News Update

Lots of interesting news in CSRWire recently! A few of the stories in Wednesday's Weekly Alert that I found intriguing:

The Company You Keep: IBM Sustainable Procurement Consulting Service Helps Clients Reduce Costs, Ensure Suppliers Are "Green," Ethical, Safe - IBM has developed a consulting offering through which it will help its clients "establish sustainability standards… throughout their global supplier networks".

UN Global Compact Annual Review Highlights Progress Made, Identifies Gaps in Corporate Responsibility Practice - Covers results from the "United Nations’ largest-ever corporate responsibility survey" . The short story: "...corporations around the world are making progress in adopting responsible business practices. Yet, serious implementation gaps remain, particularly in supply chain management and subsidiary engagement." (Looks like supply chains are a theme!)

Despite Economic Pressures, Majority of Companies Plan to Increase Emphasis on Sustainability - Reports the findings of a survey by of corporate communications professionals. Favorite quote: "'At a time when the economy requires everyone to stay focused on the essentials, it's noteworthy that businesses are putting sustainability programs into that must-do column,' said Nancy Costopulos, chief marketing officer of the American Marketing Association."

Then, from the New York Times:

Getaways That Are ‘Guilt Free’ - The story is about vacations that won't make you feel guilty about spending a lot of money on a luxury during a recession. It talks fairly extensively about programs that incorporate philanthropy and service into the trip. Will this be a long-term trend in the travel industry? Is it moving beyond the tour operators covered in this story to incorporate hotels and other players in this industry?

Have you seen any interesting news lately? Please post a link!