Our mission, vision and values
We strive for a fair and sustainable world where the well-being of people and the planet outweighs corporate profits and interests.
In this system, we envision civil societies have the power to hold multinational corporations and governments accountable for destructive and unfair business practices and the ability to advance economic alternatives – locally and globally. Both forces are an essential precondition for eliminating the structural causes of poverty, inequality, and multinational corporations’ exploitation of people and natural resources.
We believe a necessary element of the change needed is eradicating the dominant corporate logic of ‘maximising shareholder value’, which enables businesses to extract as much profit as possible from a company for shareholders. This is almost always at the expense of workers, communities, and the planet.
To address this, we shine a light on multinationals by exposing their impact, structures, and the systems they operate in. We also work on developing alternatives and advocating for communities to ensure their voices and concerns are heard by those in power.
Our values
We believe the world’s greatest and most pressing problems will only be solved with justice and equity if the multinational corporation construct is radically and fundamentally changed. Radical change is needed urgently, and it is possible to achieve. The global focus on growing wealth inequality offers opportunities to challenge the ‘growth at all costs’ dogma and to promote root-and-branch changes to trade and investment frameworks.
The current economic model is not fixed or inevitable; people have built it over the last few decades. Civil society must seize the agenda, articulate the plan and create the safety nets needed – working towards a new path that is not part of the system and yet cannot be ignored by the status quo.
About SOMO
The Center for Research on Multinationals, SOMO, investigates multinationals. We are a knowledge and research organisation based in Amsterdam, but we never work alone. Read more in the ‘About us’ section.
Our mission
We envision a global economic, political, and legal system that is equitable, democratic, transparent, and environmentally sustainable.
The outsized and harmful power of multinational companies and the structures that enable them stand in the way. A shift in power balance is urgently needed.
To address this, SOMO investigates multinationals: we expose their impact, their structures, and the systems they operate in. We also develop alternatives and carry out advocacy work.
We do that as part of a civil society movement in deep collaborations and alliances with partners all over the world, always seeing our role as part of an ecosystem of stakeholders. We deliver the knowledge that fuels far-reaching change.
