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Corporate Social Responsibility as a Strategy for Poverty Reduction - Fact or Fiction?
Corporate Social Responsibility as a Strategy for Poverty Reduction - Fact or Fiction?
Published 08-18-04
Submitted by Engineers Against Poverty
Wednesday 13th October from 1.00 - 4.00pm (please note it was necessary to change the time from the morning to the afternoon because the Under Secretary of State has to attend Parliament in the morning).
Venue:
The Institution of Mechanical Engineers, 1 Birdcage Walk, Westminster, London (contact Petter Matthews below for details).
The Organiser:
Engineers Against Poverty (EAP) is a specialist international development NGO, established by the UK's leading professional engineering institutions (see our website at www.engineersagainstpoverty.org)
Purpose:
To bring together representatives of Government, Engineering Business and NGOs to explore Corporate Social Responsibility and its contribution to global poverty reduction.
Rationale:
The conference will mark the UN's International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. It will attempt to capture current thinking of the UK Government, the private sector and civil society organisations on corporate social responsibility and its contribution to global poverty reduction. With this multi-sector perspective, the conference will provide a framework for a comprehensive and rounded view of the subject as well as a platform for discussion of conflicting views and controversial issues. A report of the conference will be published with the intention of helping to catalyse action that will help accelerate progress towards the Millennium Development Goals.
Speakers:
Gareth Thomas MP, Under Secretary of State at the Department for International Development (confirmed); Sir Mark Moody Stewart, Chairman Anglo American plc (to be confirmed or alternative Anglo American speaker); Martin Kalungu-Banda, Senior Policy Officer Oxfam (confirmed): Petter Matthews, Director Engineers Against Poverty (confirmed).
Audience:
The audience of up to 200 people will be drawn from government, business and civil society.
UN Support:
UNESCO has been asked to recognise the conference and to allow use of its name and logo in connection with it. Tim Craddock, the UK's Ambassador to UNESCO and Professor Alexander Boksenberg, Chairman of the UK National Commission for UNESCO have both offered their support to this request.
Sponsors:
The Institution of Mechanical Engineers is providing the conference venue free of charge. Balfour Beatty plc has agreed to prepare the venue free of charge. EAP is also working to secure additional sponsorship from the private sector. Guidance to speakers: Speakers should prepare a speech of between 20 and 30 minutes duration. They are encouraged to focus on the issues that they consider to be most pertinent to the conference theme. Facilities for Power Point presentations can be made available on request. There will be time for questions from the audience and for discussion between speakers.
