How important is corporate social responsibility to building a green economy

This story goes to the heart of everything we do at Renewable Now.  Building a whole new, smart economy takes great passion.   That commitment is fed by a driving desire to serve, as a company, not just customers but the entire community.

As so aptly captured in the opening lines, a dedication to the triple-bottom line of business management incorporates a vision of bringing social and economic equity to our world.   A planted in balance sustains the environment and the needs of all people while protecting our natural capital.  It is a very wide net of fueling prosperity for all.

That means our corporate world must design, profitably, new systems around energy, water, food systems and bring smart city concepts to even the smallest, fledgling communities.  Our reinvestment around the globe should give back,  not just take, from our worldwide neighbors. 

We hope you are part of this transforming, exciting mission.   It is a great time to be alive and part of a new quest bringing business and social needs to one platform of change.

Our sincere thanks to contributor, Greg Gerritt, for this story:

9th May 2016 / Mike Gaworecki

As developing countries are now working to usher in green economies around the world, the role of the private sector is receiving increased scrutiny. A crucial question that must be answered is how Corporate Social Responsibility platforms can be used more effectively as a development tool that not only supports broader environmental standards but also helps alleviate poverty, ensure environmental justice, and improve standards of living for all.

A new study published in Sustainable Development found that governments and civil society have a large role to play, to be sure, but building a green economy relies in many ways on the core business philosophies of the relevant private sector players.

Researchers surveyed more than three hundred firms in five different Caribbean countries that are pursuing green economy initiatives: Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica, St. Lucia, and Trinidad & Tobago.

They found a clear trend emerging, regardless of country or economic sector — namely, that firms that embrace sustainability as a core business philosophy are, perhaps unsurprisingly, the most dependable partners in building a truly sustainable economy.

Building a truly sustainable economy is not all about development without environmental destruction. Though that is of course a central component of sustainability, the United Nations Environment Programme, for instance, defines a “green economy” as “one that results in improved human well-being and social equity, while significantly reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities. It is low carbon, resource efficient, and socially inclusive.”

As developing countries and civil society organizations are now working to usher in green economies around the world, the role of the private sector is receiving increased scrutiny. A crucial question that must be answered is how Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) platforms can be used more effectively as a development tool that not only supports broader environmental standards but also helps alleviate poverty, ensure environmental justice, and improve standards of living for all.

A study published in the journal Sustainable Development in March found that governments and civil society have a large role to play, to be sure, but building a green economy relies in many ways on the core business philosophies of the relevant private sector players.

“[B]uilding a green economy won’t happen overnight and won’t happen without private sector commitment,” Indiana University Northwest’s Kalim Shah, the study’s lead author, said in a statement. “We’ll need the business sector to commit now and stay the course over a long term horizon.”

According to Shah, “our research shows that the strongest indicator of such commitment is a well entrenched, internally driven core ‘green’ business philosophy… and this does not spring forth overnight either...."

(We will bring you the rest later today