Twenty years, nineteen international conferences, far beyond thousand authors

Dear IRDO 19th International Conference Parrticipants,

What does it mean, if somebody mentions SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE SOCIETY? This question was not asked more than twenty years ago, when Anita Hrast found the concept of SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY crucial for Slovenia too. There were a few books on it and a document by European Union of 2001, not much more. And there was Prof. Dr. Jožica Knez Riedl, a pioneering author on the topic at the University of Maribor, Faculty of Economics and Business. Anita visited Jožica to discuss the topic. While waiting for Jožica, because Anita came there early, Anita invited me to join her effort to promote social responsibility. I felt this might be interesting next step after my many decades of work on systems theory as a methodology of requisite holism (replacing one-sidedness and related failures) and decades of work on (non-technological) innovation processes. Yes, it was and is so: social responsibility is an innovation process toward a more holistic behaviour, aimed at helping humankind find a new socio-economic situation after the current global crisis that is caused by neo-liberal narrow-minded monopolism.

We needed conferences to collect and develop knowledge and values, culture, ethics and norms (VCEN) of social responsibility. Here we are.

The document called ISO 26000:2010 was and is a global basis. But in its tittle, it is limiting social responsibility to corporations and organizations only, and their free will to reach beyond narrow and short-term results.

Anita, Jožica and myself wrote earlier that we do not support limitations: market is crucial, of course, but it works better with legal support. We did not find the latter. We found rather a quite partial acceptance of social responsibility. And our library research found no book titled SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE SOCIETY. This is what we are investigating now – and you, participant of our 19th conference are helping us. Thank you very much.

We have to mention also several colleagues, how in decades ago started to research sustainability and social responsibility. They are for sure Prof. Emer. Dr. Peter Glavič, who started research at University of Maribor more then 20 years ago and joined our conference as co-editor several years ago too. Dr. Darja Piciga started with environmental issues and systemic perspectives also decades ago – with her work at Slovenian government and NGO’s. She did great work with coordination of Slovene government, business, and NGO’s authors, but international partners as well. At the conference this year her colleagues will present the Slovenian Great Leap for a green transition and well-being of all - the Slovenian response to the 2022 report Earth for All by the Club of Rome, Homes for Humanity Earth-wide accelerating the “Giant Leap”, learning for sustainability and green transition, climate change adaptation and systems innovation.

Prof. Dr. Igor Perko took over editorial coordination for scientific part of the conference and collaborates with us also more than 10 years. More then 1000 authors from all over the world co-created IRDO International conference – a hybrid conference, because it creates a collaboration between science and business, government and NGO’s, society and individuals, nature and business, etc.

Thak you for joining us and you are kindly invited to participate as author also next year, when we will celebrate 20th anniversary of IRDO international conference.

Wish you all the best and thank you for your collaboration again!

In the name of Programme and Organizational Boards of the conference

Matjaž Mulej

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Dvajset let, devetnajst mednarodnih konferenc, daleč več kot tisoč avtorjev

Dragi udeleženci in udeleženke 10. IRDO mednarodne konference,

Kaj pomeni, če nekdo omenja DRUŽBENO ODGOVORNO DRUŽBO? To vprašanje ni bilo zastavljeno pred več kot dvajsetimi leti, ko se je Aniti Hrast koncept DRUŽBENE ODGOVORNOSTI zdel ključen tudi za Slovenijo. O njej je bilo zapisanih nekaj knjig in dokument Evropske unije iz leta 2001, ne veliko več. In tu je bila prof. dr. Jožica Knez Riedl, pionirska avtorica na to temo na Ekonomsko-poslovni fakulteti Univerze v Mariboru. Anita je obiskala Jožico, da bi razpravljala o tej temi. Medtem ko je čakala na Jožico, ker je Anita tja prišla prezgodaj, me je Anita srečala v sosednjem kabinetu in po krajšem pogovoru povabila, da se pridružim njenim prizadevanjem za spodbujanje družbene odgovornosti. To bi lahko bil zanimiv naslednji korak po mojih desetletjih dela na sistemski teoriji kot metodologiji potrebnega holizma (ki nadomešča enostranskost in z njo povezane neuspehe) in desetletjih dela na (netehnoloških) inovacijskih procesih, sem pomislil.

Da, bilo je in je tako: družbena odgovornost je inovacijski proces v smeri bolj celostnega vedenja, katerega cilj je pomagati človeštvu najti nove socialno-ekonomske razmere po sedanji svetovni krizi, ki jo povzroča neoliberalni ozkogledi monopolizem.

Potrebovali smo številne konference, da bi zbrali in razvili znanje in vrednote, kulturo, etiko in norme (VKEN) družbene odgovornosti. Tukaj smo.

Dokument, imenovan ISO 26000:2010, je bil in je globalna osnova. Toda v svojem bistvu omejuje družbeno odgovornost na korporacije in organizacije, ter njihovo svobodno voljo, da presežejo ozke in kratkoročne rezultate.

Anita, Jožica in jaz smo prej zapisali, da ne podpiramo omejitev: trg je seveda ključnega pomena, vendar bolje deluje s pravno podporo. Slednjega nismo našli. Namesto tega smo našli delno sprejelo družbeno odgovornost. In naša namizna raziskava ni našla nobene knjige z naslovom DRUŽBENO ODGOVORNA DRUŽBA. To zdaj raziskujemo – in vi, udeleženci naše 19. konference, nam pri tem pomagate. Najlepša hvala.

Omeniti moramo tudi nekaj kolegov, kp smo pred desetletji začeli raziskovati trajnostnost in družbeno odgovornost. Zagotovo je to zasl. prof. dr. Peter Glavič, ki je začel s tem z raziskovanjem na Univerzi v Mariboru že pred več kot 20-timi leti in se je naši konferenci pridružil kot sourednik tudi pred nekaj leti.

Dr. Darja Piciga se je z okoljskimi vprašanji in s sistemskimi perspektivami začela ukvarjati že pred desetletji – z delom v slovenski vladi in v nevladnih organizacijah. Odlično je sodelovala pri usklajevanju in sodelovanju avtorjev iz slovenske vlade na tej konferenci, prav tako iz gospodarstva in nevladnih organizacij, pa tudi avtorske prispevke mednarodnih partnerjev. Na letošnji konferenci bodo njeni kolegi predstavili slovenski Veliki preskok za zeleni prehod in blaginjo vseh - slovenski odziv na poročilo Rimskega kluba Earth for All iz leta 2022, skupina Homes for Humanity širom sveta pospešuje „Veliki preskok“, učenje za trajnost in zeleni prehod, prilagajanje podnebnim spremembam in sistemske inovacije.

Prof. dr. Igor Perko je prevzel uredniško koordinacijo znanstvenega dela konference in z nami sodeluje tudi več kot 10 let. Več kot 1000 avtorjev z vsega sveta je do sedaj soustvarilo IRDO mednarodno konferenco – hibridno konferenco, saj ustvarja sodelovanje med znanostjo in gospodarstvom, vlado in nevladnimi organizacijami, družbo in posamezniki, naravo in poslovanjem, itd..

Hvala,  da ste se nam pridružili in vljudno vabljeni k sodelovanju kot avtorji tudi prihodnje leto, ko bomo praznovali 20. obletnico mednarodne konference IRDO.

Želim vam vse najboljše in hvala za sodelovanje še enkrat!

V imenu programskega in organizacijskega odbora konference

Matjaž Mulej