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January 2007
Welcome to 2007! Here's to lessons learned and abundant opportunities ahead. This is a perfect time to take stock, to count our blessings, and to get serious about the changes we seek.
Here's what I'm doing. At home, I'm shrinking my carbon footprint (I love my new hybrid) and celebrating our collective spirit for change. That sounds like an excuse for a party – if you're in town and looking to blow away the February blues, join me to Party in Plaid for Robbie Burns!
At work, I'm collaborating with others to clear simple paths towards sustainability for business and consumers. Lately I've been working with groups that can leverage change in several areas, and I'm glad to report that some of the heavy rocks are shifting. Read "News" below to learn more.
I send you my best wishes for a happy, healthy 2007 that's full of many positive changes.
Coro
Now here's...
News from Strandberg Consulting
Change through public education
Public education and engagement are critical to demystifying sustainability.
Recently, I gave a keynote talk in Ontario, where a credit union leader
said it was the first time he understood CSR as a business imperative.
Helping people make these connections through keynotes and workshops
is personally rewarding. But more important, without making it real
for business leaders and consumers, we can't grow the sustainability
movement.
Check out:
- CSR: Advancing Business and Social Value, a presentation I'm giving at Royal Roads University Continuing Studies on Feb. 2 in Victoria. It's open to the public.
- BC Business magazine. During a sustainability roundtable last August, I identified practical sustainability steps for small businesses.
Change through the boardroom
Until recently there was no such beast as a CSR board committee. By last
year, four of the 100 largest publicly held Canadian companies had board
social responsibility committees. I'm hoping that my current research
with the Conference
Board of Canada on global best practices in
CSR governance will help this trend grow, which will bring sustainability
into consideration at the highest levels. The study involves interviews
with 40 global best practice companies and international CSR governance
thought leaders.
Check out:
- CSR Governance Framework. Includes six steps I suggest company boards can take to manage the risks and embrace the opportunities of sustainable development.
Change in the supply chain
Good news! Hundreds of millions of dollars in the Vancouver region are
being screened already for their social
and environmental impact and more is on the way. I conducted
a regional
survey for the Sustainability Purchasing
Network on the interests of purchasers to improve their sustainable purchasing
practices. Nearly 80% of respondents were interested in collaborating
with other organizations to use their purchasing power to foster a sustainable
economy. Imagine the affect of all these organizations rattling
their supply chains to promote sustainable business.
Check out:
- Sustainability Purchasing Network, an organization I helped launch with Charlene Easton and Tim Reeve, and now a program of the Fraser Basin Council.
- Guide to the Business Case and Benefits of Sustainable Purchasing. Developed with Amy Robinson for the Sustainability Purchasing Network, it includes over 80 case studies.
Change through investment
A door to community investment is opening in the pension fund world.
After years of exploring ways to mobilize pension assets into community
investment, we began to sense movement through a project with Vancity
Credit Union and
Canadian Community Economic Development Network.
It is early days yet, but a group of BC pension funds indicated they
would consider community investment proposals that met their business
criteria. Now it is
up to the community investment sector to bring thoughtful deals forward.
Work with Tides
Canada Foundation and others on creating
a social capital marketplace in Canada promises
to push these doors open wider. Stay tuned.
Check out:
- Corporate Knights Op Ed: The Future of Socially Responsible Investment to read about how SRI is going mainstream.
Change through business strategy and industry
associations
Last year I helped a number of businesses develop
CSR strategies to advance their triple bottom line goals. Congratulations
to Ethical
Funds for
their Ethics
in Action Award.
Now I hope to harness the power of collective action by working with
associations to move entire industries forward. I'm conducting
research with Five
Winds International for the federal government
that explores the role of industry associations in advancing the
sustainability performance of their members (think chemicals, forestry,
mining, retail, oil and gas, manufacturers). Take
note: some industries require core performance standards in order
to qualify for association membership. Please contact
me if you would
like more information.
Strandberg Consulting - Solutions for a Sustainable
World
Coro Strandberg - Principal | 6325 Sperling Avenue - Burnaby, BC
V5E 2V3 | T 604.433.7339
E coro@corostrandberg.com www.corostrandberg.com