This website provides practical knowledge and tools focusing on social, environmental and economic development issues for companies, civil society, local and regional governments.
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From blue print to scale: The case for philanthropy in impact investing
April 2012
At the beginning of 2012, there is no end in sight for the economic malaise and fiscal crisis that is gripping many parts of the developed world. Global growth is slowing, even in emerging economic powerhouses like India, billions of people remain trapped in poverty. As politicians debate the best way to reform the financial system to prevent future collapses, protestors around the world are questioning the moral foundations of the capitalist system itself. Despite the crisis, shifting attitudes, new technologies and the promise shown by the microfinance revolution have led to new opportunities for market-based innovations to serve the global poor. These are being pioneered by ambitious entrepreneurs who are taking great risks for little potential financial reward, but for tremendous potential social value. Such ideas have elicited a rush to the new field of ‘impact investing’.
Indigenous Peoples and the oil and gas industry: context, issues and emerging good practice
May 2012
This new edition has been updated in response to the IFC’s new performance standards (2012) and also includes an expanded ‘useful resources’ section. The document contains an overview of Indigenous Peoples and the policy and regulatory context relevant to the sector’s interaction with them, as well as a summary of some of the specific issues for oil and gas companies to consider when operating in areas with Indigenous Peoples (set around the three themes of consultation and engagement, key issues to manage, and benefits sharing). The document concludes with a summary of emerging good practice.
Preventing Conflict in Exploration: a Toolkit for Explorers and Developers
April 2012
Preventing Conflict in Exploration: a Toolkit for Explorers and Developers (PCE) is a simple and practical tool that helps mining exploration and development companies establish constructive relationships with stakeholders at the community level and reduce the risk of conflict at their operations sites. The tool is designed to facilitate dialogue and relationship-building with local communities and promotes the development of management strategies that respond to both the communities' and the company's needs. PCE was field tested with exploration and mining companies in Mexico, Peru, Sierra Leone, and Madagascar to ensure that it is relevant, practical, and useful for companies in a wide range of operating environments. The Toolkit was developed jointly by the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC), the Corporate Engagement Program - CDA Collaborative Learning Projects (CEP), and World Vision Canada (WVC), and funded by The Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade of the Government of Canada. PDF versions of the tool and the toolkit are available for download through the links below in English, French, and Spanish.
Preventing Conflict in Exploration: a Tool for Explorers and Developers
2012
Preventing Conflict in Exploration: a Toolkit for Explorers and Developers (PCE) is a simple and practical tool that helps mining exploration and development companies establish constructive relationships with stakeholders at the community level and reduce the risk of conflict at their operations sites. The tool is designed to facilitate dialogue and relationship-building with local communities and promotes the development of management strategies that respond to both the communities' and the company's needs. PCE was field tested with exploration and mining companies in Mexico, Peru, Sierra Leone, and Madagascar to ensure that it is relevant, practical, and useful for companies in a wide range of operating environments. The Toolkit was developed jointly by the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC), the Corporate Engagement Program - CDA Collaborative Learning Projects (CEP), and World Vision Canada (WVC), and funded by The Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade of the Government of Canada. PDF versions of the tool and the toolkit are available for download through the links below in English, French, and Spanish.
Why Every Company Needs a CSR Strategy and How to Build It
April 2012
Despite certain criticisms, more and more companies in the world practice some form of corporate social responsibility. This paper offers a pragmatic alternative framework for CSR with a view towards developing its practice in an evolutionary way. The authors' extensive experience working with CSR practitioners convinces them that exhorting companies to hone their CSR practice under a shared value framework does not reflect the reality for a majority of businesses. CSR executives oversee a variety of social initiatives that may or may not directly contribute to a company's business goals. The role of an executive is to achieve the difficult task of reconciling the various programs, quantifying their benefits, or at least sketching a logical connection to the business, and securing the support of his or her business line counterparts. This role, when performed well, would lead to the development of a CSR strategy for the company.
For want of a drink: A special report on Water
May 2010
When the word water appears in print these days, crisis is rarely far behind. Water, it is said, is the new oil: a resource long squandered, now growing expensive and soon to be overwhelmed by insatiable demand. Aquifers are falling, glaciers vanishing, reservoirs drying up and rivers no longer owing to the sea. Climate change threatens to make the problems worse. Everyone must use less water if famine, pestilence and mass migration are not to sweep the globe. As it is, wars are about to break out between countries squabbling over dams and rivers. If the apocalypse is still a little way o
, it is only because the four horsemen and their steeds have stopped to search for something to drink.
Managing water by managing land: Interactive land use planning using water productivity indicators
Many river basins in the world experience unprecedented pressures on -and increasing competition for- water resources. The availability and quality of water resources are, however, principally related to land use and land management. In the absence of specific land planning institutions at catchment level, river basin organizations should take up the responsibility to liaise with spatial planners and land users aimed at the better incorporation of land use planning and management in water management.
Fostering Water Security and Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation
2010
Billions of people around the world are forced to deal with the effects of water stress in their everyday lives. For these people, gaining access to adequate supplies of quality water is a daily struggle. Women and children often carry the burden, walking long distances or waiting in lines to access water when they should be devoting their time to other activities that would improve their quality of life. When water is accessible, it is also often of poor quality. Family members must watch as their loved ones are afflicted with waterborne diseases. These diseases weaken the afflicted, limiting their ability to work or attend school and play, diminishing their prospects for a healthy and productive life.
UNDP Strategy for Civil Society and Civic Engagement
2009
This strategy charts a course to revitalize the engagement of UNDP with civil society and its organizations. It seeks to bring about a fundamental shift in the relationship, geared towards recognizing the evolving nature and growing influence of civil society, drawing on its strengths and capacities, and maximizing the potential of civic engagement for development.
Engaging Stakeholders and Business-NGO Partnerships in Developing Countries
1999
This paper is written primarily for business, in response to the recognition by business of the increasing value derived from successful local stakeholder engagement in developing countries. The paper examines the progressive work of Canadian companies in engaging local community stakeholders, and acknowledges the prominent role of business in fostering sustainable development. The paper examines the value to business of engaging a broader range of local community stakeholders, the value to business of partnering with NGOs within this process, the critical success factors for successful engagement, the management systems employed by business, current needs of business and patterns of business investment, international trends, and recommendations for Canadian business.