(Baghdad/Iraq) – Despite difficult circumstances – from security road blocks to sand storms – a training on implementation and reporting of the Global Compact principles concluded in Baghdad today. The training was conducted in Arabic by the Global Compact Local Network Iraq and Deloitte’s local office in the country. Twenty-five business participants from the Local Network participated in the training, with additional representatives from the UN Development Programme.

The … [visit site to read more]

We are looking for a colleague for a new position to lead sustainability communication in Group Sustainability. You will be part of a team of 7 people within CSR, environment, climate, health and safety. You will play a key role in communicating internally and externally how sustainability creates business value – and how our businesses create value for society. Start date is 13 August 2012.

We work with cross-Group policies and strategies, governance, stakeholder engagement, trend … [visit site to read more]

UL RS is a risk management consultancy specializing in responsible sourcing solutions. UL RS is recognized as one of the world’s leading consultancies in supply chain labor standards, providing benchmark guidance to global Fortune 500 retailers and manufacturers. UL RS has 30 offices worldwide dedicated to carrying out supply chain assessments that focus on child labor, forced labor, wage and hour issues, safety, and environmental concerns in international manufacturing and agricultural … [visit site to read more]

CEMEX has a rich history of improving the well-being of those it serves with efforts to pursue innovative industry solutions. In keeping with this legacy, CEMEX has under taken a global affordable housing initiative that helps provide quality concrete housing to low-income families in developing countries.

CEMEX’s goal is to help support people striving to provide homes and shelter for their families. Through its affordable housing initiative, CEMEX is “helping to supply these new homeowners with affordable and reliable products, and helping them find the right financial solutions to secure quality housing,” said Juan Luis Alfiero, leader of the initiative. “The key to the future of this initiative will be the support of other institutions and partners to create an integrated and collaborative approach to ensuring the future of housing and infrastructure in developing countries.”

The housing initiative, which was launched in 2010, is defined by a two-tiered approach of providing affordable quality building solutions while also identifying adequate financial solutions to meet each family’s needs. As part of the initiative, CEMEX housing experts have developed several prototypes of concrete houses for various types of urban and rural communities. These prototypes have been adapted to local use and customs in different regions of developing countries. In recognition of the social and cultural differences in each country, CEMEX conducts market assessments to understand the needs and customs of each region, noted Martha Herrera, Communication and Responsibility Director. The cost of building these houses, including finishes, fixtures, and equipment is less than $10,000 U.S.

Herrera observed that implementation of such a large-scale global initiative involves coordination with multiple departments such as the Housing, Concrete and Commercial Division, the Planning and Corporate Communications Department and the Public Affairs Department in each country. She added that “we share best practices and success cases between us through our internal web network and with monthly conference updates.  Every country has different needs and has different housing actors. Active participation of our local employees is crucial in this initiative.”

CEMEX is also working with various institutions to obtain suitable financial product fees and payment terms for the beneficiaries. As of today, CEMEX has implemented 30 housing projects under this initiative in coordination with third-party developers in five countries – Costa Rica, Guatemala, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Panama. Cemex had built more than 4,800 houses over the past two years and plans to expand its efforts to the Mediterranean and Asian regions.

The worldwide housing deficit has an estimated 1.1 billion people in urban areas alone living in inadequate housing. Mitigating the deficit is a challenge that requires joint action between governments, financial institutions, NGOs, and private enterprises to help build communities from the ground up. CEMEX has already collaborated with a number of important international, federal, state, and local organizations to ensure such affordable housing including Ashoka Housing for All, the International Finance Corporation, the Mexican National Housing Commission (CONAVI), Federal Mortage Society (SHF Development Bank), the Costa Rica Housing Ministry and the Costa Rica-Canada Foundation, the Nicaraguan Housing and Urban Institute (INVUR), the General Bank of Panama, the Nuevo Leon and Campeche Housing Institutes in Mexico, among others. With the support of these institutions, CEMEX expects to contribute to improving living conditions of families living in inadequate and inhumane conditions.

EF & B Lab are excited to announce a recently formed alliance. The alliance is intended to provide both EF & B Lab’s networks access to like-minded companies; all keenly interested in embedding social impact as a core value of their businesses.  The relationship will provide access to peer based learning and shared expertise in corporate citizenship, corporate social responsibility, corporate philanthropy and community involvement.

EF & B Lab look forward to providing companies of all sizes a comprehensive solution to further develop, implement and enhance existing corporate philanthropic programs. Through this alliance, EF &B Lab are looking to help companies interested in developing and enhancing both their corporate philanthropic initiatives and corporate cultures comprehensive and meaningful solution.

“Hundreds of companies choose to become B corps and have made a commitment to social impact. With this relationship, EF is excited to assist these companies with other philanthropic engagement opportunities particularly as it relates to their corporate social responsibility needs.  These programs include employee programs, volunteering, and the development of an overarching mission, vision and strategy for a company’s comprehensive philanthropic efforts. “ states Diane Solinger, Executive Director, EF.

“It’s great to bring these two business communities closer together.  B Lab and EF work in such complementary areas it makes sense to collaborate more where we can.  I know EF is excited to engage with more B Corps on their work.  We’re looking forward to increasing awareness of the B Corp movement and sharing use of the B Impact Assessment with EF member companies, it’s such a great tool to measure company social and environmental impact.”  Dermot Hikisch, Head of Community Development, B Lab.

B Lab

B Lab is a non-profit organization dedicated to using the power of business to address the world’s most pressing challenges. We support entrepreneurs who use business as a force for good.  By certifying B Corporations, supporting the development of Benefit Corporation legislation, and informing capital investments to the impact space with GIIRS, we are building a business community and the market infrastructure necessary to create a new sector of the economy that will redefine success in business.  Learn more at www.bcorporation.net

About EF

EF is a non-profit public charity on a mission to encourage, empower and enhance corporate philanthropy and corporate community involvement. EF encourages companies to be philanthropic by providing guidance and expertise to companies that haven’t yet adopted a community or philanthropy program; empowers companies to be philanthropic by providing open sourced resources, tools and best practices and on-line and in-person forums to make it easy for companies to learn on their own or from each other; and EF enhances corporate philanthropy by providing direct services to companies who have programs in place but need strategic or tactical support to make their programs better.For more information, visit www.efcsr.org or follow @EFConnections on Twitter.

The three largest mutual fund companies in the U.S. – American Funds, Fidelity, and Vanguard – managing over $1.6 trillion in U.S. securities in 2011, voted on dozens of shareholder resolutions last year seeking to improve corporate environmental and financial performance related to climate change. But in no case did any of the three firms cast an affirmative vote. That’s one of the major findings of a new analysis of proxy votes cast in 2011 by 44 of the largest U.S. mutual fund companies. Other major mutual fund companies such as TIAA-CREF and Wells Fargo performed much better, voting for a majority of such resolutions (see Appendix 1). 

“Mutual fund companies have a fiduciary duty to vote in the best interest of their clients, but in the case of climate change, many are not doing so,” said Mindy Lubber, president of the sustainability advocacy group Ceres, which commissioned the analysis. “The dearth of support by industry giants – American Funds, Fidelity and Vanguard – is especially disturbing.”

“Most large companies face significant climate-related risks, including physical and regulatory impacts, but many are ignoring them,” Lubber added. “Shareholder resolutions are a key mechanism for shareholders to strongly encourage companies to disclose these risks and actions for managing them.”

A growing number of institutional investors – many of them part of the Investor Network on Climate Risk comprised of 100 institutional investors collectively managing about $10 trillion in assets – have publicly signaled that they view information about climate change risks as material to their investment decisions.

Many of these same investors filed dozens of shareholder resolutions in 2011 and 2012 requesting that companies disclose climate risks and strategies for managing those risks. Among those are the New York State and New York City Pension Funds and the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS), which together filed or co-filed 17 climate-related resolutions in 2011. All told, the Ceres study tracked 111 resolutions filed with 81 U.S. and Canadian companies during the 2011 proxy season on climate change and related sustainability issues.

In 2010, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission issued formal guidance requiring publicly traded companies to disclose material climate risks in their financial filings.

Although American Funds’ proxy voting guidelines call for a case-by-case voting strategy on issues such as climate change, the firm voted against every single climate-related resolution filed in 2011 with companies held in its mutual fund portfolios, according to the new analysis done by Jackie Cook of Fund Votes.

Fidelity abstained on 89 percent of the resolutions and voted against 11 percent even though its proxy voting guidelines state that abstentions are used mainly when information on economic impact is lacking. Yet there is a great deal of financial and analytical information available on the impacts of climate change and climate risk management strategies from highly respected institutions such as Deutche Bank, Generation Investment Management, and many others.

Vanguard’s 88 percent abstention rate (12 percent against) reflects a policy of deferral to corporate management on such issues even though Vanguard’s proxy voting guidelines call for action where an issue can have “a significant, tangible impact on the value of a fund’s investment and management is not responsive to the matter.”

“The movement over the last few years by Fidelity and Vanguard from voting against all shareholder resolutions related to climate change to abstaining on most is a very small step in the right direction,” Lubber said. “But it also a very passive strategy that simply defers responsibility to management. These mutual funds should be leveraging their influence to ensure the companies they invest in are taking their climate-related risks and opportunities seriously, and disclosing material climate-related information to their shareholders. As fiduciaries for their customers they have an obligation to do better.”

In some cases, according to the Fund Votes analysis, mutual fund voting is misaligned with the firms’ publicly stated positions on issues related to climate change. For instance, signatories to the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), BlackRock and AllianceBernstein supported less than five percent of climate-related resolutions on which they voted in the 2011 proxy season. PRI signatories publicly endorse six PRI principles, including Principle 2, which states:  “We will be active owners and incorporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues in our ownership policies and practice,” including proxy voting.  The preamble to the principles states “…we believe that ESG issues can affect the performance of investment portfolios…”

Another example of misalignment is between Fidelity’s voting record and its recent on-line advertisements featuring water scarcity and ‘peak water’ as a key investment theme. Despite these ads Fidelity failed to vote for a single water-risk-related resolution that was part of the study. 

Though the proxy voting record of the Big Three is lacking, many large fund companies do have proxy-voting records that show strong concern for the financial impacts of climate change. Some have voted in favor of more than 50 percent of shareholder climate-related resolutions at large US corporations (See Appendix 1 below for specific voting records). Firms with the best voting records in 2011, all supporting more than half of the climate resolutions, were: TIAA-CREF, Wells Fargo, Fifth Third, Credit Suisse, Oppenheimer, GMO and Delaware.

Appendix:

Percent of votes cast ‘for’ and abstained by 44 Large Mutual Fund Families on 2011 climate-related resolutions

About Ceres

Ceres is an advocate for sustainability leadership. Ceres mobilizes a powerful coalition of investors, companies and public interest groups to accelerate and expand the adoption of sustainable business practices and solutions to build a healthy global economy. Ceres also directs the Investor Network on Climate Risk (INCR), a network of 100 institutional investors with collective assets totaling more than $10 trillion.

For more information, visit http://www.ceres.org and http://www.incr.com.

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The Centre for Sustainability and Excellence (CSE) is hosting its next global Certified Sustainability (CSR) Practitioner Trainings in New York (May 31-June 1) and Toronto (June 14-15). The training provides a global perspective on the most relevant frameworks and best practices of Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability, enabling professionals to lead their organizations, teams, and projects.

For these courses only, CSE is offering a FREE brief organizational assessment using the methodology and framework of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI).

Participants will benefit from:

• Gaining advanced knowledge and learning to use a comprehensive approach to create effective strategies and reports based on Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) guidelines
• Maintaining high levels of confidence among organizational stakeholders
• Learning how Sustainability can form a strong business case through updated and relevant case studies, videos, and exercises
• Being a part of a small, yet highly intensive group setting
• Understanding of Carbon Footprint and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) strategy
• Becoming globally recognized and accredited as a Certified Sustainability (CSR) Practitioner

To date, CSE has certified more than 300 participants from leading organizations and diverse sectors. Executives from Fortune 1000 companies and universities including Supervalu, Unilever, ABM Industries, Lockheed Martin, Baker Hughes, Noble Energy, United Airlines, and others have participated in CSR-Practitioner trainings across the globe.

Following the workshop, professionals have the opportunity to complete a Final Assignment, which allows them to qualify for certification and earn the CSR-P Certification and CSR-P Seal. CSE is an Approved Training Provider under the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment.

For more information, visit CSE's Sustainability Practitioner page at www.sustainability-practitioner.org

Limited seating available for all courses!

• May 31-June 1: New York, NY http://sustainability-practitioner-ny.eventbrite.com
• June 14–15: Toronto, ON, Canada http://sustainabilitypractitioner-toronto2012.eventbrite.com

QUOTES:

“It changed the way I think about CSR and gave me clear insight on how I may apply this to my organization.

Andrew Ruehl, VP, Corporate Social Responsibility Manager, Associated Bank,

Chicago workshop, 2012

“A sophisticated take on the concepts of CSR. The presenter was very knowledgeable and enthusiastic.

Robert Harris, CEO, Altruvest, Toronto workshop, 2011

“A very impressive ‘how to’ program, providing valuable information and background on CSR implementation and development.”

Gloria Barone-Rosanio, CIGNA Health Insurance, New York City workshop, 2011

“Incredible knowledge shared. Great mix of presentations and group assignments.

Jeff Rehm, Sustainability Manager, WW Grainger, San Francisco workshop, 2011

How do you know if your salary is appropriate to your role? Can you be sure it’s competitive, locally or internationally? Is demand for your skills increasing? Well, you can help us answer these and other questions by completing the 2012 CR & Sustainability Salary Survey questionnaire which is now available online.

Now in its fourth year, the survey has been developed to provide a comprehensive insight into the salaries and benefits, responsibilities and backgrounds of people working in the sector - both in-house and for external consultancies. This year we are aiming to provide a deeper understanding of the broader corporate responsibility and sustainability sectors around the world to provide unique and valuable information for you and your fellow professionals.

What can you gain from taking part in the survey?

• Learn how your salary and benefits compare to others in similar roles
• Benchmark salaries and benefits for your existing team
• Understand the varied backgrounds of CR and sustainability professionals

By participating, you will be the first to receive a full report on the findings and you will also be invited to a launch event in July, where you will have a chance to discuss the results and the implications for you and the sector.

Please note that this is 100% confidential – no participants' names or contact details will be published or made available to any third parties at any stage.

The quality of the observations we make will be based on you, the participant. Simply put - the more data we have the better, so please share with your colleagues and help us distribute this survey throughout the sector.

If you have any questions before completing it, please contact: steve@acre-resources.com

You can take the survey, find out more and download the results from previous years at: http://crsalarysurvey.com/

The 2012 CR & Sustainability Salary Survey is brought to you by Acre Resources, Acona, Flag and Ethical Performance.

The questionnaire will close on Friday 18th May.

The Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship at the Carroll School of Management has released its 2012-2013 Course Calendar and opened registration. 

For more than 25 years the Center for Corporate Citizenship has been the go-to place for management and professional development in corporate citizenship and community involvement, whether participants are new to corporate citizenship or experienced leaders. Courses range from one-day and 2-1/2-day programs at locations around the country to weeklong academies on the Boston College campus.

2-½ day open enrollment courses can lead to certification
The series of 2-½ day courses brings professionals together outside the office to learn in a collaborative setting where they can share ideas and best practices. These courses can be taken individually or as part of a five-part program to earn the Center’s Certificate in Corporate Community Involvement Management, which is designed to equip corporate community involvement practitioners with the core knowledge and skills they need to ensure that community involvement delivers meaningful value to the business and to society. Professionals pursuing the Certificate must complete four core requirements and one elective course:

Core requirements (must complete all four):

• Institute on Corporate Citizenship
  December 12-14, 2012, Los Angeles
• Communications for Community Involvement Managers
  October 17-19, 2012, Seattle
  March 20-22, 2013, Portland, Ore.
• Evaluate and Measure Community Involvement
  October 17-19, 2012, Seattle
  February 13-15, 2013, Atlanta
• Developing a Community Involvement Strategy
  November 14-16, 2012, Miami
  May 8-10, 2013, San Antonio 

Electives (must complete one):

• Creating a 21st Century Approach to Corporate Giving
  September 19-21, 2012, New Orleans
• Leveraging Your Corporate-Community Partnerships
  January 16-18, 2013, Dallas

Fast Track condenses Certificate program to five days

The Fast Track Certificate program consolidates all aspects of the courses into a five-day, on-site program, allowing a company to bring together staff at its own location to cover the entire spectrum of corporate citizenship or community involvement management challenges in a time- and cost-efficient manner. For more information contact email Eileen Blinstrub.

Special one-day volunteer program

Redesigning Employee Volunteer Programs for Value and Impact will be offered in Columbus, Ohio, May 23. Hosted by Huntington Bank, the one-day workshop is designed to help corporate citizenship professionals rethink possibilities and increase the value and strategic relevance of their companies’ employee volunteer programs.

Academies provide intensive learning

The Center will once again present its Academy programs on the Chestnut Hill campus of Boston College. These intensive weeklong academies are geared toward experienced senior corporate citizenship managers looking to take their programs to the next level. Both feature instruction by faculty members from the Carroll School of Management that will advance Academy participants knowledge and abilities.

• Corporate Citizenship Management Academy; October 15-19
  Participants earn a Certificate in Corporate Citizenship Management
• Corporate Citizenship Leadership Academy; October 29 to November 2
  Upon completion of the Leadership Academy, participants will earn a Certificate in Corporate Community Involvement Leadership from the Carroll School of Management.

The Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship at the Carroll School of Management is a membership-based research organization committed to helping business leverage its social, economic and human assets to ensure both its success and a more just and sustainable world. As a leading resource on corporate citizenship, the Center works with global corporations to help them define, plan and operationalize their corporate citizenship. Through the power of research, management and leadership programs, and the insights of its more than 400 corporate members, the Center creates knowledge, value and demand for corporate citizenship. www.BCCorporateCitizenship.org

ANN INC. (NYSE:ANN), the parent Company of Ann Taylor and LOFT, and Vital Voices Global Partnership, an international NGO that empowers global women leaders, are proud to announce the 2012 ANNpower Fellows.

Through a competitive application process during the month of March, ANN INC. and Vital Voices Global Partnership have selected 50 young women who are rising high school juniors and seniors across the U.S. to become ANNpower Fellows and participate in the first annual ANNpower Vital Voices Leadership Forum.  The 50 ANNpower Fellows hail from 24 states across the U.S. including California, Illinois, Kentucky, Minnesota, Texas and New York. To meet the 2012 ANNpower Fellows, visit ANNpower.org.

The ANNpower Vital Voices Initiative is a groundbreaking partnership between ANN INC. and Vital Voices. Together, they are working to train and empower young women in the U.S. to invest in their communities and begin their journey as the next generation of leaders.

The Fellows will attend the ANNpower Vital Voices Leadership Forum, a three-day leadership training program in Washington, D.C. from June 4-7, 2012.  The Forum’s curriculum will be based on the Vital Voices Leadership Model. Fellows will be mentored by 12 global women leaders who are part of the Vital Voices Global Leadership Network as well as executives from ANN INC. After completing the curriculum, the 50 ANNpower Fellows will be challenged to go back to their communities and create a project that will affect change at the local level. Each fellow will be eligible to apply to receive a project grant to put her ideas into action.

“At ANN INC., we are deeply committed to supporting the next generation of female leaders and are proud to play a significant role in the development of our 50 ANNpower Fellows”, said Kay Krill, President and CEO of ANN INC., “It is a privilege to partner with Vital Voices on this initiative.  Their commitment to women’s empowerment worldwide is inspiring to us all.”

“We are so proud to announce the 2012 ANNpower Fellows. These young women are taking their first step as rising leaders, recognizing their power, voice and responsibility to stand up and make change. We could not have a better partner than ANN INC. to help us do this.  The ANNpower Vital Voices Leadership Forum is an opportunity to build and empower a national network of young women leaders,” said Vital Voices President and CEO Alyse Nelson.

ANN INC. has committed to invest $1.3 million over four years to support the ANNpower Vital Voices Initiative. In 2011, the first 10 ANNpower Grantees represented an engaged, diverse, and talented group of young women who are currently working on projects that serve their communities in a meaningful way.

To learn more about the ANNpower Vital Voices Initiative, visit ANNpower.org. 

About ANN INC.

ANN INC. is the parent Company of Ann Taylor and LOFT, two of the leading women's specialty retail fashion brands in the United States. The Company operates 953 Ann Taylor, Ann Taylor Factory, LOFT and LOFT Outlet stores in 46 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico as of January 28, 2012, as well as online at AnnTaylor.com and LOFT.com. Visit ANNINC.com for more information (NYSE: ANN).

About Vital Voices Global Partnership:

Vital Voices Global Partnership is a leading non-governmental organization that identifies, invests in and brings visibility to extraordinary women around the world by unleashing their leadership potential to transform lives and accelerate peace and prosperity in their communities. Founded by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 1997, the organization trains and mentors women leaders as agents of transformative change in economic development, human rights and political participation. The Vital Voices Global Leadership Network includes more than 12,000 leaders representing 144 countries that have trained and mentored 500,000 additional women and girls in their communities. Visit www.vitalvoices.org to learn more.

Wireless products and services are a powerful agent of social change that provide billions of people around the world with anytime, anywhere access, according to a report released today by BSR and commissioned by CTIA-The Wireless Association. The “Socioeconomic Impacts of Wireless Technology” report cites a variety of case studies and uses on the adoption of, and trends in, wireless-enabled applications for finance, healthcare, education, and community engagement.

• Mobile Finance: Around the world, there are billions of “underbanked” or “unbanked” people, but thanks to wireless technology, they have access to market information and banking services so they receive a fair price for their goods and services and protect their money.
• Mobile Health (mHealth): From remote monitoring to disease management, wireless technology is helping improve healthcare outcomes and address the healthcare worker shortage. In the United States, chronic disease treatment costs more than US$1.4 trillion each year, but using mHealth could mean a savings of more than US$21.1 billion per year.
• Mobile Education: By using mobile technology, interactive learning may happen at any time and virtually anywhere. Technology-based instruction can reduce the time it takes students to reach learning objectives by 30 to 80 percent.
• Community Empowerment: Wireless technology empowers citizens around the world to create and interact with their communities and the world, hold their political leaders accountable, and organize for social, political, and economic change.

The report also highlights the role that licensed spectrum availability and the world’s 6 billion mobile connections have played in encouraging innovators to develop a range of applications.

“The wireless industry has already revolutionized the way we communicate, and we’re now seeing how it’s improving almost every other industry by making them more productive and efficient, and it’s changing peoples’ lives for the better all over the world,” said Steve Largent, president and CEO of CTIA. “In order to continue the great innovations that Americans and the rest of the world have come to expect from the U.S. wireless industry, our members must have access to spectrum so they may continue to create new products and services that will benefit individuals in developing and developed countries.” 

“This report highlights just some of the exciting possibilities to meet urgent social needs,” said Marshall Chase, Manager, Advisory Services, BSR. “There are rapidly growing opportunities for people to create vibrant new communities, connect with critical services, and improve their quality of life using wireless technology. To ensure these benefits, the industry will have a critical role to play in providing access at an affordable price.”

The “Socioeconomic Impacts of Wireless Technology” report builds on BSR and CTIA’s 2011 report, “Wireless and the Environment.”

About CTIA-The Wireless Association
CTIA-The Wireless Association (www.ctia.org) is an international organization representing the wireless communications industry. Membership in the association includes wireless carriers and their suppliers, as well as providers and manufacturers of wireless data services and products. CTIA advocates on behalf of its members at all levels of government. The association also coordinates the industry’s voluntary best practices and initiatives, and sponsors the industry’s leading wireless tradeshows. CTIA was founded in 1984 and is based in Washington, D.C.

About BSR
BSR works with its global network of nearly 300 member companies to build a just and sustainable world. From its offices in Asia, Europe, and North and South America, BSR develops sustainable business strategies and solutions through consulting, research, and cross-sector collaboration. Visit www.bsr.org for more information about BSR’s more than 20 years of leadership in sustainability.

World Bank’s recent research has acknowledged that sustained growth in the coming years would come from emerging countries. However, their research has also revealed that corporate governance appears to be the bane of many organizations in evolving countries, hence the urgent need for senior executives to raise their game via capacity development programmes on areas such as strategic leadership. It is in response to this that Aston Business School in collaboration with These Young Minds presents a four day executive education programme, scheduled to take place between 25th and 29th of June, 2012. This programme is specifically designed for senior managers and directors from developing countries. Registration for this programme may be made at http://goo.gl/slp3D 

The strategic leadership programme aims to enhance the performance of senior executives in their organizations, enable them appeal to lower cost of capital, attract as well as retain best set of employees and provide better social and financial value. This capacity development programme is a real opportunity for African executives to network with peers and world renowned academics. Importantly, candidates will be able to achieve operational excellence and business results through this programme on strategic leadership.

Through the use of simulations the course would offer participants alternative perspectives to real-life business challenges from a leadership viewpoint while applying innovative solutions to them. In addition, it would help leaders to build their organization’s capacity.

This capacity development programme is exclusively tailored for the present and future African business terrain as well as seeks to equip candidates with enhanced skills on how to make value adding strategies. Also, the course would enable leaders to paint their own high-level picture of global contextual business opportunities and develop clear perspectives on leadership. In addition, a high profile networking event would allow delegates to build an international network of peers and explore potential partnerships.

What is more, access to Aston Business School’s world-class facilities would boost the delegates’ learning experience. On this programme, participants would have the opportunity to interact with the business school’s teaching faculty, meet international candidates on other programmes and experience a visit to one of Aston’s partner organizations.

As These Young Minds is committed to adding sustainable value, we intend to provide managers in emerging countries with skill sets that would enable them stimulate organization performance and achieve set goals. These Young Minds has an impeccable track record of working with established organisations such as Microsoft, Mc Kinsey, Google, Ernst& Young, London School of Economics, Deloitte, University of Oxford and University of Cambridge and many others to deliver research and high-profile programmes.

As one of the world’s few business school with triple accreditation of AMBA, EQUIS and AACSB, Aston Business School is committed to transforming experiences, making real live difference to organisations, economies and the global society.

Professor Pawan Budhwar, Associate Dean Research, Aston Business School says ‘this programme will help participants to not only become aware about the rapidly changing global business context, but will also help them to develop competencies needed to both efficiently lead and organise businesses in the present challenging times.’

 In the same vein, Alim Abubakre, Founding Executive Director of These Young Minds says that this programme will equip senior executives with actionable knowledge and skills to create sustainable value for their organisations. It would equip participants with the ability to ease the tensions between critically evaluating new opportunities and situations, towards competing today while applying sound judgement to them such that long-term leadership is not sacrificed. It will also enable them to understand the key commercial drivers of their organisations, and make key investment decisions that create an enduring competitive advantage for them in key value adding areas.

GNP Company™, the Midwest’s leading chicken producer, unveiled its third Farm To Fork Report, outlining its newly launched mission of healthy food, families and farms, and key results for 2011. Despite a difficult year for the industry, GNP Company reported $338 million in annual sales, added new jobs, and donations to local food banks exceeding four million meals’ worth of chicken to Minnesota and Wisconsin families.

“Our people made a significant impact in what was one of the most challenging years on record for our industry,” said Mike Helgeson, chief executive officer and third-generation in the family-owned business. Record-high feed costs, fuel prices and low market pricing due to oversupply in the industry created the “perfect storm” for many. However, Helgeson credits “major business improvements, strong team member and partner relationships, and a company-wide focus on innovation” as key factors that led to record sales and a modest 2011 profit.

The company’s 2011 Farm To Fork Report concentrates on results in four key areas—people, planet, poultry and progress—highlighting the people and opportunities behind the company and its products. “People expect us to be forthcoming about what’s working and what can be improved. Not only from an accountability standpoint, but also to help people better understand the processes behind their food. This report helps build confidence through that information,” said Helgeson.

While the report summarizes notable achievements already publicized, such as the company being named Meatingplace’s 10th annual Jesse Jewell Award recipient; new product launches such as Gold’n Plump® Seasoned Boneless Skinless Breast Fillets; frozen carton programs; and animal welfare certification for its Just BARE® brand, it also highlights new facts about GNP Company: 

• People: 34 percent of GNP Company’s workforce has been with the company more than 10 years and 49.2 percent of all family farm partners have been with the company for more than 20 years. 
• Planet: Carbon emissions and carbon intensity for the company’s processing facilities and barns decreased from 2010 levels. 
• Poultry: The implementation of an Active Grower Management program and work with a leading university on a “Happy, Healthy Chickens” initiative further the company’s commitment to humane animal care.
• Progress: 1,209 team member suggestions yielded $4,340,547 in company-wide savings. 

For more 2011 results, and a look ahead at what’s coming for 2012, GNP Company’s 2011 Farm To Fork Report, is now available for download and viewing at www.gnpcompany.com.

Cause marketing is now widely recognized as one of the most powerful marketing strategies for both companies and causes with conservative estimates quantifying corporate cause sponsorships at $1.68 billion in 2011.

The annual Cause Marketing Forum is the must-attend conference of the year focusing solely on this increasingly important marketing approach and subset of corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts. Appropriate for both novice and seasoned cause marketers, the annual Cause Marketing Forum covers a wide range of topics featuring expert cause marketing speakers and discussion group leaders. From legal considerations to forming the perfect corporate-nonprofit partnership to harnessing the power of social media for your cause marketing campaign, no cause-related marketing topic is left uncovered.

Register Today at http://www.CauseMarketingForum.com/CMF12

Attendees will hear from executives, marketing and corporate social responsibility professionals from companies including Zynga, Procter & Gamble, Campbell’s Soup Company, Whirlpool, ANN Inc., Yum! Brands, The Coca-Cola Company, AOL/Huffington Post Media Group and others.

Nonprofit speakers include executive and cause marketing representatives from U.S. Fund for UNICEF, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, KaBoom!, ACCION, World Wildlife Fund, DoSomething.org, March of Dimes, Adopt a Clasroom and others.

Highlights include:

• A behind-the-scenes look at the integrated cause-related marketing effort, Arctic Home, partnering The Coca-Cola Company and World Wildlife Fund and lessons learned from this major initiative.
• Keynotes by U.S. Fund for UNICEF’s President and CEO Caryl Stern and Procter & Gamble’s Group Vice President for North America Melanie Healey
• The Great Breast Cancer Debate – a panel discussion of this cause marketing poster child that generates more corporate funding and more controversy than any other in the field.
• Digital sessions offering trends on crowdsourcing and the gamification of cause marketing. - A practical cause marketing Legal Update from Attorney Ed Chansky
• The Perfect Pitch - A new, edutational session starring three cause marketing pros pitching a single nonprofit to a panel of judges and
• The Cause Marketing Halo Awards – the brightest and best examples of 2011 cause marketing campaigns from 9 individual categories. Hear lessons learned from two of this year’s winners in Halo Spotlights.
• A frank conversation about how to bridge the divide between Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Cause Marketing efforts.
• Networking receptions, including our festive Opening Reception, sponsored by .ORG, the Public Interest Registry.
• A lively celebration of Cause Marketing Forum’s 10th Anniversary year, including the 10th Birthday Bash, sponsored by MSLGROUP Americas.

CVS Caremark (NYSE: CVS) today released its 2011 Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Report, which provides an overview of the company's commitments to environmental stewardship and diversity, the improvement of patient health outcomes, its continued status as an employer of choice and to helping people – especially children and the underserved – access care and services through its social investments.

Titled Helping People on Their Path to Better Health, this marks the company's fifth annual CSR Report, and it is available online at www.cvscaremark.com/CSR.

"The process of measuring our progress and performance and assessing the outcomes of our efforts to date in such areas as workplace, diversity, governance, products and services and the environment, helps us to be more accountable to our stakeholders," said CVS Caremark President and CEO Larry J. Merlo.  "We're pleased to share this report and the exciting progress we're making, in many different ways, every single day."

In this year's CSR Report, CVS Caremark presents its strategy for reinventing pharmacy for better health and also highlights the company's focus on diversity, both within its own workforce and in active engagement with the communities it serves.  In addition, the report features CVS Caremark's progress related to the goal of reducing its carbon intensity by 15 percent by 2018 through a variety of sustainability measures.  And, for the first time, the report includes an accounting of the company's political contributions and activities.

The CVS Caremark 2011 CSR Report was developed in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) G3 Guidelines, an international framework widely recognized and used by organizations to report on their CSR and sustainability performance. The Company met the GRI criteria required to self-declare a Level B. For more information on GRI, visit http://www.globalreporting.org/.        

About CVS Caremark

CVS Caremark is dedicated to helping people on their path to better health as the largest integrated pharmacy company in the United States. Through the company's more than 7,300 CVS/pharmacy stores; its leading pharmacy benefit manager serving more than 60 million plan members; and its retail health clinic system, the largest in the nation with approximately 600 MinuteClinic locations, it is a market leader in mail order, retail and specialty pharmacy, retail clinics, and Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Plans.  As a pharmacy innovation company with an unmatched breadth of capabilities, CVS Caremark continually strives to improve health and lower costs by developing new approaches such as its unique Pharmacy Advisor® program that helps people with chronic diseases such as diabetes obtain and stay on their medications.  Find more information about how CVS Caremark is reinventing pharmacy for better health at info.cvscaremark.com.

SOURCE CVS Caremark

Eileen Howard Boone, Corporate Communications, +1.401.770.4561; Carolyn Castel, Corporate Communications, Carolyn.castel@cvscaremark.com, +1.401.770.5717; Nancy Christal, Investor Relations, +1.914.722.4704

Huawei, a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider, today released its 2011 Corporate Sustainability Report. The report provides an overview of Huawei’s commitments and practices with regard to its corporate social responsibilities, including bridging the digital divide, caring for employees, fair operations, environmental protection, social contribution, supply chain CSR management, stakeholder communications and safe operations. The report, which demonstrates Huawei’s efforts and contributions in driving the sustainable development of the economy, society, and the environment, is online at http://www.huawei.com/en/csr2011.

“We adhere to a corporate strategy of establishing a more favorable social image and exemplifying good corporate citizenship everywhere we operate by incorporating CSR into our business operations” said Sun Yafang, Chairwoman of Huawei.

As outlined in the report, in 2011, Huawei worked proactively to fulfill its social responsibilities as a global corporate citizen. Huawei optimized its CSR management system based on the social responsibility guidance ISO26000, in order to continuously improve the company's CSR management. Huawei also established a CSR Committee and related organizations to ensure that its CSR strategy is effectively implemented, including technical planning, implementation, and supervision.

This is Huawei’s fourth annual CSR report. The report was compiled in compliance with the G3 guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), and it disclosed Huawei’s efforts and practices in a systematic and standardized manner.  Huawei disclosed more GRI indicators compared to 2010 and the application level of the report is B+. Notable highlights in this year’s report include:

• Established a 5-year roadmap that sets progressive goals for its CSR strategy, focused on optimizing, solidifying, enhancing and improving the CSR Management System.
• Continued Phone Lady Initiative - which has been recognized by the World Economic Forum and Boston Consulting Group - with largest local carrier in Bangladesh to help people in remote areas increase their incomes, find jobs, and receive timely information. In 2011, more than 28,000 proprietors were able to achieve an average income that is three times higher than the per capita income in Bangladesh.
• Used Instant Network technology - which is a portable GSM network co-developed with a customer that can provide telecoms services in disaster areas in less than 40 minutes - during a humanitarian mission in Barsaloi, Kenya, enabling local residents to connect to their families.
• Saved the equivalent of the annual power consumption of 250,000 families via Huawei’s green broadband network technology.
• Reduced tree consumption by 5,300m3 and lowered CO2 emissions by 13,000 tons via Huawei’s green packaging solutions.
• Supported the Kenya Red Cross Society in its mission to fight drought and hunger; Granted scholarships to students via the Telecom Seeds for the Future program; provided school children with access to an e-education in remote areas of India via the eHope program.
• Certified 27 suppliers as Huawei green partners and 441 suppliers signed commitments to not procure or use conflict minerals.

About Huawei

Huawei is a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider. Through our dedication to customer-centric innovation and strong partnerships, we have established end-to-end advantages in telecom networks, devices and cloud computing. We are committed to creating maximum value for telecom operators, enterprises and consumers by providing competitive solutions and services. Our products and solutions have been deployed in over 140 countries, serving more than one third of the world’s population.    

For more information, visit Huawei online: www.huawei.com

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The Solar Electric Light Fund (SELF) announced today that it is a Grand Challenges Explorations winner, an initiative funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.  Steven McCarney, SELF Project Manager, will pursue an innovative global health and development research project, titled, “Development and Field Testing of a “Battery Free” Solar Freezer for Immunization Support.”

Grand Challenges Explorations (GCE) funds individuals worldwide to explore ideas that can break the mold in how we solve persistent global health and development challenges.  SELF’s project is one of over 100 Grand Challenges Explorations Round 8 grants announced today by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

“Grand Challenges Explorations encourages individuals worldwide to expand the pipeline of ideas where creative, unorthodox thinking is most urgently needed,” said Chris Wilson, director of Global Health Discovery and Translational Sciences at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.  “We’re excited to provide additional funding for select grantees so that they can continue to advance their idea towards global impact.”

To receive funding, Mr. McCarney and other Grand Challenges Explorations Round 8 winners demonstrated in a two-page online application a bold idea in one of five critical global heath and development topic areas that included agriculture development, immunization and nutrition. Applications for the current open round, Grand Challenges Explorations Round 9, will be accepted through May 15, 2012.

Mr. McCarney’s project is designed to accelerate the development and field testing of two solar powered, battery-free vaccine icepack freezers to support immunization efforts. Currently, the World Health Organization (WHO) does not have such a prequalified freezer system; this project will conduct field tests of solar powered, battery-free freezers alongside WHO prequalified battery-free vaccine refrigerators at remote health posts in two Colombian indigenous villages in the Sierra Nevada mountains. If successful, immediate deployment of the freezers will begin.

“We are honored and very excited about this grant. Steve’s innovative thinking will help to ensure the vaccination of many more people, and we’re proud to have him on our team,” said Bob Freling, SELF’s Executive Director. “Our work in the field has shown that the vast majority – approximately two-thirds – of solar system equipment failures have been the batteries. This can be costly, and depending on where the system is located, it can also be logistically difficult to ship the amount of batteries needed to maintain its operation. Our pioneering work to power vaccine refrigerators with solar energy and without batteries – and now for the first time, freezers – provides a sustainable and reliable way to preserve vaccines and medicines in remote areas.”

About Grand Challenges Explorations

Grand Challenges Explorations is a US$100 million initiative funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.  Launched in 2008, over 600 people in 45 countries have received Grand Challenges Explorations grants.  The grant program is open to anyone from any discipline and from any organization.  The initiative uses an agile, accelerated grant-making process with short two-page online applications and no preliminary data required.  Initial grants of US$100,000 are awarded two times a year. Successful projects have the opportunity to receive a follow-on grant of up to US$1 million.

About SELF

The Solar Electric Light Fund (SELF) is a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit whose mission is to implement solar energy solutions to assist those living in energy poverty with economic, education, health and agricultural development.  Its Whole Village Development Model takes an innovative approach to designing and implementing integrated solar systems to improve the lives of the 1.5 billion people living in worldwide energy poverty. Since 1990, SELF has completed projects in more than 20 countries, pioneering unique applications of solar power for drip irrigation in Benin, health care in Haiti, telemedicine in the Amazon rainforest, online learning in South Africa, and microenterprise development in Nigeria. Connect with SELF on the web at www.SELF.org; on Twitter @solarfund; and at Facebook.com/solarelectriclightfund.

The Bridging the Americas Seminar 2012 is a hands-on, interactive workshop that focuses on the rapidly growing links between old-fashioned corporate social responsibility and new-fashioned corporate sustainability in Latin America. Designed to meet the needs of corporate executives, government officials, leaders in the nonprofit world, and academics working in this emerging field.

Features:

• Internationally prominent speakers from the US, Mexico and Brazil
• Small group dynamics
• Development of tools in accountability and sustainability with special reference to the Latin American context

Speakers include:

• Luiz Eduardo Osorio, Raízen, São Paulo, Brazil
• Charles Ansbach, Ansbach and Associates Sacramento, California
• Martha Honey, Center for Responsible Travel, Washington, D.C.
• Bianca Brasil, Instituto LIFE, Curitiba, Brazil
• Paul Rice, Fair Trade USA, Oakland, California

Registration fee: $2,200. Includes hotel, meals, simultaneous translation and instructional materials.

Sponsored by LLILAS (the Teresa Lozano Long Institute of Latin American Studies) and the IC2 Institute at the University of Texas at Austin.