6.03.2008 - 11:59pm ET

(CSRwire) SAN FRANCISCO, CA - June 3, 2008 - Business for Social Responsibility (BSR) continues to expand its global reach with new offices in Beijing and New York and the appointment of a new leadership team in Europe.

"We are taking these steps to move even closer to our growing list of member companies, other businesses and stakeholders around the world," said Aron Cramer, BSR's President and CEO. "This not only adds value for our members, but also allows the organization to better serve its mission of creating a more just and sustainable global economy.

"A sustainable economy will only be established through a truly global movement, and we are committed to supporting this important evolution over the coming years. Our growing presence in three critical global centers is an excellent platform on which to build, and we will continue to look for opportunities to help build the global CSR infrastructure."

BSR's new office in Beijing opens with five full-time staff with a diverse range of experience in Chinese business and government, multinational companies and inter-governmental institutions. The Beijing staff, working closely with our growing teams in Guangzhou and Hong Kong, will augment BSR's ability to advise Chinese and other companies, as well as public institutions, on how to contribute to the growth of “Chinese CSR."

"Attention to CSR is accelerating very rapidly in China," said BSR China Director Wei Dong Zhou. "Our new Beijing office strengthens our ability to work closely with Chinese companies, both state-owned enterprises and private companies, as well as other BSR members active in China. Our presence in the Chinese capital also enhances our relationships and activities with the public sector, academic institutions and other important actors shaping the future of Chinese CSR."

BSR's new office in midtown Manhattan provides an invaluable hub to serve and extend the organization's network of member companies in the eastern United States. It also strengthens BSR's ability to work closely with other partners, including civil society organizations, inter-governmental institutions and funders.

Managing Director Kara Hartnett Hurst will relocate from BSR's San Francisco headquarters effective September 1 to lead the New York office. “This new office delivers on our broader organizational strategy as a global resource for companies - and it strengthens our ability to deliver top-quality services to BSR members and other key partners," explained Hurst, who previously led BSR's industry practices of Information and Communications Technology, Pharmaceuticals and Biotech, Media and Entertainment, and Financial Services. BSR expects its East Coast staff to grow to eight people by the end of 2008.

BSR activities will be strengthened further through the establishment of a satellite presence in Washington, D.C., where Faris Natour will take up the newly established post of Human Rights Research Director starting July 1. Natour will return to the United States after playing a key role in BSR's activities in Europe, from his native Germany, over the past year.

Finally, BSR is also pleased to announce the appointment of a new leadership team for its Europe office in Paris. Beginning in September, Peder Michael Pruzan-Jorgensen will assume BSR's lead position in Europe as Managing Director, and Farid Baddache will serve as Director. Pruzan-Jorgensen joins BSR from PricewaterhouseCoopers in Copenhagen, where he worked with numerous companies, including Novo Nordisk, Novartis and IKEA, on CSR strategy, supply chain and reporting. He has also led projects on behalf of public institutions, including the World Bank and the Swedish and Danish Ministries of Foreign Affairs.

Baddache has provided strategic consulting on CSR to several leading global companies, including Alcatel-Lucent, Aventis, HP-France, L'Oreal and the French retail group Casino. Most recently, he has been steering a CSR strategy-development process at Areva. He is also an author and lecturer on sustainability, with several articles and four books to his credit, and a position teaching sustainability at ESSEC, one of the grandes écoles in France.

"These new hires greatly strengthen our presence in Europe, and our ability to serve our more than 30 large European member companies," said Cramer. "It is a very important part of our ongoing development."

BSR's New Offices

Beijing
Room D1132, ChaoWai SOHO
No. 6B, ChaoWai Street
Chaoyang District
Beijing, China 100020
+ 86 10 5900 3221

New York
521 Fifth Avenue
9th Floor
New York, NY 10175
+ 1 212 370 7719

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