Industrial impact: any colour – so long as it’s green

Connecting with society

The Ford Motor Company issued its second annual corporate citizenship report, Connecting with Society, in May, highlighting action on strategic issues such as business value creation from social responsibility, climate change and human rights. Among detailed performance measures for the 2000 year, employee satisfaction was up five percentage points on the year before, energy use and CO2 emissions per vehicle produced were up 1%, and charitable donations increased by 41% to reach $120 million worldwide. The report includes commentary from five international experts and a commitment to assess impact not just globally but in detail at country level. Contact Deborah Zemke, Ford, on 00 1 481 219 907 (http://www.ford.com)

GM goes local

General Motors is engaging with stakeholders through a new information online service, http://www.GMability.com. The portal covers environment, safety, philanthropy, trade, sustainability and diversity issues. GM plans to allow site visitors to search for data about local impacts in their own communities using postal/zip codes, and to add information in four languages.

In May, the company’s Ramos Arispe complex in Mexico won the annual Stockholm Industry Water Award, a collaborative effort involving WBCSD and Swedish agencies, for efficient water use – having halved consumption while increasing production seven times. Contact Dave Barthmuss, General Motors, on 00 1 313 665 9036 (http://www.gm.com)

BP reports online

BP’s corporate reporting for the year 2000 was launched during April, covering financial, social and environmental performance. Included are a set of detailed ‘country impact’ studies. Among data provided are detailed HSE performance information, diversity statistics for employees and managers, and the worldwide social investment contribution totalling $81.6 million. Information is available in print and on http://www.bp.com, which will be updated regularly. Contact Jeremy Nichols, BP, on 020 7496 4000 (http://www.bp.com)

Shell wins prizes again

Shell has confirmed its position as a leader in public reporting, by taking the top prize in the fifth European Environmental Reporting Awards, announced April 9. Following two major UK reporting awards in March (see CAB 57), Shell was praised for its stakeholder relations, verification, sustainability road map and benchmarking results.

Best sustainability reporting award went to the Danish company, Novo Group, whilst the Italian company, Acquedotto Pugliese, was best first-time reporter. In total 24 reports were submitted from 12 countries. Contact Rachel Jackson, Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, on 020 7396 5845 (http://www.accaglobal.com)

Conoco and Premier join oil reporters

Conoco issued its first ‘Sustainable Growth Report’ on May 8, setting out how it creates value for shareholders while respecting environmental and social concerns. The company is developing a sustainable development policy that incorporates positions on climate change and human rights. Contact Sondra Fowler, Conoco, on 00 1 281 293 1000 (http://www.conoco.com)

Premier Oil – criticised by the UK government for continuing to operate in Myanmar/Burma – issued its first ever social report on May 16, to explain its policy of constructive engagement. Included are independent assessments of local opinion about its economic, social and environmental impacts. Contact Richard Jones, Premier Oil, on 020 7730 1111 (http://www.premier-oil.com)

First sustainability strategy for offshore oil

Member companies of the UK offshore oil and gas industry association are set to examine their economic, social, environmental and stewardship impacts, and to meet specific targets for progress, as the first part of UKOOA’s new industry-wide sustainable development strategy, released on April 25. Contact Trisha O’Reilly, UKOOA, on 020 7802 2422 (http://www.ukooa.co.uk)

‘Stop Esso’ campaign launched

Esso, the UK subsidiary of ExxonMobil, is the subject of a consumer boycott campaign, launched on May 8 by the environmental groups, Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth (http://www.stopesso.com). Attention focused on global warning and presidential campaign funding in the US. A MORI survey for the campaign found that 53% of current Esso purchasers in the UK ‘would stop buying its petrol if asked’.

Meanwhile in the US, the ExxonMobil Foundation announced grants worth $17 million on May 7, benefiting over 950 colleges and universities, to match gifts made by employees and retirees. Running since 1962, the programme has donated more than $230 million to higher education in the US. Contact Gordon Sawyer, Esso, on 01372 222 000 (http://www.esso.com)

Oil and motor back conservancy

General Motors announced on May 18 that it is contributing $10 million to the US-based Nature Conservancy Trust to buy and restore 30,000 acres of rainforest with Brazil’s Society for Wildlife Research and Environmental Education. On May 29, BP Canada pledged a $1 million contribution, also to TNC, for habitat conservation in Canada. In 1999, BP donated 29,000 acres of mineral assets for conservation in Alberta. Meanwhile Shell is set to make a $1 million grant over four years to TNC to help save the Laguna Madre ecosystem on the Gulf of Mexico. Contact David Meyer, TNC, on 00 1 703 841 8743 (http://www.tnc.org), BP Canada on 00 1 403 233 1425 (http://www.bp.com) and Cerris Tavinor, Shell, on 020 7934 3045 (http://www.shell.com)

news in brief

• BP Australia and Rio Tinto are funding an Australian edition of an Earthwatch guide, Business and Biodiversity, with country-specific information on how companies can best measure and manage their biodiversity impacts. BP is also supporting A guide for UK companies operating overseas, another Earthwatch biodiversity publication. Contact Robert Barrington, Earthwatch, on 01865 318 815 (http://www.earthwatch.org)

• Toyota is teaming up with the Green Earth Centre, a Tokyo-based NGO, in a joint reforestation project in Hebei province, China, following the company’s Chinese expansion through joint production ventures. Over 1,500 hectares under threat of desertification will be planted with trees. Contact Toyota on 00 1 859 746 4000 (http://www.toyota.com)

• Shell says its support for Shelter’s Nescafé Street solutions initiative has resulted in the sale of 98,000 cups of coffee in 700 of its service stations and raised almost £20,000 for the charity, at 20 pence a cup. Contact Shell on 020 7934 1234 (http://www.shell.com)

Comment

“History is bunk” is another Henry Ford favourite. But he was actually decrying an attitude that always looked back, going on to say “We don’t want tradition. We want to live in the present and the only history that is worth a tinker’s damn is the history we make today”. Not a bad call for his industry to stop looking back on the old way of doing things, but to face up to today’s realities – and be bold and brave enough to make history.

The news from the oil and motor industries shows they are certainly trying. The latest batch of reports shows widespread improvement in performance, especially through eco-efficiency. However they are still way off the big goal of reversing global warming. And this at a time when changed politics in Washington are making even the modest and inadequate emission reduction targets in the Kyoto agreement seem unattainable.

A common comment from others – less high profile, more benign, struggling to get going and perhaps looking for reasons to delay – is ‘we are not a Shell or Ford’. Surely that’s no excuse not to learn the lessons and apply them – focus not just on the home country, but all around the world; social impact is not just via charity but through the basic business operation; act not just in your own directly controlled operations but reach out to business partners and customers (all illustrated above).

Someone else might learn some lessons too. Gone are the days when Rio Tinto had its very own pressure group, a focal point for concern about global multinationals. Today ExxonMobil is becoming that lightning rod. Reported to be launching a PR offensive this summer, let’s hope (if only for the sake of its shareholders) that it learns from Rio Tinto’s turn-round in perceptions, not from Monsanto.

COMMENT:

“History is bunk” is another Henry Ford favourite. But he was actually decrying an attitude that always looked back, going on to say “We don’t want tradition. We want to live in the present and the only history that is worth a tinker’s damn is the history we make today”. Not a bad call for his industry to stop looking back on the old way of doing things, but to face up to today’s realities – and be bold and brave enough to make history.

The news from the oil and motor industries shows they are certainly trying. The latest batch of reports shows widespread improvement in performance, especially through eco-efficiency. However they are still way off the big goal of reversing global warming. And this at a time when changed politics in Washington are making even the modest and inadequate emission reduction targets in the Kyoto agreement seem unattainable.

A common comment from others – less high profile, more benign, struggling to get going and perhaps looking for reasons to delay – is ‘we are not a Shell or Ford’. Surely that’s no excuse not to learn the lessons and apply them – focus not just on the home country, but all around the world; social impact is not just via charity but through the basic business operation; act not just in your own directly controlled operations but reach out to business partners and customers (all illustrated above).

Someone else might learn some lessons too. Gone are the days when Rio Tinto had its very own pressure group, a focal point for concern about global multinationals. Today ExxonMobil is becoming that lightning rod. Reported to be launching a PR offensive this summer, let’s hope (if only for the sake of its shareholders) that it learns from Rio Tinto’s turn-round in perceptions, not from Monsanto.