Interesting discussion between ESG guru Robert G. Eccles and Jan Peter Balkenende on Forbes.com

Jan Peter Balkenende looking at the camera whilst sitting
Jan Peter Balkenende sitting whilst looking at the camera
Jan Peter Balkenende
Erasmus School of Law

On 4 November 2022, leading authority on corporate purpose and sustainability, Professor Robert G. Eccles, delivered the Piet Sanders Lecture.

One of the attendants was Jan Peter Balkenende, Professor of Governance, Institutions and Internationalisation of Erasmus School of Economics and Erasmus School of Law. After the lecture the two kept in contact and Eccles asked Balkenende if he would be willing to do an interview. Jan Peter Balkenende kindly agreed.

Dutch Sustainable Growth Coalition

In the interview on the website Forbes.com, Eccles and Balkenende discuss amongst other things the work of the Dutch Sustainable Growth Coalition (DSGC), which is chaired by Balkenende.

3D wedding cakechart of the sustainable development goals
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

The aim of this CEO-led coalition of 8 Dutch multinational corporations is to drive sustainable growth business models that combine economic profitability with environmental and social progress and in that way contribute to the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

About Jan Peter Balkenende

Jan Peter Balkenende is Professor of Governance, Institutions and Internationalisation at Erasmus School of Economics and Erasmus School of Law since December 2010. He retired in December last year. Before that, he was Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 2002-2010.

During the four preceding years, he served as chairman of the CDA parliamentary party in the Dutch House of Representatives. In October 2022, Jan Peter Balkenende became Minister of State by Royal Decree.

Profile shot of Robert G. Eccles
Robert G. Eccles

About Robert G. Eccles

Robert G. Eccles is a leading authority on integrating environmental, social, and governance factors in resource allocation decisions by companies and investors, as well as the world’s foremost academic experts on integrand reporting. Corporate reporting is a topic intertwined in many of Eccles’ research, managerial practice, and public policy perspective.

As a Senior Advisor at Boston Consulting Group, Visiting Professor of Management Practice at Oxford University, and Chair of the KKR’s Sustainability Expert Advisory Council, Eccles continues to display his expertise in a meaningful way to our generation.

Additional information

You can watch the 2022-edition of the Piet Sanders lecture by Robert G. Eccles on Youtube. In his keynote Eccles argues for bridging the ideological gap to ensure a successful future of sustainability reporting and sustainable investing. In addition, he offers perspective on the future of sustainability reporting standards, drawing lessons from financial reporting.

More information

For more information, please contact Ronald de Groot, Media & Public Relations Officer at Erasmus School of Economics: rdegroot@ese.eur.nl and +31 6 53 641 846.

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