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economie and LUCITÀ join efforts to cross-pollinate SRI and CSR at eco6 in 2006
economie and LUCITÀ join efforts to cross-pollinate SRI and CSR at eco6 in 2006
Published 12-26-05
Submitted by LUCITé€
Unlike most sustainable business conferences that select the initiatives they intend to support upon the event's conclusion, economie 06 is one of the first of its kind to begin actively supporting a project before the event. The project selected by economie is LUCITÀ's "Tsunami--stories of human resilience," a body of fine photojournalistic images taken in Southeast Asia to document the reconstruction process and give international voice to the resilience and spirit of the people impacted by the tsunami. The Tsunami Fund will be supported, on the one hand, by revenues from the project, and on the other, by a percentage of delegate entry fees as well as of the final profits of the economie 06 event.
The economie-LUCITÀ partnership stems from a realization that the SRI and CSR sectors bring powerful stabilizing forces to a world where business is taking on an increasing share of responsibility to social and economic challenges, and from a desire to create new, viable business models to engage multiple stakeholders in real-world, multiple-win initiatives. economie and LUCITÀ feel that a closer alliance must be forged between the often exclusive conference circuits and the people and issues that are discussed at the events but rarely truly represented or resolved. By the time economie 06 takes place on October 9 and 10, key Tsunami Fund information and statistics will be available for release.
The eco6 event
economie, a top SRI education and training organization in the UK and Europe, is the entity behind economie 06, the first event on the international conference circuit to combine socially responsible investment and corporate social responsibility. Affectionately called eco6, the conference targets a much wider combined SRI & CSR audience and aims to:
LUCITÀ, a socially conscious design and visual media company based in the US, is heading up visual media and interactive strategy & support for eco6, and will be working directly with economie on media outreach.
Partners' comments
"There is a very real feeling that those involved in the SRI & CSR arena are mere representatives of a worldwide momentum for financial accountability, equity, social responsibility, and fair play that is driven from the 'bottom up'," said Brian Harrison Spence, Development Director and the founder of economie. "In many Western countries there is a feeling of disenfranchisement and alienation from the political system. This is a unique opportunity to make a significant difference. We are delighted to have the opportunity to be involved in the launch of the Tsunami--stories of human resilience project and the Tsunami Fund."
"It's time to galvanize the business model of disaster recovery and rebuilding, and to do so, we need to harness the power of the two most powerful forces of modern society--the media & communications and financial sectors," said Birgitte Rasine, CEO of LUCITÀ Inc. "Without the active involvement and support of these two socioeconomic forces, we will continue to trip across the same obstacles time and again, as we're doing now."
"This probably has been the single most profound experience in my life," said Daniel Root, lead photographer at LUCITÀ Images, talking about his travels to Southeast Asia to photograph the reconstruction process. "To see the devastation in person instead of viewing a sixty-second video clip on a 32-inch TV screen was a truly humbling experience. The most beautiful thing I came away with was the resilience of the human spirit in the face of mass destruction, loss of life, and upheaval of people's day-to-day existence."
How to participate in eco6
Conference registration officially opens on January 4, 2006; prior to that date, individuals can register their interest by emailing eco6@economie.co.uk. Those who are unable to attend the conference in person but are interested in staying up to date can register for free as eco6 members, online at http://economie.co.uk/page.php?page=95. Registered eco6 delegates and members alike will receive regular notices about the progress of the event and of the Tsunami Fund. They will be able to communicate with eco6 their opinions and questions about the Tsunami Project and/or the conference, and to find out about ways in which they can be involved personally. "We encourage people to use the economie discussion forum. We want people involved, engaged," said Mr. Spence, "and above all we want to help business entities realize just how valuable SRI and CSR really are when properly harnessed."
Those interested in the Tsunami Fund and the Tsunami Project specifically, can sign up for email updates at http://www.lucita.net/tsunami/contact01.html.
Note to editors:
For more information about eco6, please visit http://06.economie.co.uk.
For press registration for eco6, please email media@lucita.net.
For information about the Tsunami Project, please visit http://www.lucita.net/tsunami.
About economie
economie is a privately owned corporation based in London and Zurich with partners in 19 countries worldwide. The company provides specialized SRI & CSR education resources to the financial services industry in the UK and Europe, and is an active force in the movement toward greater accountability and transparency within the global financial sector. The first education corporation in the world to online SRI/CSR accredited examinations for Financial Services Practitioners, economie is in the process of rolling out similar examinations to the worldwide financial community.
For more information about economie, please visit http://www.economie.co.uk.
About LUCITÀ Inc.
LUCITÀ is a socially responsible high-end design, photography, communications and media consultancy company. Providing high-end web design and development, print design, photography, video production, writing and editing, and media & communications consultancy services, LUCITÀ works with business, non-profit, academic and government entities that strive to improve the world we live in. A signatory member of the United Nations Global Compact, the company is privately owned, based in Milford, Connecticut, and has a presence on the West Coast of the US and in Belgium.
For more information about LUCITÀ, please visit www.lucita.net.
