Sustainability challenges facing businesses

MINNEAPOLIS — Dr. Klaus Leisinger, chair of the Switzerland-based Novartis Foundation for Sustainable Development, will discuss “Global Challenges in Business and Corporate Responsibility” at a 4:30 p.m. program Tuesday, April 30, in the Thornton Auditorium of Terrence Murphy Hall on the downtown Minneapolis campus of the University of St. Thomas.

The program marks the 35th anniversary of the St. Thomas-based Center for Ethical Business Cultures (CEBC), established by Minnesota business leaders, and the 20th year of the Annual Stakeholder Dialogue, sponsored by the university’s Opus College of Business.

The program is free and open to the public but advance registration is required. To register, visit http://www.cebcglobal.org/index.php?/events/details/global-challenges-in-business-corporate-responsibility or email the center at [email protected].

Leisinger has led the Novartis Foundation for more than 30 years and will discuss the ethical and social challenges of expanding a business in developing nations. He is an adviser to the CEO of Novartis, which had $56 billion in sales last year, and to international organizations such as the World Bank and World Economic Forum.

Leisinger’s remarks will be followed by comments from a panel that includes Michael Balay, vice president of strategy and business development at Cargill, and Bradley Buck, senior director of operations and corporate engagement for Land O’Lakes International Development.

The program will run from 4:30 to 6 p.m. and will be followed by a reception.

Co-sponsors of the program are the Center for Ethical Business Cultures, the Koch Endowed Chair in Business Ethics and the Veritas Institute, all based at the Opus College of Business.

CEBC, located at the Opus College of Business at the University of St. Thomas, assists business leaders in creating ethical and profitable business cultures at the enterprise, community and global levels.  The center provides ethical leadership training and consulting, public programs, works with students, and conducts research on ethical culture.  CEBC published a landmark history of corporate responsibility in 2012 titled Corporate Responsibility: The American Experience.