Prakruthi - Enabling Sustainability

Karmayog India CSR list

2011-08-08T21:55:00.000-07:00

Karmayog released its 2011 CSR list. This year the CSR study and ratings present a snap-shot of the largest 500 companies in India, with specific focus on their CSR initiatives. The study shows how different kinds of companies (government owned, private, multi-national) from different industry sectors are responding to global and local conditions that demand and need more responsible behavior by all stakeholders, especially corporations.

Karmayog is an organization based out of Mumbai, India. It has a firm finger on the pulse of the corporate world and is able to give a rather unbiased view of CSR activities. This is the fourth year of the Karmayog CSR Ratings. Since the study was started in 2007, there has been a greater awareness and practice of CSR in India.

The 2011 study shows that more companies are reporting their CSR activities and that the government has framed voluntary CSR recommendations for companies. Over the past four years, there has been an increase in companies undertaking some form of CSR. The number of companies with a Level 4 or Level 3 rating, has remained similar. The study also includes sector-specific tables and ratings that show how companies in different industry sectors are undertaking CSR, and also highlight the best practices by companies in a sector.

Good CSR policy is good for business

2011-06-14T04:07:00.000-07:00

With increasing consumer pressures for more responsible products, there is a lot of attention being placed on India's Ready Made Garment (RMG) supply chains. In recent years, implementation of supplier codes of conduct and the use of social accountability standards such as SA8000 have become a common approach for export businesses involved in outsourcing, purchasing and trade. However, this is only a fraction of the companies active in the Indian RMG sector. Still most businesses fight shy of the costs associated with sustainable production, while the actual cost of doing nothing is mounting: "US blacklists Indian exports again for using child labour".

Barbie broke Ken's heart!

2011-06-10T05:51:00.000-07:00

Enabling Sustainability Newsletter

2011-05-17T04:01:00.000-07:00

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Who will feed the world?

2011-05-04T01:23:00.000-07:00

A new Oxfam research report titled “Who will feed the world?” focuses on the sustainable food production challenge linked to a growing world population.

Four-pronged approach

A four-pronged approach is argued for in this report: a mix of large- and small-scale, and Low External Input and High External Input production methods. The main conclusion is that whatever mix of the four-pronged approach is adopted, major commitment and investment by governments, development agencies, and private-sector actors, to reverse the trend of the last 20 years, will be essential to achieving sustained agricultural growth and to making a major dent in the levels of poverty and hunger.

Key recommendations

Develop a country-led long-term vision where technologies and institutional innovations are tailored to the local context and involve broad consultations among the large number of players involved.
In developing countries, supporting small-scale farmers would provide the greatest impact in terms of income creation and food security, in particular when associated with LEI agriculture methods. Adopting sustainable farming methods would also be crucial to improving productivity while conserving the natural resource base and responding to climate-change challenges
There is a need for renewed commitments by governments and international donors to ensure that food availability and accessibility keep pace with population growth, while enhancing resilience and achieving sustainability.
National and international donor agriculture policies must: support subsistence farmers to cope with risks and vulnerability; empower smallholder farmers, especially women, with capacity, finance, and a regulatory framework that encourages organisation and enhances productivity; regulate agro-industrial operations to enhance social benefits and good environmental stewardship; and promote synergies between small-holder and agro-industrial operations, building on complementarities and linkages wherever possible.

Global endosulfan ban

2011-05-02T23:25:00.000-07:00

The Parties to the Stockholm Convention have agreed to ban endosulfan… with an exemption of a 11 year phase out period, to get India agree to it too. The good news is that India accepted that the pesticide Endosulfan is a health hazard, and has agreed to support the development of cost-effective alternatives.

Isolated position

India has resisted the ban for years, claiming there was no solid proof that it impacted human health. At the convention India was completely isolated in its stand, especially when China supported the ban. It received a further setback when the Food and Agriculture Association (FAO) of the UN officially stated endosulfan is a hazardous pesticide.

Civil society campaign

Prakruthi congratulates all involved in the (inter-) national anti-endosulfan civil society campaign. The constant pressure by the POPs Elimination Network, Pesticide Action Network groups and many Indian organizations has pushed India over the edge.

India's Pesticide Addiction: Endosulfan

2011-04-18T03:46:00.000-07:00

The world will be watching India during the Stockholm Convention meet in Geneva, from April 25 to 29 2011, to discuss a global ban on the pesticide Endosulfan. The Stockholm Convention deals with persistent organic pollutants. Endosulfan has attracted attention due to the fact that this insecticide is proven to be highly hazardous as it is persistent, bio-accumulative and capable of endangering human health. Endosulfan is being used in the production of cotton, cardamom, coffee, soy and mango.

No ban
India was the only member country to take a stand against the ban at the Sixth Meeting of the Persistent Organic Pollutants Review Committee to the Convention that recommended the ban last year.

Pesticide Industry
Indian manufacturers are the world's main producers; among them the government owned company Hindustan Insecticides (also a producer of the extremely hazardous pesticides Monocrotophos and DDT). India exports more than 50 percent of its Endosulfan production to 26 countries that are still allowing its use. Already 81 countries have either banned or decided to phase out Endosulfan completely.

Endosulfan banned in Kerala
Interestingly, in the Indian state of Kerala, the sale and use of Endosulfan has been banned since 2004, recognizing the danger and severe human health risks of this persistent organic pollutant. The well-documented case studies (see also a recent article in the Economic and Political Weekly) of the many human health problems should encourage the government of India to support a worldwide ban. If not, India will isolate itself by promoting its pesticide industry, thereby continuing the endangering of peoples’ health and the poisoning of the environment.

Climate Action Tracker

2011-04-12T02:54:00.000-07:00

The "Climate Action Tracker" website provides an independent science-based assessment, which tracks the emission commitments and actions of countries. The website provides an up-to-date assessment of individual national pledges to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.

The pledges of countries during the UNFCCC Climate Change meetings in Bangkok still fall short of what is needed to get the world on track for limiting global warming.

The "Climate Action Tracker" thermometer shows an average global temperature increase of +3,5C... way above the 1.5 - 2C targets as agreed upon in Cancun.

Climate Change Bangkok Meeting: India's Commitment

2011-04-05T22:48:00.000-07:00

On its way to the next yearly climate conference in Durban, South-Africa (December 2011) the UNFCCC is organizing various consultative meetings and workshops. This weeks' (3rd-8th of April) Climate Conference in Bangkok, included a workshop on nationally mitigation actions submitted by developing country parties.

India's commitment
Of course, we were most curious about the Government of India's pledge for 2020 emission reduction to deal with unavoidable consequences of climate change (adaption) and a shift to a green low carbon economy (mitigation). To our surprise, the statement of Mr. Girish Sant excludes the emissions in the agricultural sector in the first paragraph of the presentation: India will endeavor to reduce emissions intensity of its GDP by 20-25% by 2020 in comparison to the 2005 level." (Excludes agricultural emissions, which are not increasing).

Agriculture and greenhouse gases
Currently, agriculture is the single most important emitter of global greenhouse gases in India. The agricultural sector is essential in providing jobs to millions of people in rural areas and a basic part of the countries' food security system. There are several indicators of non-sustainability of the current patterns of agricultural production, consumption and economic growth. They include land degradation, depletion and pollution of water resources, loss of biodiversity and forest resources. A pragmatic approach to climate change adaption and mitigation should include at least a sustainable development strategy of the agricultural sector, including aspects like food security and management of natural resources, optimal use of renewable energy resources and poverty alleviation.

Transformation process
Prakruthi believes that a realistic Indian climate change policy needs a shift from focusing solely on industry, towards a sustainable economic production system, including addressing the agricultural sector and its emissions.

All of the Bangkok presentations are available at the UNFCCC website.

Some food for thought

2011-03-23T02:35:00.000-07:00

Agriculture is the most important emitter of global greenhouse gases. It is also the sector that has the potential to transcend from being a problem to becoming an essential part of the solution to climate change provided there is a more holistic vision of food security, agricultural mitigation, climate-change adaptation and agriculture’s pro-poor development contribution.

UNCTAD published an interesting Discussion Paper (No. 201), authored by Ulrich Hoffmann, entitled Assuring Food Security in Developing Countries under the Challenges of Climate Change: Key Trade and Development Issues of a Fundamental Transformation of Agriculture.

New publication Garment Support Group

2011-03-15T21:39:00.000-07:00

Prakruthi published a meeting report "Garnering support for the garment sector in Bangalore". On the 18th of December 2010, the Garment Support Group (GSG), organised a meeting to discuss its activities with brands, manufacturers, certifying bodies, trade unions and NGOs. The 60 participants represented four brands, three NGOs, six trade unions, two manufacturers and two certifying bodies.

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Summary

“The acknowledgement of the fact that issues are very complex and there is a lack of trust between the stakeholders is a good starting point. The second step would be to build a congenial environment and trust to discuss those contentious issues openly and start working together. The third step would be more enabling discussions and deliberations to address sustainability issues.”

Next steps

Prioritise some of the key sustainability challenges in Bangalore garment cluster and create consensus on solutions.
Submit a proposal to SAI and BSCI for giving GSG a consultative status and initiate awareness-raising programmes on CSR standards.
Invite different Bangalore-based suppliers and key brands to participate in the GSG.

About Prakruthi

2011-03-11T02:56:00.000-08:00

Prakruthi is an international not-for-profit organisation working in India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan. Prakruthi’s programmes support the poor and the marginalized in various hard to reach sectors such as tea, coffee, sugarcane, cotton and garments. Our activities touch the life of more than 50.000 families. We envision that linking corporate social responsibility of companies can address poverty issues and sustainable development in trying to achieve our stated mission.

Farms
In agriculture we work with smallholder farmers and workers to improve the quality and quantity of produce along with assuring the social, economic and environmental sustainability. Prakruthi connects its activities to private market players, which includes local and international companies, and encourages them to invest in the bottom of supply chain to assure better market access for farmer groups. In this way, we have been successful in increasing the productivity and income at farm level, and connect farmers to markets.

Factories
Prakruthi is active in the garment sector to ensure that the supply chain of garment production is sustainable through a multi-stakeholder approach. We have been successful in creating multi-stakeholder groups in the Bangalore and Tirupur garment manufacturing hubs to facilitate the improvement of the working conditions, labour rights and environmental compliance.

Organisation
Prakruthi has various offices in India and a support office in the UK. The organisation has staff strength of about 30 professional and subject matter experts and regularly hires consultants for theme specific activities. Prakruthi has a very good knowledge base in sustainability issues with community based research and studies. It cooperates with many national and international NGOs, certification agencies, companies and other non-state actors in promoting its CSR based sustainability agenda.