Media Center

BSR Expands Global Operations in Sustainable Business with New Brazil Office

August 15, 2012

San Francisco—August 15, 2012—Global business network and sustainability consultancy BSR has opened a new office in São Paulo, Brazil, expanding its global presence to include a total of eight offices in Asia, Europe, North America, and South America.

The new office, part of a joint venture with the São Paulo-based sustainability strategy company Rever Consulting, will be led by BSR South America Director Joe Sellwood.

“Brazil is a critical piece of the global sustainability picture, with a vibrant business community that emphasizes social solidarity in a manner that is distinct from anywhere else in the world,” said BSR President and CEO Aron Cramer. “And with the Amazon, Brazil is also of crucial importance to the future health of our planet. BSR is ready and eager to play an important consulting, convening, and business leadership role in the region.”

BSR has a long history working in the country with Brazil-based companies such as Banco Bradesco, EBX, and Embraer, and carrying out projects there with companies including GE and Hitachi. BSR has also worked closely over the years with Instituto Ethos, on whose board Cramer sits and with whom BSR cofounded Forum EMPRESA, a hemispheric network of CSR organizations from Chile to Canada.

BSR’s experience will build on the relationships developed by Rever, whose team will contribute to BSR’s project work under Sellwood’s direction. Sellwood comes to BSR with nearly 20 years of international experience in the field of CSR, including 10 years in Brazil, where he has worked in government, business, and civil society organizations to improve environmental and social practices. In addition to serving as Partner and Business Development Director at Rever, Sellwood supported the formation of Instituto Ethos, helped form two sustainability-based consultancies, and ran the Global Leadership Network as part of AccountAbility.

“With this year’s Rio+20 Conference, followed by the 2014 World Cup, and the 2016 Summer Olympics, all eyes are on Brazil,” Sellwood said. “Not only is there a great deal of opportunity for sustainable business in Brazil, but Brazil also has much to teach the world about sustainability. BSR looks forward to being part of that progress.”
BSR’s other global offices are located in Asia (in Beijing, Guangzhou, and Hong Kong), in Europe (Paris), and in North America (New York, San Franciso, and Washington, D.C.).

About BSR

BSR works with its global network of nearly 300 member companies to build a just and sustainable world. From its offices in Asia, Europe, and North and South America, BSR develops sustainable business strategies and solutions through consulting, research, and cross-sector collaboration. Visit www.bsr.org for more information about BSR’s more than 20 years of leadership in sustainability.