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Terms beginning with letters A through C
AA1000 is the name of a series of standards for anchoring sustainability in organisations. AA1000 was developed by the non-profit organisation AccountAbility in 1999. The AA1000 Assurance Standard for instance contains guidelines for verifying sustainability reports. The AA 1000 Standard for Stakeholder Engagement on the other hand provides assistance with integrating relevant stakeholders into an organisation-wide sustainability process.
Accountability refers to responsibility and the obligation to account for one's actions. For enterprises, accountability means that they are responsible for the impact their business dealings have on the environment and society. In light of this, they have the task of reporting about their activities on a transparent basis and, by the act of doing so, accounting for them. The purpose of transparent reporting is to prevent companies from generating a profit at the expense of society and the environment.
AccountAbility Ltd. is a British non-profit organisation. This institute is dedicated to developing new ideas and instruments that help individuals, institutions and networks meet global challenges. Members of AccountAbility come from the private sector, public sector and civil society. AccountAbility is active in three areas: The competitiveness of sustainable products, collaboration between trade, industry, government and civil society, and civic involvement. AccountAbility developed and disseminates AA1000, a series of standards. It conducts an annual AccountAbility Rating which assesses how well global enterprises discharge their corporate responsibilities.
Agenda 21 is a development and environmental action programme for the 21st century which provides concrete objectives and measures to support the guiding principle of sustainable development. A total of 172 states adopted Agenda 21 at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in June 1992. The fields of action for Agenda 21 are environmental balance, economic security and social justice. In keeping with the motto "Think globally - Act locally", the aims of Agenda 21 are to be implemented worldwide at all levels of political and economic activity.
The Allgemeines Gleichbehandlungsgesetz (AGG) - informally known as the Anti-Discrimination Act - went into force in Germany in 2006. The AGG serves to prevent and eliminate discrimination on grounds of race, origins, gender, religion or beliefs, disability, age or sexual orientation.
Amnesty International (AI) is a non-profit non-governmental organisation that actively works for the enforcement of human rights. Since its founding in 1961, AI has investigated human rights violations, conducted public relations and lobby work and organised, for example, letter and signature campaigns in cases involving torture, violence, unfair court procedures and impending death sentences. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights provides the basis for its work. Amnesty International has approximately 2.2 million members in more than 150 countries around the world. The organisation's headquarters are located in London, Great Britain. Amnesty International is an important stakeholder for the political sector, trade and industry.
Assurance in the context of corporate reporting means that a company has credibly affirmed that the content of and figures in its reports are factually correct. For this purpose, firms often have their reports examined by independent third parties such as auditors. An assurance increases the credibility of a company's sustainability reports.
An audit is a control instrument that uses a target-performance comparison to identify potential for improving processes. Internal audits are conducted by persons who work for the respective company but do not belong to the area being audited. External audits on the other hand are conducted by independent, external experts known as auditors. Audits are conducted on the basis of a check list that covers legal regulations, requirements set forth in standards, and internal goals and objectives. Deviations from performance targets are ascertained with the help of check lists.
Audits conducted in the sustainability field are primarily environmental and social audits which are used to determine, for example, the discharge of emissions or adherence to working hours.
Founded in 2002, the Bundesnetzwerk Bürgerschaftliches Engagement (BBE) - Federal Network for Civic Involvement - is an association of players from civil society, the political sector, trade and industry. The aim of the BBE network is to foster on a long-term basis civic involvement such as volunteer work, self-help and work done in an honorary capacity. Using open dialogue forums and concrete projects, members work in eight specialised working groups to increase the standing of civic involvement in all areas of government and society. One of the working groups also deals with the subject of corporate citizenship - in other words, with companies' involvement in society.
The Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship (BCCCC) in Newton, Maine, USA, is an education, information and consultancy centre that is associated with the Carroll School of Management of Boston College.
The BCCCC was established in 1985 and has more than 350 global enterprises as dues-paying members. The BCCCC assists its members in the development and implementation of corporate citizenship programmes. The BCCCC is an official partner of the Centrum für Corporate Citizenship Deutschland (CCCD - Center for Corporate Citizenship Germany).
The berufundfamilie - 'jobandfamily' - audit is a product of a Hertie Foundation initiative that is funded by the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth. This management instrument was designed to make it easier for people working in Germany to combine the demands of work and family life. The jobandfamily audit identifies the individual company's potential for development in eight areas. The results are then used to develop co-ordinated measures which are combined to create an overall strategy for the respective firm. Companies that pass the audit are issued a corresponding certificate that is valid for three years and then has to be renewed. Firms view family-friendly personnel policies as a means to boost employee motivation and as an advantage when competing for qualified skilled personnel.
The Bundesaktion Bürger initiieren Nachhaltigkeit (BIN) - National 'Citizens Initiate Sustainability' Campaign - is an initiative that the German government is funding under its National Sustainability Strategy with the aim of fostering local sustainability initiatives. Civil society initiatives that offer pioneering, transferable approaches in the area of sustainability at local level are eligible for funding. The local initiatives must be related to the aims and fields of action of the National Sustainability Strategy and the areas of activity of the Research for Sustainability (FONA) framework programme of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research and support their implementation.
Biodiversity means 'diversity of life'. This term encompasses both the diversity of the Earth's ecosystems and the genetic diversity within individual biological species or populations, as well as the biological diversity to be found in a particular habitat or ecosystem. From the standpoint of sustainability, the subject of biodiversity is often raised in connection with its loss, the causes of which include man's influence.
www.biologische-diversitaet.de
The Business in the Community (BitC) business network was founded in Great Britain in 1982 and has its headquarters in London. BitC is one of Prince Charles' charitable organisations. The aim of this non-profit organisation is to inspire and support its dues-paying member firms in their implementation of corporate responsibility activities. This is accomplished through a variety of means which include offering an information and communications platform and the provision of services. Although the BitC network is limited to Great Britain, it collaborates with international organisations so that it is also active beyond British borders.
Blue washing is a disparaging term for the behaviour of those companies which have joined the United Nations' Global Compact without credibly anchoring sustainability in their corporate processes. Members of the Global Compact must commit themselves observing ten principles - which include human rights, environmental protection and anti-corruption. However, no independent reviews are conducted to determine whether the individual organisation actually observes these principles. Critics have therefore expressed fear that companies could use the Global Compact's (blue) logo simply to enhance their image. In response, the Global Compact passed a resolution in 2004 that requires member companies to submit an annual progress report.
The term bottom of the pyramid refers to the largest and, at the same time, poorest socio-economic segment of the global population. This population group consists of four billion people who live on less than two dollars a day. C.K. Prahalad's concept with the same name envisages viewing this segment of the population as a market that has potential and can be developed with products and services that are geared to its needs. Using this approach, enterprises can increase their turnover. According to Prahalad, by taking on the role of consumers and entrepreneurs rather than the role of victims of poverty, four billion people could free themselves from poverty. One example for the bottom of the pyramid is the growing micro-loan market in Southeast Asia.
The Business Social Compliance Initiative (BSCI) is an association of companies that support the improvement of working conditions in global supply chains. The BSCI was launched in March 2003 by the Foreign Trade Association which has its headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. In order to firmly establish social standards in supply chains, the BSCI developed a code of conduct which its members introduce at a minimum of two-thirds of their suppliers and then subsequently check to ensure its observance. The majority of BSCI member companies are active in the consumer goods sector.
The business case for sustainability spells out the economic benefits of integrating environmental and social aspects into core business activities. Business case scenarios are based on cost-benefit calculations.
A corrective action plan (CAP) is an aid for establishing a continuous improvement process in organisations. Examples of its use include ensuring compliance with environmental and social standards in supply chains. Corrective action plans list measures that are needed in order to correct deviations from a target state that have been ascertained in an audit. The necessary corrective measures, responsibilities and deadlines must be laid down by the client and the audited organisation. A follow-up audit determines whether the previously-defined corrective action has been carried out.
Cause-related marketing is a sales promotion tool. The term stands for public relations campaigns in which the manufacturer makes a donation to a good cause for each product unit that is sold. This tool originally comes from the USA. In Germany, cause-related marketing has begun seeing greater use in recent years.
The term corporate citizenship refers to voluntary charitable investments that a company makes in the community through its provision of, for example, money, products or its employees' skills and labour. A wide variety of tools such as donations, sponsoring, corporate volunteering and public private partnerships can be used to put corporate citizenship into practice. In order to be credible, corporate citizenship activities should be anchored in companies' sustainability strategies and be closely related to the respective company's core business or core areas of expertise. Corporate citizenship has the potential to produce advantages not only for society but also for the company concerned, creating a win-win situation.
The Centrum für Corporate Citizenship Deutschland e.V. (CCCD) - Center for Corporate Citizenship Germany - is a non-profit organisation that functions as an interface between trade, industry, the scientific and academic community and the political sector. Headquartered in Berlin, the CCCD works as a think tank and provides impetus for the corporate citizenship discussion in Germany and for the practical implementation of corporate citizenship on the part of civic-minded companies. The CCCD uses a variety of activities to foster the exchange of information between companies, the scientific and academic community, the political sector and citizens. The Center for Corporate Citizenship Germany is the German partner of the Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship (BCCCC) in the USA and a partner of Business in the Community (BitC) in Great Britain.
The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) is a non-profit organisation that was founded in the year 2000. The aim of the CDP is to be able to better assess the impact that global climate change has on companies and better gauge economic risks (investments, cash flow, profit). With this purpose in mind, the CDP asks the world's largest listed companies in the most important industries to answer questions once a year regarding, for example, greenhouse gas emissions and climate protection strategies. This initiative is currently supported by approximately 385 institutional investors that manage assets worth more than US$ 57 billion (as of 2008).
A certification system contributes to the external auditing and verification of compliance with prescribed rules and standards. The object of an audit can be a product, service or process. A certification system is normally comprised of a standard or standard specification, a pre-audit system that lays down the procedure to be used, and an accreditation system that ensures the auditor's independence. When an audit shows that the rules have been complied with, a certificate is issued. Typical certification systems in the sustainability field are ISO 9001 for quality management, ISO 14001 and EMAS for environmental management, SA8000 for social management or Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) for sustainable forest management.
Corporate governance (CG) could be interpreted as 'principles of responsible management'. CG helps ensure independent, value- and success-oriented management and thus helps ensure and increase corporate value. Corporate governance encompasses CG decision-making criteria and rules of conduct for company executive bodies, their implementation in corporate structures and the relationship between the particular company and its shareholders and stakeholders. With the exception of a few internationally-recognised principles, corporate governance does not constitute a set of internationally standardised rules or regulations. Rather, it consists of country-specific - both legislated and voluntary - measures for responsible corporate management.
See also: DCGK/Deutscher Corporate Governance Kodex
Child labour is considered to take place when young workers who have not yet reached the legal minimum age, have not completed their compulsory education or are under 15 years of age (or 14 years of age, depending on the respective country's laws) pursue a trade in any way. However, children who work in their parents' business or help out around the house during their free time are not considered to be subject to child labour. Companies have been repeatedly accused in the past of allowing forms of exploitation that are categorised as child labour, primarily as a result of their relocation of production processes to low-wage countries. Since then many companies have committed to themselves in a code of conduct to disallowing child labour.
Climate change is an unnaturally rapid and severe change in the global climate. Seen from a geological standpoint, fluctuations in the climate are a normal occurrence. However, man's influence has amplified this effect. This has been proven in several studies and was expanded on most recently in the extensive fourth report issued by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 2007. The crucial factor in the dramatic change in the global climate is the amount of greenhouse gases such as CO2, methane and nitrogen dioxide in the atmosphere. This has grown over the years and continues to grow today primarily due to industry and transport. This increase is causing a rise in average temperatures which in turn leads to unusually rapid changes in the climate. Climate change has negative effects on nature and people, as illustrated by flooding, droughts and an increased incidence of storms. Combating climate change will require joint efforts on the part of the political sector, trade, industry and consumers. For this reason, a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions constitutes a central pillar in the sustainability strategies of many companies.
A code of conduct is a set of rules of conduct relating to ethical values, laws and other aspects of corporate responsibility. Such a code can be compared to self-regulation. A distinction can be made between internal and external codes of conduct. An internal code of conduct is aimed at an organisation's employees and describes desired conduct among employees and in their dealings with, for example, customers, suppliers, business partners and other stakeholders. An external code of conduct is used, for example, to obligate suppliers to comply with certain rules.
In order to give weight to their internal code of conduct, organisations generally set up reporting systems that employees can use to anonymously report irregularities. Audits are one means used to determine whether codes of conduct are being observed by suppliers. In the event of non-compliance, correction measures or sanctions can be initiated.
A code of conduct for suppliers is a document that lays down the principles, guidelines and procedures regarding compliance with environmental and social standards. Companies predominantly cite the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of the United Nations and the core labour standards of the International Labour Organization (ILO) in their codes of conduct for suppliers. Through their codes of conduct, companies obligate their suppliers to comply with defined minimum standards. As a rule, codes of conduct for suppliers are not legally binding. Rather, they are an instrument for voluntary self-control. Internal and external audits can be conducted in regular intervals to verify compliance.
Compliance means fulfilment or conformance and refers to the observance of not only laws and guidelines but also of standards (such as ISO 14001), voluntary codes and social conventions. Thus, compliance with rules can be compulsory (such as through force of law) or voluntary (such as in the case of standards). In companies, compliance is a fundamental element of corporate governance which is concerned with responsible corporate management. In order to ensure compliance, these activities are often integrated into companies in the form of compliance departments or legal departments.
Consumer protection means all measures to protect consumers from health risks or financial loss. Today, as the number of products and services with increasingly complex supply chains grows, the information situation is becoming increasingly opaque.
The primary goal of consumer protection is to improve the transparency of products, their origin, production and properties.
Consumer protection organisations call for requiring the provision of product information by law in order to give consumers a broader basis for their decisions.
Enterprises that act responsibly typically make relevant information - such as consumption figures or active substances - about their products and the supply chain available to consumers.
Corporate Accountability (CorA) is a network of human rights organisations, trade unions, church and development organisations, consumer and environmental protection associations and other organisations with social and societal aims. Using various working groups, publications and societal debate, CorA actively works to ensure that transnational enterprises, their subsidiaries and suppliers observe human rights and internationally-recognised environmental and social standards and thus fulfil their corporate responsibility.
A company is involved in corporate volunteering when it supports civic involvement by allowing its employees to contribute their labour and skills on a voluntary basis. This form of civic involvement is one of the most diverse instruments used in corporate citizenship. Companies have a variety of options for organising volunteer programmes: They either support the existing private civic involvement of their employees or they initiate their own company projects and call upon their employees to participate in them. Volunteer work is particularly good for training social competence. Consequently, companies often use this tool for human resources development purposes.
Corruption generally means making use of one's private or public position for personal enrichment. More specifically, the payment and acceptance of bribes and the withholding of financial or material goods from their actual addressees fall under this term. Corruption is considered to be one of the primary obstacles to economic development in individual sectors and countries because it hinders fair competition, causes higher costs and leads to a loss of reputation. For this reason, more and more companies and other organisations are developing anti-corruption measures such as codes of conduct and sanctions.
Corporate responsibility (CR) describes a company's awareness of its responsibility wherever its business activities impact society, its employees, the environment or the economic environment. In this connection, corporate responsibility also stands for a corporate philosophy which gives centre stage to transparency, ethical conduct and respect for stakeholders. The term corporate responsibility encompasses the areas corporate social responsibility (CSR), corporate governance and corporate citizenship. The terms corporate responsibility and corporate social responsibility are often used synonymously. However the CR concept is much broader than the CSR concept. Corporate social responsibility focuses more on environmental and social challenges facing companies and thus looks at only two of sustainability's three dimensions. In CSR, a company's economic efficiency is viewed only as a general condition for responsible corporate action. By contrast, the CR concept explicitly incorporates the economic dimension of sustainability.
One cornerstone in corporate responsibility is an open dialogue with relevant stakeholders. These stakeholders include customers, employees, investors, suppliers, government and non-governmental organisations.
Contests generally foster competition among the contenders for the usually prestigious awards they involve. Being selected for an award and spotlighted in this way by a well-known institution can advance movements.
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is about companies, organisations and institutions that voluntarily assume social responsibility - above and beyond their legal obligations. The European Union defines CSR as a system "whereby companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations and in their interaction with their stakeholders on a voluntary basis." CSR does not take the place of political action or legislation. It does however offer an opportunity to pursue further-reaching social objectives and to set standards.
For more about the difference between CSR and CR, please see corporate responsibility.
CSR Europe is a European network for corporate social responsibility (CSR) which is comprised of some 70 multinational corporations and 25 national partner organisations. The CRS Europe network helps companies integrate responsibility for society and the environment into their strategies and processes. For this reason, CSR Europe serves as a communications platform for the exchange of information on experience gathered and on successful examples in the CSR field. The network also initiates and supports projects with companies and relevant stakeholders.
CSR Germany is an Internet portal that the Confederation of German Employers' Associations (BDA) and the Federation of German Industries (BDI) operate to highlight and promote corporate citizenship. CSR Germany has the task of setting up a network of players in the area of corporate social responsibility and fostering the exchange of experience. The CRS Germany portal also helps represent the political interests of associations and enterprises at national, European and international level.
The European Union is an active supporter of measures in the corporate social responsibility (CSR) field. It aims to play a leading role in CSR at global level. The European Council held in Lisbon, Portugal, in March 2000, made an appeal to enterprises' sense of social responsibility. Some of the more significant steps taken in this process since then include a green paper (2001), communication (2002) and the establishment of a multi-stakeholder forum on CSR (CRS Forum). The EU additionally organised the High Level Group of National Representatives on CSR which serves as a platform for the exchange of information on CSR between the European Commission and Member States. In its other efforts to promote CSR, the Commission gives priority to raising corporate and public awareness. It also supports multi-stakeholder initiatives and actively promotes consumer information, transparency, research and education.
CSR WeltWeit - CSR WorldWide - is an online information portal of the Bertelsmann Foundation which was developed together with partners from the political sector, trade and industry. The aim of the CSR WeltWeit portal is to help German companies organise their corporate environment abroad in responsible ways and also to make this work visible. The portal contains country-specific information on the standing of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and on areas of activity such as education, the fight against poverty and environmental protection. It can additionally provide the names of potential partners for successfully putting corporate citizenship into action locally. CSR WeltWeit also presents a wealth of case studies on the current CSR activities of German companies plus general information on implementing CSR projects, on partner management, evaluation and financing.