Institute for Business in Society

In less than five years, Myanmar coffee went from a low-grade commodity to a high-value specialty sold for premium prices globally. Through training in farming, expertise and training itself — as well as attention to both the supply and demand sides of a market — Value Chains for Rural Development helped farmers and others across the value chain.

A group of prominent CEOs recently issued a statement encouraging business to create value for all stakeholders, not limited to investors. Ed Freeman and his colleagues have been working with Stakeholder Theory for decades. Here, Darden professors across disciplines offer examples of how businesses can (or already are) prioritizing stakeholders.

Environmental conservation and economic development can both be sustainable — and are not mutually exclusive. The Andean bear is a symbol of the potential for the multiple wins of preserving land and growing incomes in Colombia, where Conservamos la Vida serves as an example of a public-private partnership improving the world.

Haiti is one of the lowest income nations worldwide. Though the government provides many public health care clinics, they’re under-resourced. One public-private partnership is working to deliver sustainable primary care to low-income families through a social enterprise model.

What’s an employee to do when her employer asks her to stray from her values? In this Case in Point, Mary Gentile, Steven Mintz and William F. Miller examine a complex situation in the tricky setting of taxes and the cannabis business.

What is socially responsible investing? Is its increasing momentum sustainable? And are international commitments to ESG practices making an impact? Darden Professors Mary Margaret Frank and Pedro Matos discuss issues related to this popular phenomenon.

Legislation on “opportunity zones” is intended to encourage investment in economically distressed communities by providing significant tax incentives to investors. Professor Mary Margaret Frank and alumnus Ben Cullop (MBA ’11) explain how this new program works and what its repercussions may be.

Why might the digital space be a better place to practice how we can be ready to voice our values? Darden Professor Mary Gentile and Debra Newcomer of Nomadic Learning offer insights on the importance of values-driven leadership development and leveraging online tools.

The sourcing, manufacturing and logistics within corporate supply chains can benefit from partnerships with governments and nonprofit organizations. These joint endeavors support a range of social and business objectives by employing the expertise and assets of multiple sectors.

Economic inequality may be one of the defining challenges of our time. Income mobility has decreased, and the reinforcing loops of economic and opportunity inequality correlate with health and societal harms. What will happen as artificial intelligence rises and human employment decreases?