Corporate Social Responsibility - CSR
CSR can be defined as a concept whereby companies integrate their social and environmental concerns CSR is not about a “quick fix” but an investment that pays off in the long run. It is about opportunities (staff retention, customer loyalty, motivation, ..) not about new obligations or new rules.
EUROPEAN Chambers of Commerce support CSR activities and wish to encourage all enterprises- large and small – to voluntarily adopt CSR practices and to help them understand how it can add value to their businesses.
SMEs are concerned about the cost and the time involved, lack of information, unclear boundaries and they express concern about “CSR jargon”. SMEs need support that is tailored to their specific business environments.
Chambers of Commerce and Industry are best suited and act as relay points by:
- Raising and disseminating knowledge among all enterprises on issues related to CSR;
- Bring different actors together, channel practical information;
- Providing guidance on how to implement CSR through projects and partnership with different stakeholders;
- Showing that CSR is NOT an abstract concept but can be implemented with concrete practical measures.
CAESAR project
The CAESAR project (September 2006- July 2007) was a EUROCHAMBRES initiative, supported by DG Enterprise & Industry: Its objective was to engage more SME in doing CSR.
The CAESAR Project consisted of
- specialized 2 day training: CSR advisors shared courses on how to implement and emphasize good working CSR practices;
- 200 company visits conducted by trained advisors;
- Dissemination about results.
EUROCHAMBRES follows the development of the CSR discussion at EU level, contributes to the Multi Stakeholder Forum on CSR and influences the political process and proposals at EU level.
Some resources on CSR |