GPPi presents on Corporate Social Responsibility at German Council for Sustainable Development conference
On September 26, GPPi Associate Director Jan Martin Witte was a panelist on the topic of “corporate social responsibility” at the annual German Council for Sustainable Development conference. The conference, entitled “The Art of Thinking of Tomorrow”, was held at the Berlin Congress Center at Alexanderplatz and included approximately 350 participants. The panel addressed the question of whether voluntary corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives will be sufficient to implement sustainable development, or whether other approaches are needed. Other panellists included Marion Sollbach (Metro AG), Marlehn Thieme (Deutsche Bank AG and member of the German Council for Sustainable Development), and Gunter Krings (MP, CDU). The discussion was moderated by Minu Hemmati.
The objective of the conference was to develop innovative ideas regarding sustainable development by addressing topics such as future energy sources, corporate social responsibility, the implications of demographic change for cities and rural areas, the synergy of cultural work and civil society’s commitment to sustainability, sustainability on TV as well as the establishment of social security systems in emerging economies. Chancellor Angela Merkel addressed the conference and spoke about the sustainable development strategy of the German government.
Jan Martin Witte raised a number of points in the panel, including the need to take into consideration the context of CSR programs, as CSR for many German companies is an “old hat”. However, it is important to debate the topic of CSR, especially in light of the fact that German corporations have internationalized to a large extent. In addition, one key issue in the debate should be the responsibility of German companies investing in developing and emerging economies, such as China and India, which show signs that they will not be joining the CSR train. However, further competitive pressure can be expected for German companies in this respect.
He also emphasized that the need to manage expectations with regard to what CSR can do, as it is voluntary and represents a business strategy used by companies to respond to growing stakeholder pressure or to manage reputation and brand equity. There is no universal business case for CSR and the key question is not whether a voluntary or regulatory approach is right. Rather, as the British example shows, for voluntary action to flourish government pressure and an appropriate regulatory environment are key.
What is needed is a facts-based dialogue on the contribution of CSR to sustainable development. In addition, more pressure by NGOs and a more pluralistic debate is required.