Interesting CSR and sustainability news from last week uncovered by the FreeBalance Strategy and Innovation Group.
BUSINESSES FINANCING FOR POSITIVE IMPACT: Dirk Schoenmaker from Bruegel explains why the financial systems should finance contribute to sustainable development. The concept of ‘sustainability’ has redefined ‘productivity’ in light of how finance interacts with economic, social and environmental issues.
http://bruegel.org/2017/07/how-to-make-finance-a-force-for-sustainability/
WHAT’S THE BUSINESS CASE FOR SUSTAINABLE INNOVATION? Chris Sherwin in Innovation Excellence identifies the $12 trillion business case for sustainability.
SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP NEEDS A NEW BUSINESS MODEL: Alexandria Bordas in the Miami Herald highlights a talk by Robert Hacker. Hacker believes that companies who do not consider social responsibility in business outcomes are doomed to failure.
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/article159827154.html
$4.5T CIRCULAR ECONOMY OPPORTUNITY:The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) released a CEO Guide to the Circular Economy that describes the global business opportunity for sustainability.
http://www.wbcsd.org/Clusters/Circular-Economy/Resources/CEO-Guide-to-the-Circular-Economy
SYSTEMS THINKING AND 21ST CENTURY CORPORATE CITIZENSHIP: Katherine V. Smith of the Boston College Center for Corporate Leadership describes the use of ‘systems thinking’ and CSR, including:
- “Strategy: your plan for competing.
- People: getting the right group together to do the work.
- Structure: organizing the team.
- Processes: communicating, making decisions, accomplishing the tasks, measuring progress.
- Metrics and incentives: keeping people motivated to produce results”.
http://corporatecitizenship.bc.edu/21st-century-corporate-citizenship-an-excerpt
CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY INFLUENCES STOCK PRICES:
Leor Rotchild in the Huffington Post finds that financial analysts believe that sustainability leaders financially outperform sustainability laggards.
DEFENDERS OF THE EARTH? Global Witness reports about the record “200 killings of people defending their land, forests and rivers against destructive industries.”
https://www.globalwitness.org/en-gb/campaigns/environmental-activists/defenders-earth/
ENVIRONMENTALISTS DISMAYED: Fiona Keating in The Independent reports on the 860,000 acres of protected Amazon rainforest in Brazil opened up to logging, mining and farming