⚖️ Ethics & ESG — Map of Content
Business ethics is the application of ethical principles to commercial activity. ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) is how those principles get operationalized in modern corporations.
Covered at: All programs — mandatory ethics core
⚖️ Business Ethics
- Ethical Frameworks — Consequentialism, deontology, virtue ethics applied to business
- Stakeholder Theory — Freeman: businesses serve more than shareholders
- Shareholder Primacy vs. Stakeholder Capitalism — Friedman vs. Freeman debate
- Corporate Governance — Board structure, executive pay, accountability
- Whistleblowing — When loyalty conflicts with ethics
🌱 Environmental (E)
- Climate Risk and Business — Physical and transition risks
- Carbon Pricing — Cap-and-trade vs. carbon tax
- Circular Economy — Moving beyond take-make-dispose
- Net Zero Strategies — Corporate decarbonization paths
🤝 Social (S)
- Diversity, Equity & Inclusion — Business case for DEI
- Supply Chain Ethics — Labor standards, responsible sourcing
- Corporate Social Responsibility — CSR strategy and measurement
- Social Impact Measurement — B Corp, SROI, impact investing
🏛️ Governance (G)
- Corporate Governance — Board independence, audit committees
- Executive Compensation — Pay-for-performance design
- Shareholder Activism — How activists create or destroy value
- Anti-Corruption & Compliance — FCPA, UK Bribery Act
📊 ESG in Investment
- ESG Ratings — MSCI, Sustainalytics — how they work and their limits
- Impact Investing — Targeting measurable social/environmental outcomes
- Green Finance — Green bonds, sustainability-linked loans
📚 Essential Books
- The Value of Everything — Mariana Mazzucato
- Stakeholder Capitalism — Klaus Schwab
- ESG Investing for Dummies — Brendan Bradley
- This Changes Everything — Naomi Klein
🏫 School Spotlights
- Stanford GSB: Leading in social entrepreneurship; PACS program
- HBS: BGIE course covers global political economy; ESG electives
- Wharton: Business ethics as core; Wharton Social Impact Initiative
📚 Case Studies
- Apple vs FBI
- BP Deepwater Horizon
- Chiquita Paramilitary Payments
- Facebook Cambridge Analytica
- Johnson and Johnson Tylenol Recall
- Nike Sweatshop Crisis
- Patagonia Environmental Activism
- Purdue Pharma and Opioids
- Unilever Sustainable Living Plan
- Volkswagen Emissions Scandal
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