Friends of the Earth played host to a 30 foot inflatable in Dublin today to highlight the need for corporate responsiblity ahead of the World Summit on Sustainable Development in South Africa later this month.
The Corporate Giant, a fat, inflatable businessman with a cigar in his mouth and his pockets bulging with euro notes raised a few eyebrows at the Stephen’s Green Centre, but his message is a serious one according to Friends of the Earth.
The event was staged to focus attention on the need for a global framework to ensure corporate accountability, and the inflatable 'Fat Cat' has been touring major cities around Europe as part of the awareness campaign.
Friends of the Earth International has also called for the establishment of social and environmental obligations for multinational corporations as well as the defence of public policies which aim to ensure environmental protection.
The organisation said in a statement that the scale and impact of coporate activities over the last ten years, including the recent US accounting scandals, have shown that self-regulation is no longer enough. It argues that delivering sustainable development will require governments to ensure citizens can hold corporations accountable for their actions.
Friends of the Earth Ireland have sent Mr Christian Volkman as its representative to the Johannesburg summit.
Among those attending today’s event were Green Party leader Mr Trevor Sargent and the party’s spokesman on Justice Mr Ciaran Cuffe.