…are just some of the things that subscribers to the Ethical Corporation magazine will be reading about in the soon to be published December/January edition.

London 22/11/2010

The Country Briefing for the next issue will review the overall picture of corporate responsibility in Sweden. There will be an overview of the history of CR in Sweden and how it differs from other countries. The briefing will also feature a review of the big CR issues in Sweden and which companies and sectors CR it is most developed with case studies. Plus there will be an analysis of NGO and corporate viewpoints as well as the influence of Sweden’s government and its policies on sustainable business.

This issue will contain a Feature on cocoa production in Ghana and will look at corporate actions around sustainability. There will be a review of the drivers for corporate engagement such as aging farmers, children heading to the cities, Harkin-Engel/Cocoa Protocol, child labour concerns and more. There will also be an analysis of what various companies are doing and whether their approach is too narrow. Finally it will look at the possible solutions for Ghana. With Fairtrade limited to 10% of Ghana’s cocoa farmers, what can be done to ensure sustainability for the rest? With little Rainforest Alliance certification in the country, are the current corporate investments enough?

In the Strategy & Management section there will a focus on the UN Environment Programme and its activity in Nigeria. Shell contributed $10m towards the cost of UNEP’s recent report on oil spillage and pollution in the Niger delta, which attaches much of the blame on the locals rather than the oil giant. The article will take a close look at UNEP’s process in Nigeria, examining the challenges for the organisation and how it should work with companies in such circumstances.

Also in the Strategy and Management section will be a critique of the US-based Business for Social Responsibility. The article considers why BSR was set up whether its goals have changed, and how it provides value for its members and what members think of BSR. The piece considers areas of controversy, including to what extent a membership organisation can also have a role as a consultant. Finally the article considers why some BSR’s members are considering their membership and ask what the future may hold for the organisation.

In EthicsWatch there will be analysis of the Chilean mining sector. In the light of the recent rescue, we will focus on a shocking safety record and outline the action proposed by the Chilean government in response to world attention.

Also in EthicsWatch, we will highlight why the US and EU are tightening rules regarding use of illegally felled timber and contrast the business implications of the Lacey Act in the US and similar EU legislation, coming into force in 2012.

The recent changes to the UK Carbon Reduction Commitment will also be highlighted. With revenues from the CRC now being sent straight to the Treasury, how will this affect businesses involved in the CRC? Is this more than just a revenue-generating measure by the UK government?

As this is the final issue of 2010 there will be a special review of 2010. It will highlight the key events, both positive and negative, of the year as chosen by Ethical Corporation’s editorial panel. There will be a timeline of the big events from 2010, plus suggestions as to what 2011 will have in store.

This month, the Review section will focus on recent sustainability reports from Aviva and Microsoft.

And finally, but no means least, there will be the ever opinionated articles from regular columnists: Peter Knight, Mallen Baker, Paul French, Jon Entine and Peter Davis.

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