A press release on Canada News Wire mentions that Honda has been, “honoured (sic) by leading publications in Canada and the U.S. for its environmental and corporate social responsibility.” What I found most interesting about the release was not that Honda was named as one of the ten companies receiving honors, but that Toyota, the often-praised ‘leader’ of the pack in environmentally friendly cars, was not on the list. Odd, eh?

A look at the areas in which Honda excelled might shed some light…

“Honda was recognized for its hybrid technology and fuel-efficient cars, its innovative and sustainable manufacturing facilities, and for its aggressive program to significantly reduce energy consumption at its manufacturing sites. Honda was also recognized for eliminating hazardous substances from its production proves and reducing emissions, material waste and energy use. Honda also scored high for corporate governance and corporate social responsibility.”

Switching out “Honda” with “Toyota” would surely still read accurately, right? I certainly think so, and the vast majority of people that are exposed to positive press about Toyota would most likely agree.

So what is the end result? Are we to assume that Toyota is not actually the hybrid-leader the media likes to present? Should we question the validity of the rating methods used to award Honda a top-ten spot? I think we should adopt both viewpoints but also acknowledge one vary glaring reality–substitute “Chevrolet,” “Ford,” “GM” or most any other major auto manufacturer for “Honda” in the above statement, and it will most certainly feel jarring. If you read the above citation with one of those companies listed instead of Honda, perhaps you would assume that it was a joke, or a typo, or even the result of swaths of money being exchanged by Big Auto and Big Media. I would probably have the same reaction.

The bottom line is that both Honda and Toyota, though they are still far from perfect, are really ahead of the pack. True, there are other auto companies coming up with very innovative solutions regarding fuel efficiency and hybrid or alternative fuel, but they simply lack the mass coverage that Toyota has so far enjoyed.

It is hard not to be cynical of giant corporate CSR efforts, but at the end of the day, maybe a strong effort to push other companies into gear is critical to creating substantial long-term improvements. For now, I say congratulations Honda. Keep up the good work.

Though it appeared below the fold in the Boston Globe’s business section this morning, I feel the recent news that China has unblocked Wikipedia to be very important. In case you missed the details, here are a few articles that provide relevant background:

• China Allows Full Access to Wikipedia [Boston Globe]
• China “Unblocks” Wikipedia Site [BBC]

The news is significant for a number of reasons. The lowering of information control, in a country where specific politically-charged content is monitored and accordingly suppressed, is certainly a compelling story on its own merits. However, there is something larger that cropped up as a result of this event: validity that holding a firm line on ethics can actually work.

“The news appears to vindicate [Wikipedia founder] Wales’s tough stand against Internet censorship. He has said that Wikipedia will not remove articles about subjects regarded as controversial by the Chinese government, such as the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre.” [Boston Globe]

While the profit-focused decision makers at Google, Yahoo!, Microsoft, Cisco, and other notable multinationals, chose to bend to the Chinese government’s censorship initiatives, Wikipedia held its ground. Executives from the noted companies that chose to prioritize profits, over aiding the control of information access and personal freedom, frequently made the argument that it would be better to have some presence in China rather than none at all. In other words, at least the citizens can search for information using Google, albeit censored, than not with Google at all.

“But major American Internet companies like Yahoo Inc., Google Inc., and Microsoft Corp. have voluntarily censored the Internet content they offer in China, in exchange for the right to do business there. The censorship has been denounced by politicians and human rights groups. The companies reply that it’s better to provide some Internet services to China’s 1.3 billion people than to be frozen out of China altogether.” [Boston Globe]

Curiously, Wikipedia didn’t seem to come to the same conclusion. Censorship of its content was not an option. Whether from a relaxation in control, changing censorship policies, or perhaps a sinister plot to alter entries in China’s favor (as the Boston Globe article sensationally hypothesizes), the country has decided to allow its citizens unfettered access to the Free Encyclopedia.

Corporate executives and shareholders take note…

TAGS: China | Wikipedia | Censorship | Freedom | Google | Yahoo | Microsoft

The bad news continues: Hewlett-Packard Spied on Writers in Leaks [NYT]

Here is a clip from the article:

“The company said this week that its board had hired private investigators to identify directors leaking information to the press and that those investigators had posed as board members — a technique known as pretexting — to gain access to their personal phone records.

“In acknowledging Thursday that journalists’ records had also been obtained, the company said it was apologizing to each one. ‘H.P. is dismayed that the phone records of journalists were accessed without their knowledge,’ a company spokesman, Michael Moeller, said.

“In an interview Thursday about the state’s criminal investigation of the Hewlett-Packard matter, Attorney General Bill Lockyer said, ‘A crime was committed.’ But he added: ‘It is unclear how strong the case is. Who is charged and for what is still an open question.’”

And then more specific information regarding the investigators spying on journalists:

“CNET said Thursday that phone records of two of its reporters, Dawn Kawamoto and Tom Krazit, had also been obtained. It said access to Ms. Kawamoto’s records had been gained from the same Internet address used by the person who accessed the phone records of Mr. Perkins. A caller used the last four digits of her husband’s Social Security number to establish an online account with AT&T to view the records. Access was gained on one date, in late January 2006, it said.

“A CNET spokeswoman, Sarah Cain, said: ‘These actions not only violated the privacy rights of our employee, but also the rights of all reporters to protect their confidential sources.’”

TAGS: HP | Hewlett Packard | Pretexting | Spying | Board of Directors | Ethics | Corporate Governance

A few days ago I spotted a very interesting website and corresponding blog that I wanted to pass along. The site’s concept is unique (at least to me) and makes quite a good read. I encourage everyone to take a moment to visit. Following is more detailed information about the site and blog.

Dropping Knowledge

Admittedly, the first thing I noticed about the site was its slick design. I’m a sucker for attractive design and sites that stray from the norm, and I personally feel that Dropping Knowledge fits that description. After getting over my initial infatuation with the site’s aesthetics, I became intrigued by its underlying concept:

“On September 9, 2006, 112 of the world’s great minds will come together around the world’s largest table in Berlin’s historic Bebelplatz square. Recorded by 112 digital cameras, they will simultaneously answer 100 questions chosen out of thousands donated by the global public. The resulting 600+ hours of audiovisual content will launch an unprecedented online resource: a knowledge portal and dialog forum created to host a global conversation covering the most pressing questions of our time.”

My only regret is that I did not hear about this sooner–I would have loved to have been there in person. I am quite curious to hear the questions and resulting answers and wonder how they will mesh with issues I am passionate about.

The Drop

I have spent more time returning to the blog than digging into the depths of the main site, and have really enjoyed the range and quality of the content that is presented.Topics range from Animal Rights, to Politics, to Economic Development & Globalization, the Environment, and Philosophy, with a whole slew of other meaty topics in-between.

TAGS: Dropping Knowledge | The Drop | 112 | Berlin

For those of you that have not heard about the recent board scuffles at Hewlett Packard, check out the following articles:

• Leak, Inquiry and Resignation Rock a Boardroom
• A Board in Need of an Emily Post
• H.P. Spied on Directors to Find Leak
• State Probes HP’s Spying on Directors
• Hewlett-Packard under investigation in spying scandal
• `Pretexting’ by Hewlett-Packard’s hired investigators could be considered illegal

I find the news particularly troubling simply for the fact that I am saddened to see such behavior going on at a company that I used to admire so much (it has been quite a few years…). To make matters worse, I feel that Mark Hurd has been, for the most part, doing a great job at turning the company around after Fiorina’s ouster. This news, complete with questionable actions, information leaks, governance quandaries and general grime, will certainly set the company back.

Relevance:

How does this mess speak to ethics or corporate governance? First, the legality of Patricia Dunn’s authorization for surveillance of HP’s directors has been questioned. Apparently legal counsel was sought prior to the authorization, however, there are a number of privacy issues that come into play. (ARS Technica has an excellent overview of what was involved in the surveillance.)

Further, I find it curious that the surveillance was authorized by a member of the board and not an independent committee. What if Dunn was also a source of the leaks? A second investigation launched in January was handled by HP’s office of general counsel but why not have all of the investigations go through the same channel?

Are these recent incidents the actions of a mature and ethical company with a strong corporate governance structure? Were the leaks breaches of fiduciary duty (I believe so) and why were they not handled in a more appropriate manner more in line with HP’s governance setup? What does all of this tell HP shareholders about the company’s leadership?

TAGS: HPQ | Hewlett Packard | Board of Directors | Corporate Governance | CSR | Business Ethics

The exchange, BURSA Malaysia, recently announced the launch of a corporate social responsibility framework for publicly listed companies (PLCs). I first learned of the news after reading a Business Times article, but found its information somewhat vague. The article made little mention of the details of the framework, noting only a few of its aspects such as a focus “on how a corporation interacts with the environment, community, workplace and marketplace.”

If you are interested in reading more, BURSA Malaysia’s website has a CSR section that lists the following PDFs for download:

• CSR Write-up: A short introduction to the framework as well as a nice overview of corporate social responsibility.
• CSR Framework for Malaysian PLCs: This presentation contains the details of the CSR framework and also of BURSA Malaysia’s short and long-term CSR goals.

TAGS: CSR | Corporate Social Responsibility | BURSA Malaysia | CSR Framework

Via ARS Technica: Libel Case Over iPod Factory Labor Abuses Dropped

It has been well over a month now and the content update issues I have been experiencing with Technorati still have not been resolved. I know some of you follow this site using Technorati’s favorites (and accordingly, have not seen updated posts appear for a while) so I apologize for the difficulty.

I’ve tried a number of things to fix the feed issue including upgrading Wordpress, contacting Technorati several times, ensuring that my code is clean and valid, re-pinging Technorati, and even deleting and re-claiming my blog a number of times. Evidently, none of those solutions made a difference, and either Technorati’s tech support is as baffled as I am, or non-existent (or they don’t care, but I doubt that).

If anyone has suggestions I would be very grateful to get this fixed, otherwise, I apologize for the ongoing inconvenience for the Technorati users and hope that this *eventually* gets fixed. In the meantime, if you are interested in subscribing to the site feed manually, please use the following links:

• RSS Post Feed
• RSS Comments Feed

TAGS: Technorati | RSS | tech-support | Blog

All is not well in Cupertino…

Those of you who know me well are aware of my affection for Apple Computer. I have been a long-time customer, supporter, and advocate.

In the past several years, however, I have become increasingly aware of much of Apple’s darker side. The company’s PR machine usually has a nice statement to smooth things out, which does little to make feel better, but still seems to have a certain amount of contempt for those seeking greater accountability.

Shareholder meetings are frequently accompanied by protests from environmental groups (as noted in the linked MacRumours article above), and there have been recent reports regarding the working conditions of an iPod OEM in China. I would very much like to see Apple take charge and lead tech companies in greater environmental awareness. Its computer recycling program is a great step forward, but still more could be done.

As an interesting aside, were I an Apple shareholder (I haven’t been for a few years—perhaps a bit shortsighted…) I would gladly forgo a certain amount of profit if it meant that the company would be a better steward of the environment and of human rights. That said, it is far easier to make such a claim than to strip all of the environmental and labor issues from such a large company, let alone one in such a highly competitive industry. If any company can make serious inroads, however, I’d put my money on Apple having the greatest potential. I hope that turns out to be the case.

[Update 8/29/06]: This is not related to the content above, but Google and Apple seem to be getting a bit more snuggly. I think the news is quite interesting in relation to the China-related issues both companies have been having the past year or so. The Microsoft connection obviously adds an interesting dimension, and this may reflect more poorly on Google (as the Techcruch post alludes to) than anticipated.

TAGS: Apple Computer | Mac | iPod | Macintosh | CSR | Corporate Governance

Audeamus lists a number of great green technology news items today starting with information on venture capital fund based in the Netherlands which intends to focus on sustainable technology startups.

TAGS: Social Enterprise | Sustainable Technology | CSR | Corporate Social Responsibility | Audeamus