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Black and white photo of Thomas Hickmann. Photo.

Thomas Hickmann

Associate Professor | Associate Senior Lecturer

Black and white photo of Thomas Hickmann. Photo.

Das Verhältnis von Nichtregierungsorganisationen und privaten Unternehmen in der globalen Umwelt‑, Menschenrechts- und Sicherheitspolitik

The Relationship between Non-Governmental Organizations and Private Corporations in Global Environmental, Human Rights, and Security Politics

Author

  • Thomas Hickmann
  • Berenike Prem

Summary, in English

There is a widespread consensus in the literature that the relationship between non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and private corporations has broadened over time. And yet there is a dearth of comparative studies on the interaction between both types of actors across different policy fields. Common structures and trends thus remain underexposed. To address this gap, the present article examines the relationship between NGOs and the corporate sector in global environmental, human rights and security politics. The analysis reveals some policy field-specific features in the relationship between NGOs and business. For instance, NGO campaigns that target the private security industry turn out relatively tame. At the same time, we find support for an emerging pattern across policy fields insofar as NGOs have gradually broadened their repertoire of action in their attempt to push firms to meet social norms. NGOs increasingly act as co-regulators by joining forces with business representatives in multi-stakeholder initiatives that set rules for business conduct, monitor compliance and help firms implement their commitments. We suggest that this transformation can be captured by the diffusion of a global script that spells out an expectation to include private actors into solving global challenges.

Publishing year

2021

Language

German

Pages

193-216

Publication/Series

Zeitschrift für Politikwissenschaft

Volume

31

Issue

2

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

Springer

Topic

  • Political Science

Keywords

  • Human rights politics
  • Non-governmental organisations
  • Private corporations
  • Environmental politics
  • Security politics
  • Global script

Status

Published

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 1430-6387