GTI Forum
Contribution to GTI Forum Memoirs of Global Engagement
May 2025
Scholars and activists reflect on the how and why behind their efforts.
Allen White
Allen White is Vice President and Senior Fellow at the Tellus Institute, where he directs the institute’s Program on Corporate Redesign. He co-founded the Global Reporting Initiative and Corporation 2020, and founded the Global Initiative for Sustainability Ratings. He has advised multilateral organizations, foundations, government agencies, Fortune 500 companies, and NGOs on corporate sustainability, governance, and accountability. Dr. White has served on boards, advisory groups, and committees of the International Corporate Governance Network, Civic Capital, Instituto Ethos (Brazil), the New Economy Network, Business for Social Responsibility, and the Initiative for Responsible Investment at Harvard University. Dr. White has held faculty and research positions at the University of Connecticut, Clark University, and Battelle Laboratories and is a former Fulbright Scholar in Peru.
Selected Publications
GTI Forum
Opening essay for GTI Forum Corporations in the Crosshairs: From Reform to Redesign
December 2019
GTI Forum
Contribution to GTI Forum Corporations in the Crosshairs: From Reform to Redesign
December 2019
Roundtable
Contribution to GTI Roundtable On the Frontier of Human Rights
An exchange on the essay Human Rights: Advancing the Frontier of Emancipation
April 2018
Multinational corporations will continue to violate the human rights of workers and communities until a powerful, diverse global movement holds them accountable.
Roundtable
Contribution to GTI Roundtable Global Government Revisited
An exchange on the essay Global Government Revisited
October 2017
To get beyond the gradualism and timidity of today’s international institutions, we’ll need a robust global movement.
Review
April 2017
In Success and Luck, Robert Frank underscores the role of “dumb luck” in determining winners and losers, debunking the cherished myth of meritocracy. But how can we get the fortunate to share the spoils?
Roundtable
Contribution to GTI Roundtable “Ending Ecocide”
An exchange on the viewpoint Against Ecocide: Legal Protection for Earth
August 2016
Essay
July 2016
Social Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)—the analysis of social impacts spanning the complete value chain of a product or process—has never been more important than it is today for understanding and correcting widespread social injustices. In an increasingly interdependent world, we need to think and analyze systematically. Social LCA helps us expose in systemic fashion the social consequences of the dominant global development paradigm and, in so doing, has a vital role to play in redirecting global change towards a Great Transition future.
Roundtable
Contribution to GTI Roundtable “The Degrowth Debate”
An exchange on the viewpoint The Degrowth Alternative
February 2015
Perspectives
August 2010
The ascent of transnational corporations poses fundamental questions of accountability, regulation, and democratic process. Although their footprints cross continents, TNCs still operate under legal licenses granted by national or state authority. In order to rectify the incongruence between global impacts and state control, and to align corporate behavior with social and ecological purpose, we propose a World Corporate Charter Organization. By defining the obligations of TNCs, global charters would balance the current emphasis of international institutions, such as the World Trade Organization, on TNC rights. With public concern about corporate power on the rise, the moment is propitious for establishing transnational governance of transnational corporations, a precondition for attaining just and sustainable societies.
Paper Series
Allen White traces the genesis, growth, and evolution of the modern corporation and its role in wealth creation. He outlines a vision for the future of the corporation that reflects the core values of human solidarity, ecological sustainability, and quality of life. He then explores the way forward to realize such a values-based shift in the design and operation of the corporation.
