UNESCO Chair in Responsible Global Management

• Promoting new scientific knowledge on the topic of responsible global management through the collaboration in an international, interdisciplinary and intercultural network.  

• Developing innovative models, methods and tools for management practices in the economic, political and social spheres at all levels: local, regional, national, international. 

• Revisiting together programs and contents of higher education for the responsible management of immaterial and material resources in order to develop up-to-date and future-oriented learning offers that are (better) tailored to local, regional, national and international realities. 

Vision of the Chair 

A global society that respects people and the planet through responsible management of the intangible and tangible resources we share. 

Mission

To develop, within an international, intercultural, and interdisciplinary network, new scientific knowledge, responsible global management, and future-oriented collaboration methods. 

Our offer

We are an interdisciplinary, intercultural, and international team committed to a more responsible approach to the tangible and intangible aspects of cohabitation and collaboration at local, regional, national and international level. Our values are: dialogue, inclusion, respect, critical thinking, and creativity - for the benefit of people and the planet.

We offer:

• Research cooperation (basic and applied) 
• Educational cooperation (from BA level onwards) 
• Mentoring (understood as counselling, coaching, and training) 
• Lectures and presentations 
• (Co-)Supervision of MA and PhD projects 
• Internships

The UNESCO Chair at BFH has an interdisciplinary remit. It is based in the Business School (Institute for Marketing & Global Management). It is led by Professor Pia Stalder in close cooperation with Professor Malika Abentak (Université Ibn Zohr, Faculté des Sciences Juridiques, Economiques et Sociales, Agadir, Morocco) and Professor Kalidou Seydou Sy (Université Gaston Berger, Unité de Formation et de Recherche Lettres et Sciences Humaines, Saint Louis, Senegal).

The Chair currently (as of 2024) consists of a partnership of 12 higher education and research institutions, six in Europe (Switzerland, France, Romania, Denmark) and six in Africa (Morocco, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Kenya). 

Professor Pia Stalder

Chairholder

Pia Stalder is Professor for Responsible Global and Intercultural Management at Bern University of Applied Sciences’ Business School, Institute for Marketing & Global Management. The goal of her research, teaching, and consultation activities is to strengthen interdisciplinary, intercultural, and international communication skills. These skills are the key to respectful, peaceful and hence successful collaboration across physical and mental boundaries. 

Professor Malika Abentak

Co-Coordinator Morocco

Malika Abentak has a doctorate in information and communication sciences. She is based in the Faculty of Legal, Economic and Social Sciences in Agadir. She teaches written communication, personality development and soft skills. Her academic research focuses on the use of mobile technologies, particularly podcasts. She has supervised several dissertations and published a number of papers on the use of digital technologies in different fields.

Professor Kalidou Seydou Sy

Co-Coordinator Senegal

Kalidou Seydou Sy qualified as a research supervisor in language sciences (semiotics) at the University of Limoges and has a doctorate in comparative literature from the University of Cheikh Anta DIOP in Dakar. 

His research and publications focus primarily on the creation of meaning in complex environments in order to establish a situated theory of meaning (not to say an African theory of meaning). He is director of the Groupe de recherches en Analyse des Discours Sociaux (GRADIS) and publisher of the KONNGOL-Gradis journal for discourse analysis. Kalidou Sy works for several national and international bodies on questions of social innovation and anthroposemiotic mediation. He is a professor at Université Gaston Berger in Saint-Louis, Senegal. 

Action Plan 2024-2028

The UNESCO Chair for Higher Education, Research, and Innovation in Responsible Global Management is consistent with the Agenda 2030 (UN), the Agenda 2063 (AU), the Swiss foreign policy strategies «MENA» and «Sub-Saharan Africa» and with the strategic thematic fields of BFH.

The activities and projects of the new Chair will contribute in particular to the following UNESCO initiatives:

• HED Roadmap 2030
• «Priority Africa Flagship Programmes and Actions. The Operational Strategy for Priority Africa 2022-2029»

2024

• Pool and develop new knowledge relating to the responsible global management of tangible and intangible resources
• Organise an international congress on this subject in Dakhla, Morocco
• Set up an international laboratory (think tank and incubator) composed of scientists, entrepreneurs, political actors, students and civil society representatives

2024 onwards

• Design research projects on responsible global management practices and strategies in international work settings in Europe and Africa
• Applied research and development work on the subject in a range of different contexts

2026 onwards

• Comparative and critical analysis and discussion of higher education programmes and contents in the field of responsible global management,
• Adaptation of training offers and contents and/or development of new offers