Ch 18 CSR

Question 1

Define CSR.

Answer 1

CSR can be described as decision-making by a business that is linked to ethical values and respect for
individuals, society and the environment, as well as compliance with legal requirements.
CSR is based on the concept that a company is a citizen of the society in which it exists and operates. As
a corporate citizen of society, it owes the same sort of responsibilities to society at large that other
citizens should owe.

Question 2

What are the principals of CSR?

Answer 2

1. A company should operate in an ethical way, and with integrity.
2. A company should treat its employees fairly and with respect.
3. A company should demonstrate respect for basic human rights.
4. A company should be a responsible citizen in its community.
5. A company should do what it can to sustain the environment for future generations.

Question 3

List steps for creating CSR policy.

Answer 3

• It should decide its code of ethical values, and possibly publish these as a Code of Ethics.
• It should establish the company’s current position with regard to its CSR values, and decide the position it would like to reach in the future. The gap between the current position and the target position provides a basis for developing CSR strategies.
• The company should develop realistic targets and strategies for its CSR policies.
• These strategies should be implemented.
• Key stakeholders in the company should be identified, whose views the company wishes to influence (employees, pressure groups, customers).
• The company’s CSR achievements should be communicated to the key stakeholders. This is the main purpose of CSR reporting.
• The company’s CSR achievements should be monitored, and actual achievements compared with (1) the targets and (2) the CSR achievements of similar companies.

Question 4

Define GRi

Answer 4

a US-based initiative that encourages companies world-wide to publish sustainability reports that are prepared using a common reporting framework

Question 5

Define sustainability reporting.

Answer 5

The practice of measuring, disclosing and being accountable to internal and external stakeholders for performance towards the goal of sustainable development. Sustainable development is a broad term [meaning the same as other terms used] to describe economic, environmental and social impacts (such as triple bottom line, corporate responsibility reporting, etc.).

Question 6

How to measure environmental footprint?

Answer 6

Measure consumption of:

• energy use
• the built environment
• food products
• forestry products.

And then for each category, it is possible to measure the land area used for these activities within the country, in global hectares, to obtain a total environmental footprint for the country. This is
then converted into an environmental footprint per head of the population.

Question 7

Define carbon neutrality

Answer 7

exists when a company is able to counterbalance its use of carbon products, and particularly its carbon dioxide emissions, with activities that reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere such as growing trees or plants. Some companies have also tried to reduce their impact on carbon dioxide pollution by switching to the use of fuel and energy that does not involve carbon consumption.

Question 8

Define environmental footprint.

Answer 8

Also called an ecological footprint, is a term that means the impact
that an entity has on the environment, in terms of:
* the amount of raw materials that it uses to make its products or services, where the
raw materials are subject to depletion (see note)
* non-renewable resources that it uses to make its products orservices
* the quantity of wastes and emissions that it creates in the process