Business Council for the United Nations

he Business Council for the United Nations
Business Solutions for a Better World

The Business Council for the United Nations (BCUN) is a catalyst for action, understanding and innovative business opportunities between member companies and the United Nations. Through its network of partnerships in economic development, health, education, and technology, the Council advances the common interest of both the UN and the business community working toward a more prosperous and peaceful world.

In this era of globalization, it is becoming increasingly more important to engage business and industry leaders with the vital work of the United Nations. Every day corporations are increasingly engaging in efforts to help combat poverty, hunger and disease while providing vital support and opportunities for the education for millions across the globe. The United Nations is leading the world in these efforts in setting international policies and standards to make our world a better and safer place for all. The goal of the Business Council for the United Nations is to provide our members with unique opportunities to directly connect with the United Nations and its extended network of organizations and country representatives working in areas of interest to them and their companies.

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Upcoming BCUN and UNA-USA events include:

UNA-USA Global Leadership Awards Dinner
UNA-USA's long-standing annual gala honors individuals and corporations for outstanding leadership in furthering the purposes of the United Nations Charter. BCUN members will have the opportunity to upgrade their table levels prior to the general mailing of invitations.

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The Business Council for the United Nations is proud to announce the "United Nations and Corporate Global Issues Breakfast Series". These breakfast discussions will cover international corruption, global warming and the private sector, a discussion with the new United Nations Secretary-General and an exploration of the impact of global health on corporate activities. The breakfast discussions will concentrate on how key issues of our time impact the corporate community's bottom line. Details of each breakfast will be posted as they are available. Please contact BCUN for more information on the series!

The Business Council for the United Nations (BCUN), in collaboration with the Association for a Better New York, held a breakfast welcoming Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to the city of New York on January 10th. This was the Secretary-General's first public engagement since taking office on the first of this year. There were approximately two hundred and fifty guests in attendance at the breakfast, which was held at the Grand Hyatt. As the audience was largely made up of corporate representatives, the Secretary-General spoke to the importance of business and the United Nations working together. Ban stated "The United Nations and business need each other. We need your innovation, your initiative, your technological prowess. But business also needs the United Nations. In a very real sense, the work of the United Nations can be viewed as seeking to create the ideal enabling environment within which business can thrive." Ban also emphasized the need for companies to be corporately and socially responsible, particularly through joining the United Nations Global Compact. "The Compact has become the world's largest voluntary corporate citizenship initiative, with 3,000 business participants from more than 100 countries…The Compact works with business to respect human rights, to ensure safe workplace conditions, to exercise environmental care and to practice good corporate governance." All in all, Secretary-General Ban's remarks were full of optimism concerning strengthening the relationship between the United Nations and not only the city of New York, but also with the United States. This breakfast was part of BCUN's "UN and Corporate Global Issues Breakfast Series".