Corporate Social Responsibility in the EU & CSR Communication Canada-Russia Roundtable on CSR and PPP, Moscow, 14. Mai 2008 Alice Drooghmans (extract of the presentation)

2 Corporate Identity Corporate Behaviour Corporate Social Responsibility Corporate Communication Image IMAGE

3 CSR – AND ITS ROLE CSR STANDS FOR THE ONGOING COMMITMENT BY BUSINESSES TO BEHAVE ETHICALLY CORRECT; TO CONTRIBUTE TO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WHILE IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF LIFE.

4 MOMENTUM New social and environmental challenges emerge Global warming, crime and terrorism, diseases etc. cannot be regulated or governed by nation states The nation state loses part of its political steering capacity vis-a-vis greater unity (e.g. EU) Companies have to compete in an environment of rapid change, reducing production costs / increase sales revenues (go-east caravan ).

5 MOMENTUM New actors and institutions, such as international organizations, Non Governmental Organisation (NGOs) gain political influence: e.g. identifying scandals, lobbying, PR, campaigning etc. monocausal campaigns LOHAS (Lifestyle of Health and Sustainability) becomes trendy

6 BACKDROP Politicians, Multi-naltionals, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises realise that CSR has to become part of their political and business strategy in order to commit to sustainable development and economical prosperity of society. The interaction and dialogue between all stakeholders involved needs to be geared up.

7 EVALUATION TO DATE The diversity in Europes business sectors and countries makes it difficult to establish a formally recognised approach towards CSR. Sofar there is no consensus on topics such as company reporting requirements or the need for European standards on CSR. COMMUNICATION ON BEST PRACTICES AND SHARING BUSINESS CASES TO CREATE AWARESNESS AND INTEREST FOR CSR AMONG ALL STAKEHOLDERS INVOLVED.

8 COMMUNICATION OF CSR BEST PRACTICE Unterstan ding & Acceptanc e I believe in it Awareness Commitment & Action Maintenance Reward - ReminderI live it I hear it

9 COMMUNICATION TOOLS Publications Reports Brochures Newsletters Product labels and packaging Events Advertisement Websites Presentations Mouth-to-Mouth Interviews ……..

10 Management Summary CSR properly integrated in the core business, sets messages for corporate communication and therefore will strengthen market position. CSR makes a significant contribution to the corporate image; one of the most important assets in the global business environment.