Denmark and the Inter-American Development Bank will organise the conference Corporate Social Responsibility in Europe and Latin America and the Caribbean: The Best of Two Worlds in Salvador, Brazil, on December 13, 2006. The event will be a follow-up to the IV Inter-American Conference on Corporate Social Responsibility: A Good Business for All, organized by the IDB, the Ethos Institute and the Business Federation of Bahia.
There is a growing interest in corporate social responsibility (CSR) among private companies in both Europe and Latin America. This interest reflects an increasing understanding among businesses that they can play a positive role in the societies where they operate and invest and contribute to social and economic development.
CSR provides an opportunity for companies to actively participate in tackling some of the major social and environmental challenges that arise from increasing globalisation. At the same time, there is mounting evidence that CSR may enhance the competitiveness of individual businesses as well as entire sectors and nations.
The conference will take place in direct continuation of the IV Inter-American Conference on Corporate Social Responsibility. Holding the two conferences together will strengthen the platform for the exchange of experience between the regions and make European companies and policy makers more aware of developments in the CSR field in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Companies in both regions are experimenting and developing new and innovative approaches to CSR. By exploring what European and Latin American companies can learn from each other in the CSR field, the conference will work on adapting ‘best business practices’ to the specific needs and the particular social and economic conditions of both regions.
The goal is to establish a process for regular sharing of information and practices on policies, business practices, academic research and non government organizations actions between the two regions.