Reducing inequalities in society is needed for human dignity and for more peace, stability and sustainable economic development. The Global Ethics Forum Conference on 3-5 January 2014 at IIMB in Bengaluru, with experts from all continents, called for more "Equality in an Unequal World".
"The private sector can and has to play an important role in contributing to equality in creating jobs, offering fair remuneration and gender equality", said Mr. Shibulal, CEO and Co- Founder of Infosys and Co-Chair of the Global Ethics Forum.
"We live in a world of contradictions, especially so in India where we have 1 million engineers but 16 million kids who are not in school; 70 per cent of our healthcare facilities are in cities while 70 per cent of our population lives in villages and small towns. Hence inequality as a theme of the conference is very relevant. We should look at combining profits and principles to create progress," he said in his opening remarks on Friday (January 3).
Ms. Kumud Srinivasan, President of Intel India, underlined the need for cooperation of the private, public and NGO sector in addressing inequalities. In her presentation titled 'Doing the Right Thing Right', Ms. Srinivasan explained why 'the rising tide (of growth) is not lifting all boats'.
"At best, inequality is demotivating; at worst it is dangerously destabilizing. We need to focus on inclusive growth by leveling the playing field. We can achieve this with technology in the hands of all, good governance for sustainability, innovation and social entrepreneurship for prosperity, and public private partnerships," she observed.
Ambassador Walter Fust, International President of Globethics.net, requested that "an ethical benchmark for technological and societal innovation and transformation is if it contributes to equality and inclusion or increases exclusion".
Earlier in the day, Professor Devanath Tirupati, Director In-charge IIMB, welcomed the rich mix of academics, industry heads, NGOs and policy makers from across the world to the Global Ethics Forum 2014, hosted by IIMB.
"For the first time ever, the Global Ethics Forum has been hosted outside Geneva, and IIMB is proud to host such a significant meet. The theme of the conference resonates very well with IIMB's own priorities over the last decade. IIMB recognized fairly early the importance of ethics in management studies. We were the first business school in the country to set up an inter-disciplinary centre such as the Centre for Corporate Governance and Citizenship (CCGC)," he said.
He hoped the three-day conference would help in formulating policy and operational prescriptions based on data and sound theory which, he declared, "could only come out from a forum such as this".
Professor Vasanthi Srinivasan, Chairperson, CCGC, IIMB, and Professor Christoph Stückelberger, Executive Director, Globethics.net, said the plenary sessions and the work groups would draw lessons from China, Europe, Africa, Latin America about ways to deal with equalities and inequalities.
The Forum looked for the contribution to equality in concrete sectors such as gender equality, sharing economy as new economic models, fair trade relations of BRICS countries especially with Africa, more transparency in religious organizations, equal access to natural resources, new ways of holistic business education, spirituality for sustainability, innovation ethics, ethical principles, the role of small and medium enterprises and of social media.
Special attention was given to fair trade relations between China, India and Africa, with the presence of a Chinese delegation of entrepreneurs, academics and public officials in Bengaluru. The Forum also discussed Globethics.net 'Principles of Equality'. They underline "the need for equality combined with sustainability and the respect of diversity since equality does not mean uniformity", as Teodorina Lessidrenska from Globethics.-net said.
Reducing inequalities in society is needed for human dignity and for more peace, stability and sustainable economic development. The Global Ethics Forum Conference on 3-5 January 2014 at IIMB in Bengaluru, with experts from all continents, called for more "Equality in an Unequal World".
"The private sector can and has to play an important role in contributing to equality in creating jobs, offering fair remuneration and gender equality", said Mr. Shibulal, CEO and Co- Founder of Infosys and Co-Chair of the Global Ethics Forum.
"We live in a world of contradictions, especially so in India where we have 1 million engineers but 16 million kids who are not in school; 70 per cent of our healthcare facilities are in cities while 70 per cent of our population lives in villages and small towns. Hence inequality as a theme of the conference is very relevant. We should look at combining profits and principles to create progress," he said in his opening remarks on Friday (January 3).
Ms. Kumud Srinivasan, President of Intel India, underlined the need for cooperation of the private, public and NGO sector in addressing inequalities. In her presentation titled 'Doing the Right Thing Right', Ms. Srinivasan explained why 'the rising tide (of growth) is not lifting all boats'.
"At best, inequality is demotivating; at worst it is dangerously destabilizing. We need to focus on inclusive growth by leveling the playing field. We can achieve this with technology in the hands of all, good governance for sustainability, innovation and social entrepreneurship for prosperity, and public private partnerships," she observed.
Ambassador Walter Fust, International President of Globethics.net, requested that "an ethical benchmark for technological and societal innovation and transformation is if it contributes to equality and inclusion or increases exclusion".
Earlier in the day, Professor Devanath Tirupati, Director In-charge IIMB, welcomed the rich mix of academics, industry heads, NGOs and policy makers from across the world to the Global Ethics Forum 2014, hosted by IIMB.
"For the first time ever, the Global Ethics Forum has been hosted outside Geneva, and IIMB is proud to host such a significant meet. The theme of the conference resonates very well with IIMB's own priorities over the last decade. IIMB recognized fairly early the importance of ethics in management studies. We were the first business school in the country to set up an inter-disciplinary centre such as the Centre for Corporate Governance and Citizenship (CCGC)," he said.
He hoped the three-day conference would help in formulating policy and operational prescriptions based on data and sound theory which, he declared, "could only come out from a forum such as this".
Professor Vasanthi Srinivasan, Chairperson, CCGC, IIMB, and Professor Christoph Stückelberger, Executive Director, Globethics.net, said the plenary sessions and the work groups would draw lessons from China, Europe, Africa, Latin America about ways to deal with equalities and inequalities.
The Forum looked for the contribution to equality in concrete sectors such as gender equality, sharing economy as new economic models, fair trade relations of BRICS countries especially with Africa, more transparency in religious organizations, equal access to natural resources, new ways of holistic business education, spirituality for sustainability, innovation ethics, ethical principles, the role of small and medium enterprises and of social media.
Special attention was given to fair trade relations between China, India and Africa, with the presence of a Chinese delegation of entrepreneurs, academics and public officials in Bengaluru. The Forum also discussed Globethics.net 'Principles of Equality'. They underline "the need for equality combined with sustainability and the respect of diversity since equality does not mean uniformity", as Teodorina Lessidrenska from Globethics.-net said.