Enacting Political CSR Locally: Renegotiating Business–Government–Local Community Relations in a Developing Context

Based on the longitudinal case study of an organization of the space industry in French Guiana—a former French colony—this paper shows how political corporate social responsibility (CSR) is enacted through the interactions... [ view full abstract ]

Based on the longitudinal case study of an organization of the space industry in French Guiana—a former French colony—this paper shows how political corporate social responsibility (CSR) is enacted through the interactions between business, government and local community. Contending that the role played by business in the political arena can be best captured at the local level, it provides in-depth evidence of the blurred frontiers between the private and public spheres of society. It complements political CSR with two main contributions. First, while previous research has conceptualized the role of government in promoting CSR, this paper identifies situations, such as postcolonial contexts, in which government impedes the emergence of CSR. Second, it highlights the role of local elected representatives in renegotiating CSR, through the mobilization of specific resources at their disposal in public spaces.