The importance of collaboration in corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability became the dominant message at the International Summit in Singapore.  Businesses must accept that they must collaborate and work with their competitors, NGOs and Government to achieve results that are sustainable and enduring. And the organisers put sustainability into effect with the event itself by engaging Ecoinvest Services to measure its carbon footprint and introduce an offset project for support. Read More

Corporate Social Responsibility is gaining traction and the Singapore Compact’s International CSR Summit has become a platform to raise issues and raise standards in  the practice of CSR globally and in the region, and also to hear from leaders in sustainability on the application of in industry, business and the community.

Ken Hickson attended the two-day event and gives his impressions:

A highlight was the presentation by Professor David Grayson, Director, Doughty Centre for Corporate Responsibility, Cranfield University, UK. A seasoned observer with an excellent grasp of global CSR and sustainability efforts, he effectively communicated trends and needs.

The importance of collaboration was raised.  It is not longer advisable to work on your own in a CSR bubble within an organisation. Businesses must accept that they must collaborate and work with their competitors, NGOs and Govrnment. And sometimes all three, advises Dr Grayson, to achieve results that are sustainable and  enduring.

He gave examples of where this was happening effectively, citing work involving Unliever and Oxfod in Indonesia.

This was reinforced by Dr Puvan Selvanathan, Member, UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights, a seasoned observer of trends and practices of CSR and sustainability in Asia Pacific. He also noted that it is not possible to separate human rights and labour practices – ethical issues – from the role of CSR practitioners or for businesses to only focus on the “easy choices”.

It was valuable to hear from speakers, panelists and delegates who are involved in the application of sustainability and CSR “on the ground”:

• Thirukumaran Jallenran – or TJ – the new Head of Sustainability for Lend Lease in Asia on how his company applies sustainability to all areas of its business, internally and externally;
• Ben Gunneberg, Secretary General of PEFC, the world’s largest forest certification system, on the importance of accepting and maintaining sustainability standards to avoid deforestation and effectively deal with illegal logging;
• Tan Tian Chong from BCA and the Singapore Green Building Council on the important linkages between advances in green building certification beyond structures to interiors and operations which lead to better and healthier workplaces;
• Yuen Sai Kuan from the National Climate Change Secretariat on aligning climate change, with extreme weather events and what we can do to reduce emissions and in Singapore, do more to reduce our consumption of resources and get serious about energy efficiency.
• Grattan MacGiffin of Ecoinvest Services, who was producing a full carbon footprint report sustainability plan for the Summit and introducing an offset project.

BRINGING CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY (CSR) TO THE NEXT LEVEL

CSR Summit is designed to encourage innovative application of best practices to create business value and the mobilisation of youths as change makers, reports the organisers Singapore Compact.

More than 460 delegates and guests registered for the 5th International Singapore Compact CSR Summit, organised by Singapore Compact for Corporate Social Responsibility (Singapore Compact) this year, signalling a growing interest in corporate social responsibility (CSR) and business sustainability in Singapore.

The opening ceremony, held at the Stamford Ballroom, Raffles City Convention Centre was graced by Madam Halimah Yacob, Speaker of Parliament, Singapore. In her speech, Madam Halimah highlighted the dynamic role that businesses have on the communities they operate in.

She said: “We know Singaporeans would like to see a Singapore with a strong and vibrant economy, but one that also ensures our social well-being and offers a more fulfilling pace of life. Much of these can be achieved if we apply CSR principles to businesses”.

These can be through socially responsible labour practices, creating a more inclusive workplace environment and nurturing the spirit of creativity and innovation in workplaces. She also said that in the face of the widening income gap, business can focus on ‘social innovation’ that “can bring about new business opportunities, new forms of collaboration and an increase in productivity, which in turn can contribute towards narrowing the gap”.

In his welcome address, President of Singapore Compact, Mr Kwek Leng Joo, who is also the Managing Director of City Development Limited, spoke of the need for companies to take a long term view of their business to enjoy sustainable success in the face of a fast changing global landscape, maturing economy and civil society.

He said: “I believe that CSR is the answer to business sustainability. Businesses are faced with main challenges such as corporate transparency, customer loyalty, labour shortage, resource scarcity and waste management, regulatory compliance, financial uncertainty and sustainable growth. Whether you run a global or local business, the scrutiny and expectations by stakeholders and the public have never been higher….it is crucial that companies make that leap and embrace CSR as part of their corporate DNA in order to build a flourishing and sustainable business”.

He added that providing solutions and support through tools and training such as the International Singapore Compact CSR Summit is one of the ways in which Singapore Compact can help companies in their CSR missions. 5th International Singapore Compact CSR Summit – Innovative integration of CSR to add value to businesses

The theme of this year’s International Singapore Compact CSR Summit is “CSR: Making The Difference; Innovation – Best Practices – Ideas” and aims to highlight the value of CSR in driving inclusiveness, growth and innovation in times of economic uncertainty, both from the business and social perspectives of sustainability.

The 2-day Summit, to be held on 4 and 5 September 2013, features a distinguished panel of more than 40 speakers including Mr Heng Chee How, Senior Minister of State, Prime Minister’s Office; Professor Dr Professor Dr. Roel Nieuwenkamp, Chair of OECD Working Party on Responsible Business Conduct; Professor David Grayson; Director, Doughty Centre for Corporate Responsibility, Cranfield University, UK; Dr Puvan Selvanathan, Member, UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights; Mr Ronnie Tay, Chief Executive Officer, National Environment Agency; Mr Jack Sim, Founding Advisor, BoP Hub and Mr Ramlee Bin Buang, Executive Vice President & Group, Chief Financial Officer, Cerebos Pacific Limited

In addition, a pre-Summit Workshop on “Building a Culture of Innovation and Sustainability – How CSR can help you develop an engaged workforce”, was held on 3 September 2013 and offered delegates insights on how to leverage CSR as a management tool to develop an ethical, responsible and creative organisational culture and an engaged and productive workforce.

Mobilising Young CSR Champions as Change Makers of Tomorrow

A key feature of last year’s Summit was the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the National Youth Achievements Award Council (NYAA) to launch the Youth Membership Network to strengthen the CSR agenda. Engaging the Youth has been a key priority area for Singapore Compact as the importance of instilling CSR in the youth is extremely vital to ensure that they will bring CSR ideas to the workplace when they join the workforce.

As part of Singapore Compact’s efforts, an inaugural CSR Youth Forum was also launched by Mr Teo Ser Luck, Minister of State, Ministry of Trade and Industry and Mayor, North East District, earlier this year. Currently, some 250 youth have joined the network. There are other plans in Singapore Compact’s pipeline to develop synergies for members with other existing and new student networks of the Youth Membership Network to strengthen affiliations, create more CSR exposure and engagement opportunities.

“I have always believed in the potential of youths and the importance of cultivating their passion for CSR. My vision for the Singapore Compact Youth Membership Network is to nurture a civic-minded generation who can champion responsible business practices. The Network may be just budding, but I am most encouraged by the positive response and feedback received from the youth. With such active engagement, I hope to soon see a new generation of young CSR Champions who will become change-makers and transform the way we do business tomorrow,” said Mr Kwek.

The Summit also saw the culmination of the CDL-Singapore Compact Young CSR Leaders Awards 2013. The third instalment of the case-study competition has attracted submissions with refreshing and practical CSR ideas from students from tertiary education institutions.

CDL-Singapore Compact Young CSR Leaders Award

This competition, into its third year, is organised by Singapore Compact in partnership with City Developments Limited (CDL). This case competition, which aims to promote thought leadership amongst our future leaders to foster greater awareness of embracing CSR principles into a company’s business strategy and practices , is open to youths between 17 and 30 years of age, who have to form teams of three to six.

The Competition engages 10 Singapore-based Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) from diverse industries and the SMEs identify specific CSR aspects that they are concerned with. Each participating team works on a CSR strategy proposal for the SME it is matched with. 10 finalist teams are then selected and provided with practical work attachments at the chosen SMEs as well as mentorship by CSR consultants to help refine and improve on their proposals.

First Prize, Nanyang Technological University (Team Chasers) for Sin Hwa Dee Foodstuff Industries

Second Prize National University of Singapore (Team Springboards) for Matex International Ltd

Third Prize INSEAD (Team Endeavour) for Asia Capital Holdings (ACR) Pte Ltd

Singapore Compact CSR Awards 2013

The Awards aim to recognise Singapore-based organisations which have responsible business practice across the areas of environment, community and their people, and demonstrate working in partnership with stakeholders to achieve long-term sustainability of the business. This is the fourth year Singapore Compact is giving out the Awards.

“Green Champion” Award  Winner: Keppel Land Limited

Last year, Keppel Land won a special mention for “Green Champion” Award, and continues to show progress in its environment sustainability initiatives.

In 2012, Keppel Land developed respective Environmental Operations Plans for managing its completed commercial buildings in Singapore and hospitality properties overseas. In particular, for Ocean Financial Centre, a Green Fit-Out guide was produced for all tenants in 2011, and a Green Office Operations Guide produced in 2012 which provided practical guidance to tenants on incorporating environmentally-friendly practices in their daily operations. S

“Green Champion” Award Special Mention: Ricoh Singapore

Ricoh Singapore has several customer programmes in place as part of their environment conservation efforts. These include recycling of toner plastics (2,527.63 kg collected in fiscal year 2012); printer products collected from customers undergo ‘Reuse or Recycle’ evaluation, to minimise waste. In addition, Ricoh also provides monthly environmental analysis of print equipment (including paper usage, carbon tradeoffs and electricity used) to customers’ office environments, where possible.

“Best Workplace” Award Winner: Holiday Inn Singapore Atrium

“Caring Employer” Award Winner: Crowne Plaza Changi Airport

Holiday Inn Singapore Atrium and Crowne Plaza Changi Airport, both hotels under the InterContinental Hotel Group (IHG), are lauded this year for their progressive labour practices in creating excellent work environment for their employees.

“Caring Employer” Award, Special Mention: SPC Wearnes Pte Ltd

Long before the Yellow Ribbon Project Singapore (which was launched in 2004), SPC Wearnes was already in partnership with the Singapore Corporation of Rehabilitative Enterprises (SCORE) to hire ex-offenders, to help them reintegrate into society. Since 1993, SPC Wearnes has hired more than 440 ex-offenders. To support these new hires, the newcomer is assigned a mentor for close guidance, and are put through various training programmes for as long as a month to get them ready for work. A handful of these employees have stayed on with the company for more than three years.

“Best Community Developer” Award Winner: NTUC FairPrice

NTUC FairPrice has had a long history of community outreach, including its 30-year programme “FairPrice Share-A-Textbook Project” and 12 year support for the “Boys’ Brigade Share-A-Gift” programme during the Christmas festive season. Its staff volunteer programme, which was set up last year, completed about 2,800 hours of community service through more than 80 activities.

Source: www.csrsingapore.org

Ecoinvest Offset Project in the Philippines

Ecoinvest Services will be offsetting the emissions incurred by the 5th International Singapore Compact CSR Summit 2013. The summit has chosen to do this through the Bataan 2020 12.5 MW Power Rice Hull Cogeneration Project.

The project is a 12.5 MW cogeneration plant whereby steam and electricity are generated by using rice hulls as a source of fuel. Greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction is achieved through displacement of fossil fuel based grid electricity, which is the norm in this province.

The project owner, Bataan 2020 Inc., sets an excellent example of community development through its social initiatives, such as tree plantations and livelihood programmes. The project has supported several local education and training initiatives and is an important investor in the local value chain. As an employer, approximately 400 workers were hired to construct the project with around 100 employed in day-to-day operations.

An “Outreach Program” focuses on the social development of the most needy in the local community and for example made aid contributions to the victims of the Ondoy Typhoon in 2009.

In addition, Ecoinvest will provide the organisers with a full carbon footprint report on the energy use, on site travel, delegate flights, hotel accommodation and waste associated with the event.

Source: www.ecoinvestservices.com