SOCIETY

Community Development

China gets first SRI fund

The Bank of China has set up the country’s first fund applying SRI criteria. The fund, under the bank’s International […]

TriplePundit

July 10, 2006

Community Development

New standards for paper group

Stora Enso, the huge Finnish-Swedish multinational paper products group, which has acquired 34,000 hectares of land in China’s Guangxi province, […]

TriplePundit

July 10, 2006

Community Development

Cancer zone factories defy orders

At least 20 factories in the Tianjin area of China, south-east of Beijing, are continuing to operate even though the […]

TriplePundit

July 10, 2006

Community Development

Elkington to lead social enterprise initiative

John Elkington, one of the best known proponents of responsible business practice, is to head a three-year project looking at […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

How CSR benchmark will move with the times

The UK’s Corporate Responsibility Index is being refreshed this summer in a bid to maintain its relevance and popularity. EP […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

Sweetening bitter sugar

Clem Seecharan. Ian Randle Publishers. 696 pages. Paperback. £25.95 This lengthy but illuminating book is not likely to be on […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

Leading bank turns down loans on ethical grounds

An international bank has turned down one in ten investment and loan requests from corporate clients after referring them to […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

Eight firms reported over ‘breaches’ of UN Compact

Eight official complaints about alleged breaches of United Nations Global Compact principles by signatory companies have been registered in the […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

Business input contributes to first fall in child labour

Efforts by companies to reduce under-age working have been partly credited for the first measured decline in child labour across […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

Tories set up CSR group

The UK Conservative Party has formed a steering group to develop a formal corporate responsibility policy. The five-strong group, chaired […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

Fair Labor Association hits back at student critics

A row has erupted in the US between one of the country’s largest ethical auditing bodies and the United Students […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

Chemicals sector is slow to act

The world’s largest chemical companies are making only limited progress on managing safety and sustainability risks, according to a study […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

Pulp mill risks still not being assessed

Investors and lenders are storing up trouble by failing to assess adequately the social and environmental risks of pulp mill […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

German companies ready and willing to disclose

The majority of Germany’s largest listed companies are planning to include more information on their social and environmental performance in […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

‘bored’ Wicks remains in post despite rumblings

Malcolm Wicks, the UK’s CSR minister, has retained his corporate responsibility brief in the recent government reshuffle despite some discontent […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

Six firms back new drive on volunteering

Half a dozen companies have become founding partners in a UK government initiative aimed at creating a million new community […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

Tesco counters criticism with a ten-point plan

One of the world’s largest supermarket chains has unveiled a ten-point corporate responsibility plan. The series of measures, which were […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

Bird flu moves on to CSR managers’ radar

CSR managers around the world are being invited to answer questions about their companies’ preparedness to tackle the effects of […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

Meeting the challenge of winning a lifetime’s loyalty from customers

Reading Tesco’s latest corporate responsibility review, it is hard to imagine how anyone could have a bad word to say […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

Businesses line up to take part in new European Alliance

About 40 companies have already expressed interest in participating in the new European Alliance for CSR, a loose network of […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

Don’t allow CSR to become a state-led leftist agenda

The UK Conservative Party must reclaim corporate responsibility for the centre-right, says David Cameron Some of you may have noticed […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

UN acts to raise standards at tourism and travel firms

The tourism and travel industry is to receive United Nations help to improve its performance on human rights. The World […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

Shareholder activists take heart at Shell AGM vote

Shareholder activists in the UK have been encouraged by the level of support shown at Shell’s annual meeting for a […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

Anglo sticks with Aids plan

Anglo American is to redouble efforts to persuade its employees to go for HIV/Aids tests and voluntary counselling after failing […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

G3 attracts record interest

The response to the Global Reporting Initiative’s call for comments on its sustainability reporting guidelines has been ‘overwhelming’, the Amsterdam-based […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

HP fares best in ethics study of IT companies

Hewlett-Packard has been judged best performer in an analysis of how multinational IT companies tackle ethical challenges. Geneva-based consultancy Covalence […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

OFR successor unveiled as Bill reaches Commons

The UK government has settled details of its forthcoming requirement on listed companies to publish a forward-looking annual ‘Business Review’ […]

TriplePundit

June 1, 2006

Community Development

Community involvement idea ready for lift-off

US-based CSR membership organization Business for Social Responsibility (BSR) has formed a partnership with the Asian think tank Global Institute […]

TriplePundit

May 24, 2006

Community Development

Japan gets first green index fund

Plans have been announced for the creation of the first environmental index fund for socially responsible investors in Japan. The […]

TriplePundit

May 24, 2006

Community Development

Asia tea producers ‘fall short on CSR’

The tea sector in Asia still has a ‘grim’ record on observing accepted workplace standards, according to a new study. […]

TriplePundit

May 24, 2006

Community Development

Chinese public supports CSR standard

Almost two thirds of the general public in China think the country should have some kind of compulsory CSR standard, […]

TriplePundit

May 24, 2006

Community Development

Plaudits for pro-poor venture fund

A venture capital fund that aims to help reduce poverty in India has become one of the ten recipients of […]

TriplePundit

May 24, 2006

Community Development

Call for data on corporate child rights projects

An appeal has gone out for information on company initiatives in Asia-Pacific that have tried to address the rights of […]

TriplePundit

May 24, 2006

Community Development

Non-corporate wins HK reporting awards

A government department has won this year’s Sustainability Reporting award in Hong Kong. The Architectural Services Department took the award […]

TriplePundit

May 24, 2006

Community Development

Taiwan firms getting better

The ethical performance of listed Taiwanese companies improved markedly last year, according to a second national analysis of CSR in […]

TriplePundit

May 24, 2006

Community Development

Corporate leadership missing on diversity

The biggest barrier to addressing workplace diversity in Asia is a lack of leadership commitment from the top of companies, […]

TriplePundit

May 24, 2006

Community Development

Chinese city looks at CSR certification

Authorities in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen are considering the introduction of some kind of CSR certification scheme for […]

TriplePundit

May 24, 2006

Community Development

Judges want to see CSR in photos

High school and university students in Hong Kong are being invited to enter a CSR photograph competition run by AIESEC, […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Responsible investment

Rory Sullivan and Craig Mackenzie (editors). Greenleaf Publishing. 382 pages. £45. Hardback. This is a book that no professional, academic, […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

L’Oreal deal raises debate on ‘ethical’ firm takeovers

The recently agreed takeover of The Body Shop by French cosmetics company L’Oreal has sparked fresh discussion about whether a […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Ibrahim takes on AccountAbility role

Anwar Ibrahim, the former deputy prime minister of Malaysia, has been appointed honorary president of the UK-based think tank AccountAbility. […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Fair trade label looks to China

Social Accountability International (SAI) and Solidaridad, a Dutch organization that fights poverty through fair trade, have started to seek out […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Olympus wants suppliers to meet social standards

Olympus Group, the Japanese precision instrument maker, has brought in a procurement policy that will favour suppliers that show they […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

John Ruggie: a man in search of the ‘sparkling grey zone’

EP talks to former United Nations assistant secretary general John Ruggie about his tricky task of devising a way forward […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

CBI stance may soften with Lambert at the helm

Corporate responsibility advocates are hoping the Confederation of British Industry may take a more sympathetic approach to CSR with the […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Row brews over Starbucks’ Guantánamo presence

Starbucks has been accused of failing to show a proper commitment to human rights by siting a coffee store at […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

French regulation prompts firms to act

Regulations requiring French companies to disclose details of their social and environmental performance have improved the overall quality of their […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Alcoa makes reporting debut

Alcoa, the international aluminium company, has released its first China Sustainability Report, detailing its environmental, social and economic activities in […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Pakistan awaits CSR inquiry results

Full details of an inquiry into CSR in Pakistan are to be published soon. The inquiry has been set up […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Pension funds adopt investment principles

The pressure on companies to disclose social, environmental and governance risks has increased dramatically with a commitment by institutional investors […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Trade groups drawn into industry-wide CSR initiative

The UK government has contracted six industry trade bodies to draw up sustainable development plans for their sectors. The British […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Asia-specific CSR guidelines are published

New advice for investors on what they should be requiring from companies on CSR issues has been published by the […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Microsoft helps Filipino NGOs

More than 70 non-governmental organizations have received training on how to obtain funds for social development tasks at an NGO […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Philips trains its managers to carry out basic ethical audits

An internal training programme at Philips Electronics has equipped more than 500 managers to carry out basic ethical supplier audits […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Investor concerned at irresponsible lending

Banks are making inconsistent progress on responsible lending to consumers, according to one of the UK’s biggest SRI fund managers. […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

City offers advice to newcomers

The Heart of the City group, formed in 2000 by the Bank of England, the City of London Corporation and […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Too much talk and not enough action from food companies

Most of the world’s largest food companies are still not getting to grips with the potential harm in the goods […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

French motor giant signs CSR deal with trade unions

Peugeot Citroen has reached a landmark agreement with 85 trade unions by committing itself to new global workplace and supply […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Integrated reports bring mainly intangible gains

The innovative companies that now combine their sustainability report with their annual financial statement are reaping mainly intangible benefits rather […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

FTSE4Good drops 19 for failing tests

Liz Claiborne, Nordstrom and Hilton Hotels are among the 19 companies dropped from the FTSE4Good index after the benchmark index’s […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Indian bank joins sustainability initiative

India’s new-age Yes Bank has joined the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative, whose corporate members work together to reduce […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

SA8000 to get major revamp

A workplace standard used at more than 800 factories worldwide is to be revised this summer. Social Accountability International, which […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

More Asian help needed on palm oil

Organizations and individuals throughout Asia are being invited to join working groups formed by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

SRI research gets boost

An initiative to provide investors in emerging market equities with better research on the social, environmental and governance performance of […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Tate & Lyle wins plaudits for school work

Tate & Lyle has won a gold award for its ‘outstanding community involvement’ from the UK-based Food and Drink Federation. […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Fight the good fight against owners’ vested interests

SRI proponents must keep challenging the notion that shareholders’ needs are paramount, says Peter Kinder By law, shareholders own corporations. […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

The UN’s Principles for Responsible Investment are a welcome initiative

The last thing corporate social responsibility needs is a new acronym. That said, the Principles for Responsible Investment – PRI […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

‘pro-poor’ alliance kicks off

The Netherlands development organization SNV and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development are to co-operate on promoting ‘pro-poor’ business […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Rabobank is top in Europe

Rabobank has won this year’s award for Europe’s best CSR report. The Dutch bank came top in the European Sustainability […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Commerzbank puts flesh on commitment

Commerzbank has formed a reputation and sustainability management team as part of efforts to improve its social and environmental performance. […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

Reporting growth slows as saturation point looms

The rate of growth in the number of corporate non-financial reports has slowed in the last three years, while their […]

TriplePundit

May 3, 2006

Community Development

EDF asks stakeholders to assure its CSR report

One of the UK’s largest energy companies has taken the unusual step of asking a group of stakeholders to assure […]

TriplePundit

March 31, 2006