ABSTRACT
Stakeholder engagement is essential for business. In all markets, most companies benefit from peace and stability, while severe social discord or violent conflict is damaging to sustainability. This chapter practically illustrates how stakeholder engagement can support conflict reduction and peacemaking in conflict-affected markets (and even generally peaceful countries) through corporate peacemaking (CPM). This is highly relevant in our era of global crises, such as climate change, pandemics, and energy crises fuelling societal stress. Core concepts in stakeholder theory, and various pragmatic, real-life, and normative corporate peacemaking strategies are outlined, alongside some key challenges, risks, and opportunities. Case studies and scenarios from around the world, tools, detailed session plans, additional creative learning activities and assessment tasks, and further readings are included. Successful, ethical, and good corporate peacemaking can help build more resilient, peaceful communities and stronger relations with and between a company’s stakeholders. It can demonstrate corporate responsibility while protecting the company and its reputation. This chapter particularly contributes to Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16 while indicating links to additional global challenges, such as the environment and climate change (SDG 13).
