To Americans who trend left, Europe is a civilized utopia full of sophisticates and intellectuals where all is well with health care, environment, and society. To the right, Europe is a socialist purgatory where folks suffer from over-regulation and marginal opportunities. Neither assumption is correctly accurate.
Europe is grappling with rising health care costs and environmental degradation. It’s also an economy that despite current troubles with the Euro, is larger than that of the United States, with more companies that would qualify as Fortune 100 and 500 companies. Sustainability reports (CSR or ESG, depending on where you live and what term you prefer), have become ritual for large firms like SAP and Philips.
After 3 exhausting and uplifting days, I made these points with Martin Smith, CEO of Justmeans.com, who partnered with the Global Reporting Initiative in covering the conference. I covered many plenary sessions, and at the end of the conference, Martin asked for thoughts—you can view them here.
I’m curious what your response is.
Leon Kaye is the founder and editor of GreenGoPost.com and its advisory division, GGP Media. Contact him to discuss how he can work with your organization or event.
His focus is making the business case for sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR). Currently he is in the United Arab Emirates exploring opportunities.
He writes for San Francisco-based Triple Pundit, and now The Guardian , where he writes about waste, water, low carbon initiatives, and green building. He has also written for AIA's Architect Magazine.
Leon lives in San Jose, the capital of Silicon Valley, and when he has free time, he enjoys hiking, gardening, cooking, weightlifting, and planning his next trip to one of the 50+ countries he has visited. He has an MBA from USC's Marshall School of Business and is also a proud graduate of the University of Maryland-Baltimore County (UMBC) and Cal State-Fresno.
[...] We Love Amsterdam Aug 25, 2011 No Comments by Leon Kaye Last year while in Amsterdam for the Global Reporting Initiative Conference, I decided to visit the Aalsmeer Flower Auction. Instead of taking the train, a Dutch national [...]
[...] We Love Amsterdam Aug 25, 2011 No Comments by Leon Kaye Last year while in Amsterdam for the Global Reporting Initiative Conference, I decided to visit the Aalsmeer Flower Auction. Instead of taking the train, a Dutch national [...]