CSR and Green NGOs in China

Paul French at China Dialogue posted an interesting article yesterday about Western retailers and their approach to corporate social responsibility (CSR) in China. Fast food chains in particular appear to be employing lower CSR standards when it comes to operating in mainland China, compared to overseas, and even Hong Kong and Taiwan. It is a little surprising that companies like McDonald’s and Starbucks are dragging their heels when it comes to offering Chinese consumers healthier consumption options - any Chinese person who can afford to regularly stump up 30 RMB for a cappuccino is more than likely part of the growing middle to upper-class Chinese demographic. It is these people who travel overseas, are increasingly concerned about personal “wellness” issues, and who prinicipally populate the growing band of more environmentally aware Chinese.

Some Western companies do appear to be taking their commitment to the Chinese environment seriously. Swedish telecomms company Ericsson was recently awarded the title of “China Green Company” in a survey by China Entrepreneur magazine, Daonong Enterprise Institute (DEI), and Beijing University’s Guanghua School of Management for the firm’s continuous commitment to innovation in environmental protection in China.

The DEI is a not-for-profit, non-governmental think tank dedicated to conducting independent research related to Chinese entrepreneurs and their business practices. It is sponsored by China Entrepreneur Club (CEC), an independent, not-for-profit, and national membership organization committed to advancing social progress through promoting entrepreneurship in China. The DEI launched the China Green Companies Program late last year, and has recruited the founder of the Go Green Initiative Jill Buck to help out with issues surrounding CSR, sustainability, and environmental protection.

Another interesting article in the National Geographic tells the story of Green Camel Bell, a grassroots NGO working in Gansu. In the mid-1990s a mere handful of environmental groups existed in China. Today there are several thousand, including Green Camel Bell. The NGO was founded in Lanzhou 2004 to help clean up the city and protect the Yellow River. With only five paid staff, Green Camel Bell is a shoestring operation kept afloat by grants from an American NGO, Pacific Environment. The name they chose, after the reassuring bells worn by camels in Silk Road caravans, is meant to be “a sign of life”.

More on the development of Chinese NGOs here and here.

More on China’s tightening environmental regulations here.

More on the DEI’s Green Companies Program here.

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