Scholars and activists have increasingly emphasised a strengthening of corporate social responsibility (‘CSR’) regimes and a greater emphasis on shared purpose as key planks in aligning companies and company law with critical UN sustainability goals. Although companies were historically formed to solve a societal problem, a focus on profit maximisation has resulted in unfavourable practices that impact marginalised communities and challenge the sustainability of communities and the planet. Contrasted with the corporation, another type of collective business model known as the cooperative appears to have maintained a set of principles and values that extend beyond profit to align with and support many of the SDGs and the PBF. In this article, we analyse the evolution of the company as contrasted with the cooperative to argue that corporate purpose could be defined by reference to cooperative principles, the SDGs, and the PBF to ensure corporations make meaningful contributions to society and the planet. Read the article here.