Protect thy Land, Protect thy Rights

In keeping with Aveda’s commitment to environmentally and socially responsible business practices, the company is pioneering the way - on what is often overlooked or taken for granted – protecting the land rights and natural resources of the local indigenous peoples. This is termed - Indigenous Entrepreneurship.

Indigenous representation at the UN event on May 23, ‘A Dialogue for the Future,’ included the environmental, economic and social interests of the Brazilian rainforest, the aboriginal peoples of Western Australia, family coffee growers in Mexico and the Maasai Shompole from Kenya.

David Hircock, advisor to Aveda’s President, is deeply ‘in the trenches’ with their indigenous partners, around the world, working on equitable trade and conservation, guiding the company’s use and integrity of ingredients. Through his work, he has facilitated preservation and access to natural resources of over one million hectares of land, among other things. Initiatives underway include:

• In Brazil, the Yawanawa tribe began efforts to protect 125,000 acres of rainforest land from loggers.
• In Australia, the aboriginal peoples have gained land rights and access to natural sandalwood resources enabling them to increase earnings seven-fold.

While progress is being made, there are still diverse issues facing these indigenous entrepreneurs as they tackle opportunities and challenges partnering with corporations, donors, lending institutions and business development agencies. These include access to markets, funding, education, business acumen, political, legal and social issues.

Concluding the panel discussion, President of Aveda, Dominique Conseil, provided the following comments:

• Doing good for community should be a key part of business purpose.
• Need for greater collaborative effort to help reduce poverty, eliminate infant mortality, have access to education, healthcare and food.
• Communities that bring people together will enable a healthier living environment and ultimately gain economic benefit.
• This is not, nor ever should be, a commodity-driven business and requires a selective strategy, supported by selective investment.
• Social disintegration doesn’t need big business approach and needs value-based partnerships.

Time for business leaders to embrace their indigenous wisdom. There is a lot more work to be done ‘in the trenches’ conducting their business operations in a socially and environmentally conscious manner.

And, as for those Maasai, allow me a childhood memory indulgence that is well deserving of a separate blog - to follow shortly.

UN Permanent Forum - Indigenous Entrepreneurship

Aveda and its Partners Discuss the Opportunities and Challenges - A DIALOGUE FOR THE FUTURE

The open forum held at the United Nations Headquarters, on May 23, spotlights the development of five indigenous business projects, focusing on land rights and natural resources in partnership with international businesses and non-governmental organizations (NGO’s). Speakers will present challenges and opportunities in these partnerships, and explore new paths to sustainable development that respect land rights and natural resources as the key to the survival of indigenous peoples. Panelists include: Dominique Conseil, president of Aveda, Veneranda Xochitl Juarez-Varela from Café La Selva, Mexico, Manuel Quezada IX from Community Tours Sian Ka’an, Mexico, Ole Petenya Y. Shani from the Shompole Community Trust in Kenya, Dr. Richard Walley of the Nyoongar people in Australia and Tashka Yawanawá, Chief of the Yawanawa tribe in Brazil. This event is an opportunity to celebrate the accomplishments of three communities recognized by the Equator Prize: Café La Selva, Community Tours Sian Ka'an from Mexico, and the Shompole Community Trust from Kenya.
Info - http://www.csrwire.com/News/8615.html.

Reputation Dynamics will report back on this event and learning's about sustainable development.

It’s not all about the PR – CRO Conference

Kudos to Jay Whitehead and The CRO team for rallying up the diverse panelists, attendees and topics at last Thursday’s corporate responsibility conference. No wonder Jay’s impressive moderation stamina is attributed to running marathons. Focus is the name of the game, after all.

Notable company CSR initiatives and discussion topics included reducing water, waste and energy consumption, philanthropic and community support, health and safety, labor practices and Sarbanes Oxley compliance.

‘Slay False Gods’ could not have been a more appropriate term stated by Douglas Baker, CEO & Chairman of Ecolab. The major takeaways of the day were all about stepping out from under the veil, getting real about the issues and sustainability.

It goes without saying that CEO’s of companies need to make profit and justifying the business reasons for CSR still remains a challenge for some. CSR should be considered a long-term solution, rather than a short term gain – still the current mindset. However, companies are making major strides towards changes in business operations and transparency - and rightly view this as an ongoing ‘improvement’ process.

Following is some ‘food for thought’, as companies continue to evolve in this new management paradigm:

Call for greater leadership: CSR programs need to be endorsed at the top, as a key part of the corporate agenda, and then infused throughout the organization - business, marketing and communications. How else can we rally the troops?

Stakeholder liaisons: Harness the power of key stakeholders and communicate with them regularly. Solicit the knowledge and opinions of customers. It is also a powerful tool to track and influence patterns of behaviour.

Sustainability: Adopt business practices and create programs that are for the long term. To coin the old phrase – ‘Rome was not built overnight.’

Company culture and values: Conduct a cultural assessment of employees and poll them about social causes of most concern to them. Then, include them in initiatives as a motivational incentive. Several companies have demonstrated improved employee performance and satisfaction.

The PR machine: Stakeholders want the facts and PR should be engaged at the right stage of CSR program evolution. Also, ensure authentic positioning, messaging and proof points. It is a vital component of risk mitigation and will enhance recognition and acknowledgement for a company really 'Doing Good in Society.'

Board's Eye View of CSR

Practitioners, thought leaders, and companies from CRO magazine's '100 Best Corporate Citizens' will be convening at the Marriott Financial Center in New York on May 10 for CRO's Spring Conference. The focus will be on successful corporate social responsibility strategies for protecting and growing companies.

Keynote speakers include Tim Solso, CEO and Chairman of Cummins and Douglas Baker, Jr., CEO and Chairman of Ecolab.

Research conducted by the Social Investment Research Analyst Network (SIRAN) and KLD Research & Analytics, Inc. (KLD) on environmental and social performance reporting of US companies, recently reported that nearly half (49) of US companies in the Standard & Poors (S&P) are now disclosing information about their environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance. That is a 14% increase of S&P 100 companies issuing reports over the previous year's study.

Another milestone reached in the evolution of this new management paradigm as companies respond to the widespread demand for greater transparency.

Myself and fellow trustmeister Jarvis Cromwell will be attending and report back on developments, case studies and trends. So, stay tuned for a candid take....

For more information on the conference agenda -- www.thecro.com/conferences.