SBWL Responsibility and Sustainability in Global Business

New SBWL since summer term 2024/25

Details of the SBWL application for the winter term 2025/26:

• Application opens on August 28, 2025

• Enrollment via "1936 Access to Specialization: Responsibility and Sustainability in Global Business".

• first come first serve basis for 60 students

We look forward to working with you this coming semester!

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Watch the video below in which our professors Wendy Chapple and Christof Miska introduce you the most important aspects of the SBWL, and students from the very first cohort from 2024/25 share their experience and why they recommend choosing our specialization. 

Please note that the course structure presented in this video might slightly change in the upcoming semesters. To find the most up to date list, scroll down on this page to the chapter "What Do the Individual Courses look like?". 

Welcome to the RSGB Bachelor Program Specialization!

The RSGB specialization is located at the intersection of global business, sustainable management and corporate responsibility, focusing upon the role of business in tackling societal grand challenges and United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Central to this focus is understanding the complexity and interrelationships that emerge, both between systemic elements of sustainability (environment, social and economic) and between levels of analysis (global, regional, national, organizational and individual).

This complexity is further increased by the different disciplinary approaches used to understand business’ role in tackling societal grand challenges and the fact that the RSGB specialization will look at these complex relationships both from a comparative (e.g., differences across institutional contexts) and a cross-border perspective (e.g., the insight that effectively addressing societal grand challenges requires cross-national partnerships).

The focus is on international business strategies, behaviors and impact in response to global challenges. This includes:

• Assessing global-local tensions, to enable responsible and sustainable practices, which reflect local sustainability issues and stakeholder expectations.

• Understanding the implications of governance, stakeholder expectations and risk in decision-making processes but also the opportunities for transformation at both the organizational and societal levels.

• Recognizing the role of global business in societal transformation and the importance of “future proofing” organizations in respect to long term megatrends facing society, to enable business to evolve and meet the critical challenges to deliver true value across social, environmental, and economic dimensions.

• The role of purpose and value-driven leadership in sustainable and responsible business practice.

• How environmental, social, and governance factors (ESG) shape business agendas.

• The role of Equity, Inclusion & Diversity (EI&D) in helping global organizations to adapt to an ever faster changing socioeconomic and political context and in attracting talent from all walks of life.

Approach

The RSGB specialization adopts multi-level and multi-disciplinary approaches, to enable a holistic assessment of how global systems influence country context, organization decisions, strategies and operations of multinational companies. The specialization is committed to the values of interdisciplinarity and inclusivity, to inspire curiosity and exploration of the role of global business in the development of solutions to meet emerging local, regional, national and global needs.

Goals of the RSGB Specialization

Higher education is crucial to develop a workforce that understands both current and future sustainability challenges. This requires particular pedagogies to equip students with the skillset required. Students need to develop the skills and competencies to understand the complexities of sustainability. In fact, sustainability is often messy, uncertain, and difficult to model, with solutions often leading to unintended consequences, partly due to the high levels of interconnectivity between systems and elements associated with sustainability. However, as part of an educational process, solution-based thinking is key, but to educate on complexities so that solutions are not oversimplified.

Therefore, the RSGB specialization adopts a range of pedagogies, including real-world projects and experiential learning. After successfully finishing the RSGB Specialization, students have acquired a comprehensive understanding of the SDGs and the challenges of acting upon these, in addition to a range of applicable knowledge and skills required for an active and meaningful contribution to addressing the grand challenges of our time.

For all courses, the language of instruction is English.

What do the individual courses look like?

During the first semester of the program, students enroll in two foundational courses: Responsible Global Business Foundations and Current issues in Global Business, Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability. 

Semester 1: Foundational courses

C1 The fundamentals of Responsibility and Sustainability in Global Business (4 ECTS)

This course is a foundation course introducing the core concepts of sustainability and responsibility. Students are exposed to systems-level concepts, complexity and systems thinking. In addition, students study concepts of ethics and responsibility at the organizational and individual level. This provides the foundational theories and tools to navigate and understand complex global challenges facing organizations and managers in the global context.

C2 ESG Group Project - Quantitative Research (4 ECTS)

This course is designed for students to explore current issues in global business and sustainability.  It is based upon a range of different experiences, using innovative methodologies such as service-learning approaches, 3-D learning, experiential learning, and mentoring to develop solutions to current challenges facing businesses, NGOs, and SMEs. In addition, as part of this course, students engage with current research conducted within the institute. This involves coverage of various research themes and approaches within the responsibility and sustainability field.

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During the second semester of the program, students choose three electives from a wide variety of available elective courses. 

Semester 2: Elective courses 1-3 (4 ECTS each)   

E1: Sustainability context and systems

• Sustainable Development across Societies

• Systems of Governance and Sustainability in the International Context

E2: Organizational sustainability landscape

• CSR, Sustainability and Global Competitiveness

• Sustainability and Innovation

• Sustainability Communication: Building narrative agency

E3: Individual Responsibility, ethics and sustainable mindset 

• Sustainability Capabilities

• Responsible Global Leadership

• Decision Making for Responsible International Business

Global Mindset Label - 10 ECTS

For your further information:
The RSGB-I SBWL has got the GM Label – Global Mindset Label 10 ECTS

**Global Mindset as a Success Factor - BAWISO23 - Business and Social Sciences**

- In the course catalog, the relevant courses are marked with the pink "GM" label.
- As WISO students, you will earn 4 of the 10 ECTS through the CBK course "Global Business."

The GM Label promotes a global mindset, which is crucial for success in today's business world. Students have the opportunity to enhance their knowledge and skills in the area of global mindset through specific courses.

Any questions?

Please contact us.