Everyone’s familiar with the news that Steve Jobs has recently stepped away from Apple again (possibly for good this time) due to health concerns. Whether this is permanent or not, the future is not far off when Apple will have to continue without Jobs. I have little doubt in mind that they will not find […]
On Monday it was announced in various news sources that the 17-year battle between Chevron and the country of Ecuador over environmental damages in the Amazon would result in the payment of about $9 billion in damages by the oil company. While this falls woefully short of the $113 billion that the Ecuadorians were seeking
Is It Possible for an Oil Company to Make the News for Doing Something Positive? Read More 👉
An interesting anecdote was described in a recent Vault.com blog post entitled “Why Don’t Executives Understand CSR?” The author discusses an event that she attended which dealt with the advancement of women in the workplace. She had a discussion on the side with an executive that basically boiled down to this. The author saying she
Perhaps the Definition of CSR is Semantics Read More 👉
An interesting question was posed recently by a member of a group I’m part of on LinkedIn (Global Reporting Initiative) that stated simply “Is GRI beneficial for a 3rd world enterprise?” It’s both a valid and interesting question for a variety of reasons. This gentleman’s concern was mainly over the cost and time that it
The Value of CSR Reporting in Developing Economies Read More 👉
“The more business has begun to embrace corporate responsibility, the more it has been blamed for society’s failure. The legitimacy of business has fallen to levels not seen in recent history. This diminished trust in business leads political leaders to set policies that undermine competitiveness and sap economic growth. Business is caught in a vicious
Can We Fix Capitalism? Read More 👉
(Note: Unbeknownst to me, my colleague Lane Jost and I both produced articles on Wal-Mart this morning. Â I have decided to publish mine as well because I believe the two compliment each other well and hey, like Coke and Pepsi, there is room for similar products in the market place) Wal-Mart confuses me. It seems
Wal-Mart Gets Healthier and Prices Stay the Same Read More 👉
As most people are aware these days, Sudan, a country that has undergone so much hardship since it became Africa’s (geographically) largest country on January 1, 1956 is on the cusp of splitting into two. A complex issue anyway one looks at it, with economic and cultural concerns at the forefront. However, for a continent
Sudan: Open for Business? Read More 👉
Multinational companies like Procter and Gamble sure think so and they are making large investments into developing areas such as China, India and Africa. On the surface, it makes sense. Not only is this potential group of consumers enormous- according to a recent World Resource Institute report the group (depending on income but usually below
Are the Poor the New Middle Class? Read More 👉
Clearly there’s a significant, “soft conflict” currently being waged between the US and China. First we had the currency devaluation issue which many feel has led to the US/China trade imbalance. Humanitarian and environmental issues have often been a concern of the US in regards to China (although we could probably use a watchdog in
Rare Earth: The Latest Episode on this Week’s Washington v. Beijing Read More 👉
Much has been made of Bono’s work on and off the stage (particularly as it pertains to debt relief), but many people may have seen him more recently in the rather odd (to me at least) advertisements that show him and his wife on the African plains toting Louis Vutton (LV) luggage. I don’t think
Can Sustainability Co-Exist With a Life of Luxury? Read More 👉
Economic sanctions have often been a tool used by the US government in order to punish rogue (sorry, couldn’t think of anything else) regimes. Such has been the case when dealing with countries such as Iran, Myanmar and Zimbabwe. While the results have been mixed, the moral imperative has been quite clear. It is wrong
Socially Responsible Investing: With More Attention Comes More Debate Read More 👉
Nike has come a long way from the PR and labor problems of the early 1990’s. So far in fact that they have spent much of time between that period and now, working on a design tool that shows the environmental impact of raw materials they have chosen for a specific product. However, the most
Nike Creates Environmental Apparel Design Tool Free For Use Read More 👉
Its been quite a long and drawn out fight, but Massachusetts has approved a deal between Cape Farm and National Grid to enter into a 15-year contract to purchase the energy provided by the turbines. This is especially interesting for two reasons, one because this battle has been going on for quite some time, with
Cape Cod Bay Wind Farm Moves Forward Read More 👉
Believe it or not, this is not some twisted April Fool’s Day joke, but as highlighted in today’s New York Time article “India Microcredit Faces Collapse From Defaults”, is something that is actually taking place in India and could potentially be akin to the sub-prime crisis in the United States. This is clearly terrible news
The Microcredit Industry May Need a Bailout Read More 👉
Fair trade continually interests me. It’s a great example of a development “policy” that at first glance, seems perfect. Companies (generally in foodstuffs like coffee or cocoa, but clothing and related items as well), basically agree to set the prices of the goods they purchase at a higher than market price in order to provide
Starbucks and the World of Fair Trade Read More 👉
I’ve been pondering this question for quite some time and as far as I’m concerned, the answer is still unclear. Without analyzing the specifics of what CSR is (100 different people may give you 100 different answers), I’ve always broken things down into two camps. One side would be companies that have formulated their business
Is Philanthropy CSR? Read More 👉
Over the last few weeks I’ve talked about the difficulty in determining appropriate CSR metrics, finding metrics useful for comparison of businesses and whether the annual CSR report is obsolete, however I have to admit, I did not see coming a mandate by a national government (of a enormous country for that matter) requiring businesses
New Law Passed in India Requires Businesses to Engage in CSR Read More 👉
Previously, I’ve written about conflict minerals in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and US efforts to curtail their sales (parts I and II), as well as the repercussions of companies doing indirect business in countries where direct business is forbidden by the US government. So, it only make sense that this article takes
The Continuing Saga of Conflict Diamonds and the Kimberley Process Read More 👉
Based on a recent report published by sustainability analyst firm Verdantix, spending on sustainability by almost 2,000 businesses with revenues of over $1 billion will increase from $28 billion in 2010 to $60 billion in 2014. Now, I know what you’re thinking. That’s barely anything in comparison to total revenue (1.4% up to 3.3%), but
Despite Sluggish Economy, Spending on Sustainability Forecast to Increase Read More 👉
CSR is now a thing. It has gotten to the point where when visiting a corporation’s website, one of the first things you will see is at least a mention of corporate social responsibility and perhaps a link to some sort of sustainability report. While this is becoming the norm and is something the general
CSR Reporting in the Age of Social Media Read More 👉
Most Americans are aware of the fact that San Francisco is known as one of the more progressive towns in the Unites States. In attempt to uphold that title, policy makers in the city are hoping to get mayor Gavin Newsom on board as they attempt to ban toys in Happy Meals in order to
San Francisco Attempting to Ban Happy Meal Toys Read More 👉
Smack dab on the front page of the Sunday New York Times yesterday was some positive news out of the Middle East. Seems architect Norman Foster of firm Foster and Partners has, along with the government of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), developed a fully sustainable city called Masdar. While it seems like a bit
Sustainable Urban Living- Desert Style Read More 👉
Despite all the bad news we’ve received due to issues in the financial sector over the last two years, it turns out some banks are doing significant work greater than the occasional philanthropic project. Mark Stoiber of Fast Company has outlined some of these cutting edge banks and the interesting work they are doing in
Has Banking Gone Nuts? A Look at Sustainability in the Financial Sector Read More 👉
Recently, the New York Times Magazine has been a hotbed for articles covering business in or affecting developing countries. Last week I wrote about a potentially more unconventional way of looking at the counterfeit goods trade from the perspective of major apparel companies. More recently, an incredibly impressive article was written by Andrew Rice, on
Plumpy’nut and the Role of the Private Sector in International Development Read More 👉
