New Hampshire Businesses for Social Responsibility (NHBSR) is proud to host its Annual Spring Conference on Monday, May 24, 2010 from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the Grappone Conference Center at the Courtyard Marriott in Concord, NH.

This year's conference, entitled "Social Responsibility - Competitive Advantage to Competitive Imperative." The cost is $100 for any NHBSR member, $125 for nonmembers, $50 for non-profits and $30 for students.

"This is the best opportunity in New Hampshire to learn how to differentiate your company with CSR initiatives. If you're in doubt how to take it to the next level, this is the place for you." Lisa Hardin Berghaus, Marketing Specialist, Monadnock Paper Mills.

The conference features a prominent keynote speaker; Andrea Moffat, Senior Director of Corporate Programs at Ceres, the presentation of the NHBSR Cornerstone Award, four morning educational breakout sessions, an afternoon World Café networking event, and a "Green Drinks" themed cocktail hour to end the day.

Conference registration begins at 8:00 a.m. NHBSR's Executive Director, Molly Hodgson Smith, will provide an opening welcome. Then morning keynote, Andrea Moffat, will speak. Directly following there will be a general Conference Overview before a morning break.

Starting at 10:00 a.m., the Educational Breakout Sessions begin. These educational sessions will offer real world suggestions that are appropriate and applicable to any size company. Morning sessions include ISO 26000 - Guidance on Corporate Social Responsibility: An Overview of What it Means for Your Company, The Triple Bottom Line as a Decision Making Tool for Sustainable Business Practices, Getting Started in Corporate Social Responsibility - A Practical Guide, and What the Recession has Taught us about Business Sustainability.

At noon, Lisa Hardin Berghaus, Marketing Specialist, Monadnock Paper Mills, NHBSR Board Member and Spring Conference Co-Chair will introduce Governor John Lynch who will present NHBSR's annual Cornerstone Award to a company that exemplifies the principles of corporate social responsibility and promotes the concepts of CSR to the greater business community within the state of New Hampshire. The finalists for this year's Cornerstone Award are: Antioch University New England, C&S Wholesale Grocers, Inc. and Alison Huber Jewett of Jewett Construction.

"NHBSR is pleased to honor one of our members each year with this award. It serves as a great example of exceptional work in the social responsibility field and allows NHBSR to highlight the high level of commitment to sustainability and social responsibility here in New Hampshire," said Molly Hodgson Smith, Executive Director of NHBSR. Hypertherm, Inc. was the proud recipient of the 2009 NHBSR Cornerstone Award. Hypertherm's Vice President of Corporate Social Responsibility, Barbara Couch said, "we attended last year's event as learners, drawing inspiration from other leading corporate citizens. We continue on our journey of learning today, inspiring to be a model for corporate social responsibility. This is not simply a nice thing to do, it is a must do for business today."

Antioch University New England
Since its founding in 1964, Antioch University New England (ANE) has supported the tenets of Corporate Social Responsibility, and as its mission, provides transformative graduate study education through scholarship, innovation, and community action for a just and sustainable society. Antioch University New England supports CSR in three ways. Antioch operate the business of running a university using CSR principles, they educate their students in CSR principles, and through many of their student practices and internships, they help businesses and organizations locally and throughout New England recognize and begin to adopt CSR principles.

C&S Wholesale Grocers Inc.
C&S is the largest wholesale grocery distributor in the US, based on revenue. Sales were $19.3 billion last year, making it the 12th largest privately held company in the country, as ranked by Forbes magazine. Founded in 1918, C&S provides wholesaling and distribution services from warehouses in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, West Coast and Hawaii. The men and women of C&S are responsible for the delivery food and non-food products to 3,900 grocery stores across the nation. Four platforms guide the company's CSR initiatives: Eliminating Hunger, Strengthening Communities, Protecting the Environment, and Encouraging Volunteerism.

Alison Huber-Jewett, Jewett Construction
Alison encourages CSR and community involvement amongst her coworkers by researching and presenting opportunities that prove rewarding to both the participant and the community. She maintains an active role in her community, donating her time and talents to is always open to various non-profit and community organizations and encourages others to do the same. Alison's efforts toward corporate social responsibility have been recognized by the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NHDES), as her corporate and environmental policies have helped Jewett Construction to be selected to participate in the NHDES Aspiring Leaders Program. She is a member of Leadership New Hampshire Class of 2010.

Following the Cornerstone Award Presentation will be a brief afternoon break. Then for the first time, NHBSR will host a World Café, a simple powerful way for a large group to tap their combined experience and knowledge to explore questions that shape their future. NHBSR's 10th anniversary is an ideal time to learn about innovative practices and create a vision for how your business and our network can move forward. In a series of relaxed, café-style conversations with small groups, participants will have a chance to explore these questions:

• What is the most inspiring example of socially responsible business practices you have participated in or learned about?


• Looking forward, what is the most powerful way that you and we, as the NHBSR community, can act to make a difference?

As dozens of small groups simultaneously interact, new ideas and insights will naturally arise, as will new networking connections with other socially responsible business leaders. The World Café has been used around the world to quickly access the collective wisdom of an organization and generate innovative ideas for action.

Over twenty-five socially responsible exhibitors will be showcasing their products and services throughout the conference. Also new this year are the Silent Auction and the Job Board (for employers and job seekers). The day will come to a close with "Green Drinks," an informal, unstructured cocktail hour for networking with those interested in social and environmental sustainability issues to "stay and continue the conversation."

This event is made possible by the generosity of many sponsors. Conference Leaders: Fair Point Communications, Normandeau Associates, the New Hampshire Community and Development Finance Authority, Monadnock Paper Mill and Nixon Peabody LLP. Conference Partners; Public Service of New Hampshire, Wiggin & Nourie P.A., NH Business Review, PAX World, and Prizim. Keynote sponsor is Hannaford. World Café sponsor is Timberland. Carbon Offset for this event was sponsored by C&S Wholesale Grocers. The Tote-bag sponsors are Northeast Delta Dental and Hypertherm. The Nametag sponsor is Savvy Workshop. Design, paper and printing were provided by Baker Salmon Design, Monadnock Paper Mill and RAM Printing. NHBSR web marketing is sponsored by SilverTech. Special thanks to NH Charitable Foundation and New Directions Collaborative.

About NHBSR: NHBSR fosters socially and environmentally responsible business in New Hampshire, recognizing that people, principles and profits must be linked. NHBSR prides itself on offering education, networking and promotion in an environmentally sustainable way. This conference will incorporate a variety of 'green' elements including carbon offset, recycling, minimizing waste and sustainable menu choices.

For more detailed information about the Spring Conference, please visit http://www.nhbsrconference.org/ and for more information about the Cornerstone Award and NHBSR visit www.nhbsr.org or call 603-391-8471 or email molly@nhbsr.org.

Ceres

Ceres

Our Mission: Ceres is transforming the economy to build a just and sustainable future for people and the planet. 

Ceres is a nonprofit organization working with the most influential capital market leaders to solve the world’s greatest sustainability challenges. Through our powerful networks and global collaborations of investors, companies, and nonprofits, we drive action and inspire equitable market-based and policy solutions throughout the economy to build a just and sustainable future. For more information, visit ceres.org and follow @CeresNews. 

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