All Articles About Community Engagement & Development

BSR Insight Article: UN Report: Government Must Help Align Sustainability

The UN Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Global Sustainability’s new “Resilient People, Resilient Planet: A Future Worth Choosing” report—which builds on the seminal 1987 Brundtland Report—contains a host of recommendations to put sustainable development into practice worldwide. Recommendations for governments include: Read more →

Posted: February 10, 2012 | Topics: Community Engagement & Development, Governance & Accountability

BSR Insight Article: Using Water-Risk Information for Greater Impact

Ryan Flaherty, Manager, Advisory Services

Business continuity depends on access to clean water, a resource that is in higher demand as scarcity increases, quality declines, and distribution remains unequal around the world. As more companies recognize their dependence on clean water, they are turning to different tools to assess risks and provide context for their direct operations and supply chains. Read more →

Posted: February 7, 2012 | Topics: Community Engagement & Development, Ecosystem Services, Environment, Food, Beverage & Agriculture, Human Rights, Land Use & Biodiversity, Strategy & Integration, Water

BSR Insight Article: Four Key Sustainability Trends in Retail

The Retail Industry Leaders Association’s first sustainability report on the industry’s environmental, social, and community impacts features company case studies and identifies four key trends: Read more →

Posted: January 31, 2012 | Topics: Community Engagement & Development, Consumer Products, Environment, Reporting & Communications, Stakeholder Relations, Strategy & Integration, Supply Chain

Blog: Expanding the Response to Conflict Minerals

Amaya Gorostiaga, Former Manager, Advisory Services

With a grant from the GE Foundation, BSR is exploring ways for companies to partner with key stakeholders to support local-development and capacity-building efforts in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Companies, in partnership with civil society and government representatives, can play a role in supporting targeted and strategic social initiatives that address local-development needs in the region. A number of companies have already joined a wide range of actors to drive progress toward stopping the indirect financing of armed rebel groups through mine-certification schemes and mineral traceability. But while there is much to be said of these important efforts to create a clean and legitimate minerals trade, the multi-stakeholder response should also go beyond supply chain traceability and focus more attention on the millions of livelihoods that depend on the artisanal mining sector. Read more →

Posted: December 15, 2011 | Topics: Community Engagement & Development, Conflict Minerals, Economic, Social & Cultural Rights

BSR Insight Article: New Guide to Effective Local Content Programs

Elissa Goldenberg, Associate, Advisory Services

IPIECA—a global oil and gas industry association focused on social and environmental issues—released a guide to help companies design and execute local content strategies in the countries where they operate. Local content is defined by the value that companies bring to host countries by employing and training the local workforce and developing and procuring supplies and services locally. Read more →

Posted: December 6, 2011 | Topics: Community Engagement & Development, Energy, Mining, Stakeholder Relations, Strategy & Integration