Private initiatives for corporate responsibility have been a major development in international management over the last twenty years. The initiatives include issuance of codes of business conduct, implementation of management systems and broader efforts to improve business accountability. Yet, there is little agreement about what these initiatives mean or how effective they are.
The OECD project on corporate responsibility seeks to shed light on various aspects of the corporate responsibility movement: What are firms and business associations doing? How have governments influenced the initiatives? What contributions, if any, have these initiatives made to improving the business sector’s ability to comply with law and regulation and to respond to broader societal expectations?
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Listed companies that are leading the way with their environmental and social policies are selling themselves and their shareholders short by failing to make the case to the City, according to research published by Business in the Environment (BiE). When asked to name spontaneously the most important factors to take into account when judging companies, 13% of companies’ own investor relations managers (IRMs) deemed environmental and social issues important – but only 3% of analysts, 4% of institutional investors and 3% of financial journalists.
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World Bank President James D. Wolfensohn appealed to business leaders to further expand their notions of corporate responsibility beyond earnings to encompass obligations to society at large, especially in developing countries.
Corporate sustainability today includes recognition of the leadership role that the private sector must take in ensuring social progress, improved equity, higher living standards, and stewardship for the environment, Wolfensohn said yesterday in a World Bank-sponsored workshop. Corporate responsibility is not philanthropy-it is good business, he said.
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The Business Case for Sustainable Development: Making a Difference Towards the Johannesburg Summit 2002 and Beyond is the latest report of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD).
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SAM Sustainable Asset Management / Sustainable Performance Group (SPG) for the first time presented the Sustainability Leadership Award. This annual award acknowledges an individual who, through his willingness to question orthodox thinking and determination to make alternative solutions work, has managed to make tangible progress in corporate sustainability.
The winner was picked by an independent jury and received a prize sum of CHF 50,000.
The first winner is Ray C. Anderson, CEO of Interface Inc.
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ISO’s Committee on consumer policy (COPOLCO) is carrying out a feasibility study on standards for corporate social responsibility and has launched an online forum to gather stakeholder views.
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-The sustainable mobility agenda which will take decades to resolve, will bring many major automotive companies to their knees.’ – this is a key conclusion in the latest sector report from the sustainable development think-tank and strategy consultancy, SustainAbility.
Driving Sustainability treats sustainable mobility as a -Gordian knot’ problem – one of increasing complexity (1). The report outlines the four pivotal issues of sustainable
mobility: climate change, life cycle management, liveable cities, and emerging economies. It also benchmarks the reported performance on these issues of ten automotive manufacturing companies (2). The headline news is that DaimlerChrysler narrowly beats BMW Group and Volkswagen in this issues benchmark, with 50% of the total maximum score. The overall average score is 34%, a poor overall showing for
the automotive sector, showing the lack of commitment to, and in many cases
understanding of, the key sustainable mobility issues.
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The value of world’s ethical investment portfolio has been estimated at US$1.42 trillion in the September issue of The Cerulli Edge-Global Edition published by Cerulli Associates, a well-regarded Boston and London based research consultancy.
The report’s figures highlight the dominance of the United States when it comes to ethical investment. Funds under SRI management in each region of the world, according to Cerulli, are: United Sates (US$1,350 billion), Canada (US$33 billion), Australia (US$0.5 billion), Japan (US$1 billion), Asia ex-Japan (US$1 billion) and Europe (US$38 billion).
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The European Commission decided today to take further steps to green the institution by adopting a Decision to implement the Community’s Eco-Management and Audit Scheme, EMAS. The scheme will give the Commission an accurate picture of its environmental impact, improve its environmental performance and provide both organisational and financial benefits. Environment Commissioner Margot Wallström said: “The European Commission will lead by example. With the introduction of EMAS we want to set an example for other public authorities and economic operators to follow, and our final objective is achieving EMAS registration for the European Commission”. Vice-President Neil Kinnock said: “The Commission signalled its awareness of the need for practical action when it launched its Green Housekeeping(1) scheme in 1997. Applying EMAS will further reinforce our commitment to ensuring an environmental-friendly administration.”
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An update fro GRI, the Global Reporting Initiative for guidelines for sustainability reporting.
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Environment Australia published this month 2 reports about sustainability:
* The role of Australia’s financial sector in sustainability
* A Capital Idea: Realising Value from Environmental and Social Performance
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A survey conducted by Hill and Knowlton through Harris Interactive found that a majority of Americans consider corporate citizenship – the impact a company has on society – when making investment and purchasing decisions. The bad news is that relatively few give companies high marks in this area.
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