CSR & IPRS Sustainability Focus: Global Leaders On Stage

This month in Singapore there is
more than one opportunity for locals and visitors alike to catch sight of, and
meet, some of 100 Global Sustain Ability Leaders.  Five of them, including Esther An, Thomas
Thomas, Simon Tay, Harveen Narula and Wayne Visser will be at the CSR Summit
5/6   September. But don’t miss the IPRS
event on 21 September, when Ken Hickson will lead a panel on “The Sustainability
Megatrend for Business” featuring Howard Shaw, Jessica Cheam and Esher An. Read
More

Singapore Compact and the SR
Summit

The upcoming International
Singapore Compact CSR Summit 2011, themed “Corporate Social
Responsibility: Values for Sustainability”, will feature key international
experts in CSR and sustainability strategy, in response to the growing
awareness of sustainability as the next business megatrend for companies to
stay abreast of the curve. Rather than a “dreamer”, “loser”
or “defender”, as the Harvard Business Review has analysed, CSR
leadership experts from various industries will impart strategies and provide
tools to enable a “winner” in the coming decades.

In an economic environment
rattled by consequences of the economic crisis since 2008, trade uncertainty
incurred from recent uprisings in the Middle East and natural disasters in
various parts of the world, regional economies have seen tightening measures
worldwide. Investors, communities and civil society question companies’ behaviour
and responsibility for the environment; and stock exchanges across Asia
increasingly serve as regulators or institutional advocates of requirements for
sustainability reporting. In addition, the intersection of interests has meant
more cross-organizational collaboration and a need to understand perspectives
across stakeholders.

Plenaries and workshops during
the 2-day conference will explore CSR with regard to investor and shareholder
relations, the environment and human capital, while providing in-depth
perspectives on CSR in the region and across sectors. As an extension of the
past two years’ Summits, thought leaders will share their research and
findings, addressing different stakeholder groups in business and imparting
strategies for implementation.

The second International
Singapore Compact CSR Summit held last year marked key events including the
launch of the ASEAN CSR network and the inaugural Singapore Compact CSR Awards,
which recognised outstanding efforts by companies in various aspects of CSR.
Drawing almost 400 delegates and attendees at the 2010 opening ceremony, this
year’s International Singapore Compact CSR Summit is expected to attract
dignitaries and delegates from the top of their fields and at all levels of
business operations across sectors to the Grande Copthorne Waterfront Hotel,
Singapore, on the 5-6 September.

For the full programme go to: www.csrsingapore.org

Sustainability is described as the
“Megtrend of the 21st century”. Are you on board?

How green is your business? Are
you able to build on your strengths with green and sustainable products and
services to get greater attention in the marketplace and in the media?

On 21 September the Institute of Public
Relations Singapore (IPRS) is bringing together four acknowledged experts in
the field of sustainability and the greening of business, particularly from the
standpoint of corporate communication and media.

A panel discussion with be
chaired by sustainability consultant and PR guru Ken Hickson, with Straits
Times Jessica Cheam, CDL’s Esther An and Halcyon’s Howard Shaw.

Esther An

Esther An joined City
Developments Limited (CDL) in 1995 to set up the company’s Corporate
Communication Department and subsequently the CSR portfolio.  She has been instrumental in building up CDL
as a forerunner in CSR.

The company’s relentless efforts
in embracing sustainability for business excellence have won many international
and local accolades such as the prestigious Global 100 Most Sustainable
Companies, Asian CSR Awards and BCA Built Environment Leadership Award, just to
name a few.

CDL is honored to be the only
Singapore developer listed on the London FTSE4Good Index since 2002.  Its Sustainability Report was the first
amongst Singapore companies to achieve GRI checked status in 2008. In the 2010
Asian Sustainability Rating, CDL was again ranked top in Singapore and top
amongst all listed developers in Asia.
Sitting on board the Singapore Compact for CSR Management Committee,
Esther has been active in advocating CSR amongst businesses and students.

Jessica Cheam

Jessica Cheam is a correspondent
at The Straits Times who reports on housing, development issues, environment,
energy and climate change. She joined the newspaper full-time in 2006 after
being awarded a scholarship by the Singapore Press Holdings to study a Masters
in Journalism at London’s Goldsmith College where her work was nominated for a
PTC Journalist Award (UK).

Her first degree was in Film and
English at the University of Warwick. She has also written for London-based publications
such as The Independent, The Times and The Ecologist.

Jessica is the founder and editor
of the website eco-business.com, which is a leading provider of news and views
for Asia Pacific’s sustainable business community.

She has won a global journalism
award at the Earth Journalism Awards, which was held in Copenhagen in December
2009 by Internews and the World Bank. In March 2010, she was named Young
Journalist of the Year by Singapore Press Holdings at its annual English and
Malay Newspaper Division awards. In February 2011, her stories on
sustainability won her the first Asean Green Technology Journalism Award by
Siemens.

Howard Shaw

Howard Shaw, Senior Vice
President, Corporate Social Responsibility, HALCYON Group, was formerly the
executive director of the Singapore Environment Council (SEC). Howard was
actively involved in driving the environmental movement since 1995,
contributing towards shaping national environmental policies and programs.

He was responsible for the
development and administration of the Singapore Environmental Achievement
Awards, as well as the Singapore Green Labelling Scheme, which recognize
excellence in environmental management and green products, respectively.

Howard represented the NGO
community on various national groups, including the Water Network, Singapore
Packaging Agreement, and Public Hygiene Council. He was also a Focus Group
member for the National Preparatory Process leading up to the World Summit on
Sustainable Development 2002.

Ken Hickson

Ken Hickson is an
eco-entrepreneur, writer, lecturer, coach, consultant and communicator,
including 17 years based in Singapore (1983 to end 2000), where he managed a
leading communications consultancy Hickson Public Relations, which became
Fleishman Hillard.  He returned to
Singapore last year as Founder Chairman and CEO of Sustain Ability Showcase
Asia.

He has introduced a number of
products and services in the clean tech sector (green buildings, clean energy
efficiency, waste and water management) into Singapore from overseas and acts
as an advisor to the Singapore Environment Council and National Environment
Agency (NEA), as well as some clean tech start-ups, including GreenPost.

For the past ten years he has
lived and worked in Australia where he
is acknowledged as a leading climate change and sustainability
communicator, speaking at conferences, producing a book – “The ABC of Carbon”
-  editing a fortnightly e-newsletter –
abc carbon express – and acting as advisor to businesses and organisations on
awareness and action to deal with issues and opportunities.

He was appointed the honorary
representative for WWF International and was instrumental in getting the World
Wide Fund for Nature established in Singapore, where its Asia Pacific office is
now located. He has attended and spoken at WWF events in Asia and Europe and
was involved in fund-raising and event management for WWF Australia, where he
continues to serve as a Governor of the organisation.

He is a Fellow of IPRS and former
President. Just recently he took over the management of Professional Public
Relations Singapore, also known as Racepoint.

For more information and to book
go to the IPRS website.

Source: www.iprs.org.sg