ABSTRACT
The name plaques announcing those in attendance highlighted the significance of the moment. Arrayed around the UN’s semi-circular chamber in its New York headquarters were a powerful blend of business, NGOs and labour organizations, the architects of tomorrow’s world. Present of course were the most well-known corporate giants such as BP, the Ford Motor Corporation, Rio Tinto, Shell and Unilever. Accompanying them were some of the newly emerging corporate titans, such as the Brazilian communications corporation, Globo, the Indian conglomerate, Tata, and the South African utilities, Eskom. Also arrayed around the table were business’s traditional and new-found partners, including the mighty International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, Human Rights Watch and the World Wide Fund for Nature.
