© Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2004, 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford OX4 2DQ, UK and 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148, USA. RECIEL 13 (2) 2004. ISSN 0962 8797 214 From Stockholm to Johannesburg: From Corporate Responsibility to Corporate Accountability for the Global Protection of the Environment? Elisa Morgera INTRODUCTION Corporate social responsibility is one of the topical issues of our times, particularly with regard to the contribution of multinational corporations (MNCs) 1 to development, respect of human and labour rights and to the protection of the environment. Different legal instruments, at the national, regional and interna- tional level, could be and are currently employed to ensure the contribution of MNCs to the promotion of social, development and environmental values. Such instruments, for instance, encompass national laws enacted by the home State of a MNC or by the host State receiving foreign investment, 2 or foreign direct liability. 3 Another possible option is that of an inter- national instrument on the matter. This article will focus on the question of the practical- ity of using an international approach to corporate responsibility exclusively from an environmental pro- tection perspective. It aims to contribute to the debate by providing an historical and conceptual background based on the search for international legal standards undertaken during major global environmental conferences. After a brief overview of the impacts and possible role of MNCs in relation to globally relevant environmental resources, this contribution will focus on an analysis of the textual references to corporate responsibility and accountability in the final instruments adopted at the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environ- ment (1972), 4 the Rio Conference on Environment and Development (1992), 5 and the Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development (2002). 6 A com- parison of the official translations of the texts into Spanish and French will assist in focusing on the con- troversial choice of terms and possible implications. In particular, specific consideration will be given to the use of different terms such as ‘accountability’, ‘respons- ibility’ and ‘liability’ in order to evaluate whether changes in textual references actually expressed an evolution in the conceptual approach to the matter. Based on the results of the textual analysis and through a review of the literature, a definition of the concepts of ‘corporate responsibility’ and ‘corporate accountability’ will be delineated. The article concludes by assessing the necessary co- existence of the two approaches, notwithstanding their uneven acceptance by the international community, for ensuring an effective role of MNCs in the global protection of the environment. 1 Throughout this article, the terms ‘multinationals’, ‘multinational corporations’ (MNCs), ‘multinational enterprises’ (MNEs) and ‘trans- national corporations’ (TNCs) will be used interchangeably to refer to commerical entities that are owned or operate in more than one country. For a proposed legal definition of transnational corpora- tions, see the draft Code of Conduct on Transnational Corporations (UN Doc. E/1990/94, 12 June 1990), at para. 1(a); and Norms on the Responsibilities of Transnational Corporations and Other Business Enterpises with Regards to Human Rights (UN Doc. E/CN.4/Sub.2/ 2003/12/Rev.2, 26 August 2003), at para. H(20). 2 For an overview of possible systems, see generally M. Sornarajah, The International Law on Foreign Investment (Cambridge University Press, 1994); and P. Muchlinski, Multinational Enterprises and the Law (Blackwell Publishers, 1999). 3 H. Ward, Governing Multinationals: The Role of Foreign Direct Liability , Briefing Paper New Series No 18 (Royal Institute for Inter- national Affairs, 2001). 4 Declaration of the United Nations Conference on the Human Envir- onment (UN Doc. A/Conf.48/14/rev.1, 1972). 5 Rio Declaration on Environment and Development (UN Doc. A/ CONF.151/26, Vol. I, 1992); and Agenda 21 (UN Doc. A/CONF.151/ 26, 1992). 6 WSSD Political Declaration (UN Doc. A/CONF.199/20, 2002), Resolution 1, Annex; and WSSD Plan of Implementation (UN Doc. A/CONF.199/20, 2002), Resolution 2, Annex.