CSR News Stories
China: Hang Seng launches corporate sustainability index
Hang Seng Indexes has become the latest to launch a series of sustainability indices, covering Hong Kong and Chinese companies. The aims of the index series is to "further raise awareness about corporate sustainability" as well as to meet international demand for socially responsible investment in Chinese companies.
UK unions and lawmakers criticize Kraft CEO
British union leaders and lawmakers lashed out at Kraft Inc. Chief Executive Irene Rosenfeld for failing to appear before an inquiry on the U.S. company's takeover of British confectioner Cadbury on Tuesday. The Unite union also criticized Rosenfeld for failing to meet directly with workers at Cadbury sites across the country to reassure them about the company's plans after it backtracked on a promise to keep open a local factory.
Indonesia: New eco investment index launched
The Indonesian stock exchange has launched a new investment index based on the social and environmental performance of companies.
Jordan: CSR advocacy body launched
A new body to promote business engagement with the local community has been launched as the National Forum for Social Responsibility. It brings together 50 public, private and civil society founding members.
Larger firms more likely to have CSR policies - study
Companies with a turnover of more than 50m UK pounds are twice as likely to have established policies on corporate social responsibility and diversity, according to new research by KPMG on its own suppliers.
Saudi Arabia: King Abdullah calls for corporate social responsibility
King Abdullah has urged an ongoing partnership between public and private sectors to boost social responsibility in Saudi Arabia. The message from the King, delivered at the opening of a three day corporate social responsibility conference, said that the time had come to make social responsibility a reality "not just a rhetoric by the (business) elite".
Norway: State investment fund shuns Textron and Barrick Gold
Textron, which owns plane manufacturer Cessna, and mining firm Barrick Gold, have become the latest companies to be blacklisted for ethical reasons by the $300bn Norwegian state investment fund.
France: Sarkozy / Blair summit to look at ethics in business
A summit of political leaders and economists, led by French President Nicolas Sarkozy and former UK prime minister Tony Blair, will focus on how the world can strengthen the ethical basis of the capitalist system.
US: Top businesses join ethics initiative
In response to the widespread crisis of confidence in the ethics of big business, seventeen major corporations have joined the Business Ethics Leadership Alliance. The companies, which include Wal-Mart, General Electric, Dell, PepsiCo and Accenture, between them represent nearly $1 trillion turnover.
US: Environmental programmes provide financial returns for majority
Three-quarters of businesses that have solid corporate social responsibility programmes are seeing financial returns, particularly as a result of achieving environmental goals, according to a new report by the Economist Intelligence Unit.
United Arab Emirates: ABB wins first CSR award
ABB UAE has won the award for large companies at the inaugural Arabia Corporate Social Responsibility Awards for having "institutionalised CSR for the past 14 years". Other winners were fuel producer Oman LNG in the medium-sized class, and MBS Firefighting Coatings and Environmental Centre for Arab Towns in the small firms category.
Peru: Government to make CSR focus of APEC summit
Peru's deputy foreign minister has said that corporate social responsibility will be tabled as a key element of globalisation when the country hosts the next Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Lima in November.
Bahrain: CSR standards for Islamic financial institutions being produced
The Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) has said that it is to develop a standard on corporate social responsibility that can be used by Islamic financial firms.
Ethical behaviour tied to better financial returns
In the release of its most recent 'World's most ethical companies' list, Ethisphere has said that there is a clear premium of performance in the marketplace for those companies that have been acknowledged as having a superior track record on ethical management.
Salesforce.com CEO Marc Benioff noted as Corporate Responsibility CEO of the year
Marc Benioff, the chief executive of salesforce.com, the customer relationship management software company, has been named as Corporate Responsibility Officer Magazine's 2008 CEO of the Year award.
UN business school initiative reaches 100 schools signed up
The United Nations has announced that its initiative to promote social responsibility through educational programmes has now been endorsed by over 100 business schools around the world.
Bangladesh: Government action on CSR in the pipeline
The government of Bangladesh is to undertake an initiative to promote corporate social responsibility, according to its Special Assistant to the Chief Advisory for Industries Mahbub Jamil.
Canada: Companies investing in social responsibility
According to a new report, Canadian companies are boosting investment in social responsibility, although the changes in policies and programmes are not yet feeding through into significant improvements in outcomes. .
CSR helps competitiveness, according to IBM survey
Corporate social responsibility helps companies to be more competitive, according to a survey of businesses carried out for IBM. The review said that 68 percent of companies said that focusing on CSR helped them to make money, and 54 percent said that CSR helped to give them a competitive edge.
Norway: $200bn pension fund eschews Wal-Mart and Freeport
Wal-Mart and Freeport have been excluded from the Norwegian government pension fund on the grounds that the companies have been responsible for either violations of human rights or environmental damage.
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Interviews
Leo Martin: Lessons from eight years of GoodCorporation
Leo Martin gives some plain speaking on a range of issues relating to responsible business, with some lessons that are both insightful and provocative.
