C
O
R
P
O
R
A
T
E

S
O
C
I
A
L

R
E
S
P
O
N
S
I
B
I
L
I
T
Y

Around the world, corporate citizenship is being influenced by deeper social changes that make it necessary for companies to espouse environmental standards. As many public and private investors refuse to endow companies that pollute the planet and place the health of the world’s population at risk, investments are increasingly directed towards businesses that meet the basic standards of environmental responsibility. Indexes of social and environmental performance are becoming significant market factors in screening for good citizenship and corporate social responsibility. These indexes drop companies that fail to meet social responsibility standards. With pro-environmental shareholders entering into dialogue with decision makers, corporate behaviour on the environment can be steered towards a direction that can meet the needs and demands of the global public and civil society.

Green Salary
The creation of new jobs, particularly for the young, is an imperative for regenerating the world’s economies and providing a hopeful future. Rather than offering conventional benefit payments to the unemployed, they could be given the opportunity to work in some area related to the protection or restoration of the environment and earn a “green salary” for their contribution. The opportunities abound, as many environmental problems exist today that can be ameliorated by human intervention. It is in everyone’s long-term interest to build a society that enhances the potential of every citizen, based on initiatives for environmental appreciation and protection.

B.I.O. has been working for twenty years to raise awareness of the urgent need to place corporate social responsibility at the heart of economic and development policies. Through numerous international conferences, publications and educational projects, we have urged business leaders and decision-makers to adopt initiatives for environmental appreciation and protection. Corporate social responsibility is a genuine profit for both business and society.