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MESSAGE FROM THE LIBRARY
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Grand Opening of Creativity &
Innovation Resource Centre: The Creativity and Innovation Resource
Centre (CIRC), which has just opened since Nov 27, 2003, is a joint
project of Creative Initiatives Foundation and Leisure and Cultural
Services Department. Housed on the 10th Floor of City Hall
Public Library, CIRC contains more than 1,500 books and
journals and is Asia¡¦s largest publicly accessible collection of
resources on the subject of creativity and innovation. The collection
comprises a vast knowledge base of materials of interest to anyone
searching to learn more about creativity, enhancing his or her own
creative abilities, teaching creative problem solving skills to
others, managing change or creating the future.
For details, please visit the website:
http://www.creative-initiatives.org/CIRC. |
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UPCOMING EVENTS |
FREE VIDEO SHOW
The Creative Spirit
(Ambrose Video Publishing, Inc./ In English without subtitles) |
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 To
celebrate the opening of the Creativity and Innovation Resource
Centre and to give NGOs an inspiring and entertaining look at
creativity, we are going to show the acclaimed video series ¡§The
Creative Spirit¡¨ in the NGO Library during December.
This series blends animation, original music and vivid on-location
shooting to capture this emerging spirit of innovation and
creativity. Through observation of creative people and places, we
discover that creativity is not the domain of genius -- it belongs to
and is important to all of us.
Each program is independent and you can choose the topic you are
interested.
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Program 1: Inside Creativity
This program takes us inside the creative mind to explore
what creativity really is and what causes it. A Jazz musician, an
animator, a business school professor, a designer and more, all
demonstrate and share their creative ¡§secrets¡¨. |
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Date: |
December 11, 2003 (Thursday) |
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Time: |
6:30-7:30pm |
Program 2: The Creative Spirit at Work
A look at creativity in the global workplace. The program
takes us to visit companies in Europe, the U.S. and Japan to learn
how businesses are using innovative programs to enhance the creative
output of their people. |
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Date: |
December 17, 2003 (Wednesday) |
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Time: |
6:30-7:30pm |
Program 3: The Creative Community
This program is about creativity as a way of caring for
others¡Kin the community and around the world¡K Today¡¦s complex social
and environmental problems demand creative solutions. This program
is particular valuable for NGOs to understand how creative
approaches to difficult issues can and do make a difference. |
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Date: |
December 18, 2003 (Thursday) |
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Time: |
6:30-7:30pm |
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Events Details |
| Venue: |
Creative Initiatives NGO
Resource Library |
| Email: |
ngolibrary@creative-initiatives.org |
| Enquiry/Reservation: |
2179 2727 |
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FREE ADMISSION FOR ALL EVENTS
Please reserve your seats now!
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TOPIC OF THE MONTH - CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY |
(The editors would like to thank Ms Shalini Mahtani, CEO, Community Business, in preparing
this featured article on Corporate Social Responsibility.)
What is Corporate Social Responsibility?
The positive impact of a company on the wider community is known as its ¡§Corporate Social responsibility¡¨ (CSR). There is no standard definition of CSR, but one commonly used definition is:
¡§The continuing commitment by business to behave ethically
and contribute to economic development while improving the quality
of life of the workforce and their families as well as of the
local community and society at large.¡¨(1)
Because there is no single accepted definition of CSR there is no commonly accepted classification of its main components. The World Bank(2) includes the following as components of CSR:
1. Environment
2. Labour issues
3. Human Rights
4. Community Involvement
5. Business standards
6. Marketplace
In a broader sense, CSR also covers:
7. Enterprise and economic development
8. Health protection
9. Education and Leadership Development
10. Human Disaster Relief
Many companies in Hong Kong think that Community Involvement, and specifically ¡§charitable giving¡¨, is synonymous with being socially responsible. This is wrong. Community Involvement is only one component of CSR.
To illustrate this, take a hypothetical Hong Kong company that makes large cash donations to charities. This same company may discriminate against pregnant women in the workplace, insist its staff work unreasonably long hours, exploit its labour force in factories in China and use bribery and corruption to achieve business objectives. This company is clearly not socially responsible
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Why are businesses concerned with CSR?
Leading companies globally have shown that when CSR is undertaken strategically it can have significant benefits to the company including building business, people and
reputation. For specific company examples, please refer to the
upcoming handbook for companies in Hong Kong: ¡§Corporate Community
Investment; Getting Started¡¨ to be published by Community
Business, which has an entire section on business benefits. Please
visit the
Community Business website (www.communitybusiness.org.hk) in mid December to download this publication.
Most companies in Hong Kong departmentalise CSR, generally to the public relations department, rather than truly integrating CSR into business units so that it is at the core of all business decisions.
Developments in Hong Kong
There are a number of developments in Hong Kong that illustrate the necessity for companies to embrace CSR:
- Hong Kong now has six socially responsible investment (SRI¡¦s) funds for sale(3). SRI¡¦s are mutual funds that invest in companies that are screened on the basis of ¡§sustainability¡¨ which includes economic, social and environmental criteria. In USA, 1 in 8 US dollars is directed to SRI¡¦s.
Companies that do not address their social responsibility will miss out on this pool of funding from socially conscious investors
who are concerned with business sustainability in addition to
profitability. Companies in Hong Kong in particular that generate
funds from overseas investors, are likely to be penalised for not
addressing CSR(4).
- 38% of consumers in Hong Kong rate environmental and social indicators among the top three factors in making purchases, along with quality and price(5). As consumers become more conscious of environmental and social issues, this percentage is likely to rise.
- Public trust of NGO¡¦s is far greater than that of companies. A Gallop Poll conducted in 2002 in 26 countries covering 1.4 billion people, including individuals in Hong Kong, found that the global public has the lowest levels of trust of global companies, local companies and government and the highest levels of trust for armed forces, NGO¡¦s and the education sector. Companies seeking to gain public trust will need to actively engage the NGO sector in dialogue.
In addition, there is small but growing industry of CSR professionals in Hong Kong with NGO¡¦s, private companies and academic institutions focused on issues of CSR, sustainability and governance. This industry is likely to continue to grow as companies in Hong Kong, like in other countries in the world, begin to see CSR not a matter of choice but a fundamental part of conducting business.
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Community Business (www.communitybusiness.org.hk)
A unique non-profit organization that leads, supports and inspires
businesses in Hong Kong to continually improve their positive
impact on people and communities.
If you have any questions, please feel free to email Shalini at shalini@communitybusiness.org.hk.
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Footnotes:
(1) This definition was developed in 1998 by the World Business Council for
Sustainable Development. United Nations, ¡§Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability Competitiveness,¡¨ Sustainability Reporter Website,
www.sirisdata.com
(2) From CSR course by the World Bank
(3) From www.asria.org
(4) More companies are producing ¡§CSR¡¨ reports or ¡¥Sustainability Reports¡¨
(5) J.C.K. Lam, S Saluhuddin and CS Tsoi, ¡§Corporate Governance Programme, University of Hong Kong, March 2003.
Available under http://web.hku.hk/~cegp/image/publications/CGReport.pdf
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BOOK RECOMMENDATION - CORPORATE SOCIAL
RESPONSIBILITY
(All books are available for reading in our Library) |
| 1. |
Corporate Citizenship:
Successful strategies for responsible companies
by Malcolm McIntosh, Deborah Leipziger, Keith Jones, Gill
Coleman
Library Call No.: 658.408 C67 |
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This book outlines the social responsibility issues facing
all organizations. It contains case studies of companies that
have managed to work through the challenges, and come up with
innovative and visionary solutions. The book also describes how
international companies such as
Levis, Toys-R-Us, Nike, McDonalds, Reebok and Sony have
gained competitive edge by putting corporate citizenship at the
heart of corporate strategy.
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| 2. |
Corporate Community
Relations: The Principle of the Neighbor of Choice
by Edmund M. Burke
Library Call No.: 658.408 B87 |
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 The
author illustrates how a company¡¦s community reputation also
affects the behaviour of consumers and employees. Burke also
describes strategies that enable companies to build trust in
order to be positioned positively in the community. This is an
excellent book that will help companies focus their business on
strong relationship with the community they live in.
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BOOKS FOR GRASSROOTS ORGANIZATIONS
(All books are available for reading in our Library) |
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Raise More Money: The Best of the Grassroots Fundraising Journal
by Kim Klein and Stephanie Roth
Library Call No.: 658.15224 R35 |
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This book offers small nonprofit organizations a wealth of tips,
strategies, and guidance on how to raise money from their
communities and develop long-term financial stability. |
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Grassroots Grants
by Andy Robinson
Library Call No.: 658.15224 R62 |
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This book will give you the skills you need to
raise money from grants. It also includes four complete proposals,
plus suggestions from foundation staff members who fund groups
working for social justice, human rights and environmental
conservation. |
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Grassroots and Nonprofit Leadership: A
Guide for Organizations in Changing Times
by Berit M. Lakey, George Lakey, Rod Napier, Janice M.
Robinson
Library Call No. 658.048 G72 |
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This book weaves together theory, experience and context to help
leaders deal creatively and concretely with the full range of
organizational issues. It is a practical tool kit, which also
clarifies the nature of power and leadership, the stages of social
movements, and the social environment in which organization exist. |
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