http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stewardship
Stewardship is an ethic that embodies responsible planning and management of resources. The concept of stewardship has been applied in diverse realms, including with respect to environment, economics, health, property, information, and religion, and is linked to the concept of sustainability.

History of the term

Historically, stewardship refereed to the occupation of a steward. Initially was the responsibility given to household servants to bring food and drinks to a castle dining hall. The term was then expanded to indicate a household employee's responsibility for managing household or domestic affairs. Stewardship later became the responsibility for taking care of passengers' domestic needs on a ship, train and airplane, or managing the service provided to diners in a restaurant. The term continues to be used in these specific ways, but it is also used in a more general way to refer to a responsibility to take care of something belonging to someone else.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stewardship_theory
Stewardship theory is a theory that managers, left on their own, will indeed act as responsible stewards of the assets they control.

This theory is an alternative view of agency theory, in which managers are assumed to act in their own self interests at the expense of shareholders.


Product stewardship - Produktverantwortung
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Product_stewardship
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Produktverantwortung