Corporate citizenship and corporate social responsibility have become hot topics of debate for business, academia and organised civil society in Latin America. However, although there is a lot of material in Spanish and Portuguese, there are few publications available in English. This special issue of JCC opens the discussion in English across different countries in the region.

Corporate citizenship and corporate social responsibility have become hot topics of debate for business, academia and organised civil society in Latin America. However, although there is a lot of material in Spanish and Portuguese, there are few publications available in English. This special issue of JCC opens the discussion in English across different countries in the region.

Despite its recent popularity in literature, theory, and practice, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) remains a vague concept that struggles to define itself beyond the confines of corporate philanthropy or sustainability. In some circles, it is a response to the present and anticipated climate change challenges, while in others it focuses on fair trade, corporate governance, and responsible investment. What then is CSR, and how do we understand its purpose? In Corporate Social Responsibility, Entrepreneurship, and Innovation, authors Kenneth Amaeshi and Paul Nnodim consider the governance of corporate externalities (positive and negative impacts of firms on society and the environment) as the main thrust of the CSR discourse - a field that hitherto only the state has regulated, with sometimes coercive actions. This book contributes to the theorization of CSR by presenting the meaning of CSR in a clear and distinct manner, giving the ongoing CSR debate a new direction anchored on a firm economic philosophy. It reinforces the view of firms as social institutions as well as economic actors, establishing CSR as a form of justice rather than philanthropy. Articulating CSR as private governance of corporate externalities, for the first time, this book provides researchers with a new paradigm to translate knowledge into action and offers reflective managers an alternative framework in which to explore their corporate strategies and decisions.