BS4CL Africa: A Year of Climate Leadership Achievements and Collaborative Initiatives

On 30 October, PRME Signatory Members across Africa gathered for the 2nd Annual Roundtable for Business Schools for Climate Leadership (BS4CL) Africa, an initiative launched last year during COP27 in Egypt in collaboration with PRME Chapter Africa and BS4CL Europe. The event was hosted by the American University in Cairo (AUC).

This year’s roundtable was themed "The Power of Partnerships," and received enthusiastic affirmation from its six participating partner schools: AUC in Egypt, ESCA Ecole de Management in Morocco, Lagos Business School in Nigeria, Strathmore Business School in Kenya, and Gordon Institute of Business Science and Stellenbosch University in South Africa.

BS4CL Africa's robust partnership has yielded numerous collective achievements within its short year, such as Professional Development Workshops on capacity building for Climate Leadership, the Casablanca Climate Leadership Conference, and a student-led competition at COP28.

Participating deans each underscored their commitment to climate action during the event, and took time to reflect on various key areas:

• Effectively monitoring each school's activities

• Increasing the visibility of shared narratives

• Sharing resources and expertise from each school and EU partners

• Leveraging partner networks (e.g., AABS, GBSN, AACSB, etc.) and exploring funding opportunities for projects

• Encouraging healthy skepticism and ensuring authenticity in their actions

• Addressing local needs through research and advocating for impactful policy in respective regions

• Engaging with stakeholders, especially students, and establishing internal governance before expanding further

In the next year, BS4CL Africa will focus on accelerating impact, emphasizing urgency and increasing speed toward positive change. Each school plans to take the lead on a specific project for 2024. Projects will tackle a variety of foci, including strengthening ties between schools, tapping into shared resources, and building on individual institutional strengths. Among others, specific objectives include reaching out to international partners, developing a website, and running a webinar series.

Roundtable participants:

• Sherif Kamel, Dean, AUC School of Business, Egypt

• Thami Ghorfi, President, ESCA Ecole de Management, Morocco

• Morris Mthombeni, Dean, GIBS Business School, South Africa

• Caesar Mwangi, Executive Dean, Strathmore Business School, Kenya

• Olayinka David-West, Associate Dean, Lagos School of Business, Nigeria

• Jako Volschenk, Associate Professor of Strategy and Sustainability and MBA Programme Head, Stellenbosch Business School, South Africa

• Knut Haanaes, Professor of Strategy and Lundin Chair Professor of Sustainability, International Institute for Management Development (IMD), Switzerland

• Sherwat Elwan, Associate Professor of Operations Management, AUC School of Business and Chair of PRME Chapter Africa, Egypt

The Business Schools for Climate Leadership initiative will continue to expand its reach across the globe with the upcoming COP28 in Dubai, UAE. Multiple Signatory Members from PRME Chapter Middle East will take up the mantle and commit to advancing climate action in their institutions and region. Learn more about the PRME events at COP28 and stay tuned for further updates and collaborations from BS4CL.