"Twenty years ago nobody talked about ethical finance. Today, it accounts for about 20% of the financial transactions that occur in the world", or so argued Stefano Zamagni, professor at the University of Bologna and Johns Hopkins University in Bologna (Italy) and member of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace. Professor Zamagni gave the III ICS Lecture on Humanities and Social Sciences at the Institute for Culture and Society (ICS) of the University of Navarra.

Professor Zamagni claimed that, in recent years, more and more companies have focused on social goals through corporate social responsibility, fair trade, etc. He added that this focus has even given rise to a new legal figure, the B Corp (benefit corporation) certification: "These companies have two objectives: first, to seek to profit and, second, to serve society, for example, by taking responsibility for a hospital, university or a cultural asset in their area."

"It involves an intellectual revolution," Zamagni stressed, "because we have come to believe that a capitalist company should only maximize profit. The United States, a pragmatic country, now has nearly 200 B Corps and thereby demonstrates that this idea is not true."

A new culture of progress

These initiatives are examples, according Zamagni, of how to reconnect ethics and economics. "They are two sides of the same coin and for centuries they remained united. Their 'divorce' has caused major disasters, such as the crisis that began in 2007," he noted.

In that vein, he recalled that "the market economy is the result of Christianity" and that the social doctrine of the Church has always insisted that economics and ethics should go hand in hand. "John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Pope Francisco have collected this idea in their teachings. We see a consistent message on this subject from the highest levels of the Church, which remind us that Christians have a great responsibility to channel the river that has been diverted," he said.

"The Christian world must realize that, unless we generate a new culture, progress is not possible. That does not mean departing from the market or destroying wealth, but rather reconciling ethics and economics," he concluded.

Stefano Zamagni gave these remarks in the context of his presentation on "Promoting integral human development: A proposal from the civil economy." He was the keynote speaker for the third edition of the ICS Lectures on Humanities and Social Sciences, a series of annual conferences organized by the Institute for Culture and Society and given by internationally renowned researchers.