EDISON, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--CR Magazine's COMMIT!Forum, the largest gathering of professionals working to improve corporate responsibility, has announced a groundbreaking debate on the value of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). In the Oxford-style debate, two teams will present their cases for and against the resolution, “RESOLVED that when companies expend resources on corporate responsibility and sustainability they destroy economic value.”
The team supporting the resolution will have Gerry Sullivan, Portfolio Manager of the VICE Fund (VICEX - www.usamutuals.com) and Dr. Aneel Karnani, Associate Professor of Strategy at the Michigan Ross School of Business. Mr. Sullivan’s fund selects well-performing stocks of tobacco, alcohol, gaming, and weapons/defense companies because they believe “vice” industries tend to thrive regardless of the economy as a whole. Dr. Karnani wrote a widely-read Op-Ed in the Wall Street Journal entitled "The Case Against Corporate Social Responsibility."
Opposing the resolution will be Paul Herman, Chief Executive and Chief Investment Officer of HIP Investments (www.HIPinvestor.com), a leading socially responsible investment firm, and Dr. Vinay Nair, Adjunct Associate Professor of Finance and Economics at the Columbia Business School. Dr. Nair founded Ada Investments (www.adainvestments.com) and authored Investing for Change on the use of social variables in investment management. Mr. Herman invented “HIP = (Human Impact + Profit)” to connect for-profit investors seeking positive human, social and environmental impacts and financial returns with investments designed to deliver those intended results.
The debate will be held at the Javits Center in New York City at 1:45pm ET on Monday, September 26th, as part of the groundbreaking COMMIT!Forum (www.commitforum.com), which will convene an international group of thought leaders in the corporate responsibility field. The Forum, hosted by CR Magazine in partnership with the New York Stock Exchange and multiple non-governmental organizations—including the Global Reporting Initiative and the US Green Building Council—opens with this debate and continues through Sept 27th with multiple discussions on how companies can improve their role in society.
The COMMIT!Forum 2011 engages leaders in all major corporate stakeholder groups— Corporate executives, CR practitioners, governments, investors, NGOs, academics, suppliers, media, and customers—bringing together over 650 participants for two days of high-powered networking sessions, interactive case studies, concrete solutions to CR challenges, and practical tools. Add your voice this important event. Register at www.commitforum.com and receive 50% off with ID Code “CRPR50”.
About the COMMIT!Forum www.commitforum.com The COMMIT!Forum, calls people to commit to changing the world. How? By inspiring, educating, and engaging them in ways that prepare them to make the commitments necessary to change themselves and their organizations. The path to COMMIT, which began on March 2nd at the New York Stock Exchange with the announcement of the 12th Annual CR 100 Best Corporate Citizens List, culminates September 26-27 in New York City and continues well beyond through commitments people make there.
About CR Magazine www.thecro.com CR Magazine is the only print publication covering the full range of corporate responsibility, providing decision-makers with the data and insights they need to maximize their positive impact while reducing or eliminating the negative. CR covers case studies, best practices, and trends across the CR field: a) governance, b) environmental sustainability c) employee relations, d) human rights, e) financial performance, and f) philanthropy.