Key Concepts on CSR

A

• Amnesty International = An international organization for the promotion of human rights

• Assurance = All those planned and systematic actions necessary to provide adequate confidence that a product or service will satisfy given requirements for quality

• Audit = An onsite verification activity used to determine the effective implementation of a supplier ' s documented quality system

• Attributes = Qualitative data that can be counted for recording and analysis.

B

• Benchmarking = The process of gathering information about other companies in your industry to compare your performance against and to use to set goals

• Biodiversity = The variety of living organisms and the range of their genetic makeup

• Bribery and corruption = Cases in which people are accused of taking bribes. Despite of the efforts to suppress such phenomena, these still exist and have a negative impact on the economy

• Brundtland Report = A report that deals with the sustainable development and the required policies for achieving it, published by the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) in 1987.

• Business ethics = All the ethical rules and principles that need to be applied in a business context so as to ensure a good relationship of the company with its stakeholders (society, customers, consumers, employees, shareholders).

C

• Centre for Sustainability & Excellence (CSE) = Centre for Sustainability & Excellence (CSE) is the outcome of the cooperation between experts with international experience and acknowledged scientists, who deal with, apply and provide support in the most advanced management methodologies. At the same time CSE acts as a think-tank, through the participation of academics and executives from all over Europe

• Cause-related marketing = A commercial activity by which businesses and charities or causes form a partnership with each other to market an image, product or service for mutual benefit (Business in the Community)

• Child labor = The full-time employment of children who are under a minimum legal age.

• CO2 = A heavy odourless colourless gas formed during respiration and by the decomposition of organic substances; absorbed from the air by plants in photosynthesis.

• Corporate citizenship = Business practices that involve the proactive creation of stakeholder partnerships, discovering business opportunities through the social strategic goals, and creating a vision of corporate financial and social performance

• Corporate governance = Any structured system of allocating power in a corporation that determines how and by whom the company is to be governed

• Corporate Social Responsibility (Definition 1) = The idea that businesses are accountable for their actions and should seek socially beneficial results as well as economically beneficial results. In addition other t erms are used like Corporate Citizenship, Corporate Social Policy, Corporate Sustainability, Corporate Responsibility

• Corporate Social Responsibility (Definition 2) = The voluntary commitment of businesses to include in their corporate practices the Economic, Social, and Environmental criteria / actions, which are above and beyond legislative requirements, and are related with everyone influenced by their activities.

D

• Diversity = Variation in the characteristics that distinguish people from one another, such as age, ethnicity, nationality, gender, mental or physical abilities, race, sexual orientation, family status and mother tongue

• Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes = Indices that first launched in 1999 and are about to measure the performance of companies that operate according to the principles of sustainable development

E

• EFQM Excellence Model = A key European framework for helping organizations in becoming more sustainable (more than 30 leading organizations are using this model for achieving sustainable excellence)

• EFQM Framework for CSR = A specialized framework guideline for supporting & self - assessing organizations towards Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

• EBEN = European Business Ethics Network with many chapters around Europe (Netherlands, Germany, Spain, UK, Poland, Italy, Turkey, Greece)

• Earth Summit = An international conference sponsored by the United Nations in Brazil in 1922 that produced several treaties on global environmental issues

• Ecolabel = A labelling system for consumer products (including food) that are made in fashion to avoid detrimental effects on the environment

• EMAS (Eco-Management and Audit Scheme) = A European originated scheme that is set on preserving the environment by encouraging companies to operate in such a way that does not endanger the environment

• Equal Opportunities = Absence of discrimination, as in the workplace, based on race, colour, age, gender, national origin, religion, or mental or physical disability

F

• Fossil Fuels = Petroleum, natural gas, and coal created by geological forces from organic wastes and dead bodies of formerly living biological organisms

• FTSE 4 Good Index Series= An Index designed to identify companies that meet globally recognized corporate responsibility standards. It uses positive selection criteria for inclusion in the index, with a focus on work towards environmental sustainability, development of positive relationships with stakeholders and upholding and supporting universal human rights

G

• Global Compact = The United Nations Global Compact was announced by United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan in an address to The World Economic Forum when he challenged business leaders to join the Global Compact to bring companies together with UN agencies, labour groups and civil society to support nine principles in the areas of human rights, labour and the environment.

• Globalization = The process by which more of the world ' s commercial and noncommercial interaction is influenced by global business and global trends

• Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) = An international effort to create a common framework for voluntary reporting of economic, environmental and social impact of organizational-level activity. The mission is to elevate the comparability and credibility of reporting practices worldwide.

• Global Warming = An increase in the average temperature of the earth ' s atmosphere, especially a sustained increase sufficient to cause climatic change

• Governance = The framework of authority and control within an organization

• Greenhouse gas = A greenhouse gas is a component of the atmosphere that absorbs heat radiated by the earth and subsequently warms the atmosphere, creating what is commonly known as the greenhouse effect. Common greenhouse gases include carbon dioxide (CO2 ), methane (CH4), water vapor, amd sulfate (SO4).
  
  

H

• Health & Safety = Any issues concerning the health and safety of the employees constitute crucial areas of consideration and planning according to social responsible practices

• Human Rights = The basic entitlement accorded to every human being like the right to life, safety, health, education, information and other.
  
  

I

• International Labour Organization = the United Nations agency that deals with labour issues
  
  

  
  
• International Organization for Standardization (ISO) = Is an international standard-setting body made up of representatives from national standards bodies. Founded on February 23, 1947 the organization produces world-wide industrial and commercial standards

• ISO 14001 = International environmental management system standard administered by ISO
  

K

• Kyoto Protocol = I s an amendment  to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that sets targets for the greenhouse gas emissions

M

• Millennium Development Goals = are eight goals that all 191 UN member states have agreed to try to achieve by the year 2015. The United Nations Millennium Declaration, signed in September 2000 commits the states to: Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, Achieve universal primary education, Promote gender equality and empower women, Reduce child mortality, Improve maternal health, Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases, Ensure environmental sustainability, Develop a global partnership for development

• Measurement process = set of operations to determine the value of a quantity

N

• NGO(non-governmental organization) = an organization that is not part of the local or state or federal government

O

• OECD (Organization for Economic co-operation and development) = Is an international organisation consisted of those countries that share a commitment to democratic government and the market economy. Its work covers economic and social issues, from macroeconomics to trade, education, development and science and innovation. Source: OECD, About OECD.

• OHSAS 18001 = an international standard involving health and safety

• Outsourcing = The ongoing use of an external third party instead of an internal resource which may include production of a single operation, a product or an entire line, shipping and order fulfilment, product design, network infrastructure support or many other functions. Outsourced functions are normally outside an organization ' s core competencies and are done to reduce cost, reduce lead time, improve quality or achieve some other stated goal.   

P

• Philanthropy = Gifts and contributions made by businesses, usually from pretax profits, to benefit various types of nonprofit community organizations.

R

• Recycle = The process by which materials allocated for disposal are collected, reprocessed or remanufactured, and reused. Mandatory recycling programs require by law that consumers separate trash so that some or all recyclable materials are not burned or dumped in landfills.

• Renewable energy = energy resources such as wind power or solar energy that can keep producing indefinitely without being depleted.

• Reporting for Sustainability = Public Report Referring to Environmental Social & Economic Corporate Performance

S

• Sarbanes-Oxley Act = The Sarbanes-Oxley Act (officially titled the Public Company Accounting Reform and Investor Protection Act of 2002 and commonly called SOX and Sarbox ), signed into law by president Busch is considered the most significant change to federal securities laws in the UN since the New Deal. It came in the wake of a series of corporate financial scandals, including those affecting Enron, Arthur Andersen, and Worldcom. The law is named after sponsors Senator Paul Serbanes and representative Michael G . Oxley

• Social Accountability 8000 = An international standard for social accountability developed by Social Accountability International (SAI) through multi-stakeholder consultations. The objective of SA8000 is to ensure ethical sourcing of goods and services. SA8000 is a voluntary standard and can be applied to any size of organisation or business across all industries.

• Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) = Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) combines investors' financial objectives with their concerns about social, environmental and ethical (SEE) issues.

• Stakeholders = An individual or group of individuals with common interest in the performance of an organisation. Stakeholders can be considered the customers, suppliers, partners, employees, society etc.

• Stakeholder dialogue / engagement = The process of being in regular contact with the various stakeholders with the purpose of receiving directions and prior notice in case of imminent problems

• Sustainable development = A concept that describes development based on economic practices that do not affect the ability of future generations to meet their own needs

T

• Trade unions = An organization of wage workers formed for the purpose of serving the members ' interests with respect to wages and working conditions.

• Transparency = The degree of openness or visibility of the decision-making process of an organization or government

• Triple bottom line = The idea that an organization should be measured on the basis of its economic results, environmental impact, and contribution to social well-being

U

• UN development Program (UNDP) = Is the largest multilateral source of grant technical assistance in the world. Headquartered in New York city and part of the United Nations, this voluntarily funded organization provides expert advice, training, and limited equipment to developing countries with increasing emphasis on assistance to the least developed countries

• UN environmental program (UNEP) = Headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, UNEP , coordinates United Nations environmental activities, assisting developing countries in implementing environmentally sound policies and to encourage sustainable development through sound environmental practices.

V

• Verification = Reviewing, inspecting, testing, checking, auditing, or otherwise establishing and documenting whether items, processes, or services, or documents conform to specified requirements

W

• Waste = To use, consume, spend, or expend thoughtlessly or carelessly
  
  
• Work-life balance = keeping a balance between working and personal life. Not working too much at the expense of personal life .

• World Business Council for sustainable Development (WBCSD) = A group of more than 125 companies from several nations formed in 1995 to encourage high standards of environmental management and to promote cooperation among businesses , governments , and other organizations concerned with sustainable development.

• World Economic forum = A Geneva-based foundation whose Annual Meeting of chief executives of the world ' s richest corporations, some national political leaders (presidents, prime ministers and others), and selected intellectuals and journalists, about 2000 people in all, is usually held in Davos , Switzerland

Z

• Zero Waste = A philosophy and a goal that will guide people to re-design our resource-use system to emulate natural cyclical processes where no waste exists. Every stage of any resource-use process must be so designed as to ensure that nothing is generated as an output, deliberately or otherwise, that does not become a useful input into another process. Any output that is destined for land, sea or air should not be a threat to planetary, animal or plant health.