ABSTRACT
A recent study by two deans of the RAND Graduate School observed that publicprivate partnerships “are the rage in the government, business, and nonprofit worlds alike” (Klitgaard & Treverton, 2003, p. 6). At the international level at least, the response in the past decade to the participation of the private sector in policy-making has been a resounding “yes.” This view has been perhaps best exemplified (and encouraged) by the creation by Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN) Kofi Annan of a “Global Compact” among business, governments, civil society, and the UN. First announced in 1999, the Global Compact is a voluntary initiative designed “to promote responsible corporate citizenship so that business can be part of the solution to the challenges of globalization” (Global Compact, 2005b, para. 2). Private companies that wish to participate do so by declaring their acceptance of 10 principles in the areas of human rights, labor standards, the environment, and anticorruption. By 2005, the compact had over 2,400 participants and nearly 50 country networks, and, in September 2005, it was announced that a new governance framework would be adopted to provide “greater focus, transparency, and sustained impact” (Global Compact, 2005a, p. 1; see also Nowrot, 2005). The new structure will include a nonprofit foundation that will have the ability to receive voluntary contributions and fund Global Compact events and publications.
