of business corporations to extend our knowledge of their challenges in meeting social and environmental responsibilities and to explore jointly effective approaches to meeting these challenges.

Principle 6 – Dialogue: We will facilitate and support dialogue and debate among educators, students, business, government, consumers, media, civil society organisations and other interested groups and stakeholders on critical issues related to global social responsibility and sustainability.