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WaterPartners and the ONEXONE Foundation team up to tackle the global water crisis.

Academy Award®-winner Matt Damon and WaterPartners’ Executive Director Gary White held a Fundraising Gala together with the ONEXONE Foundation on October 23 in San Francisco to raise awareness of the drinking water crisis and other critical health issues impacting millions of children around the world.   Celebrity guests included Carlos Santana, David Arquette, and seven-year-old piano [...]

Allowing inmates to run the asylum

From Denny Hatch’s e-newsletter: Take a gander at this paragraph from a Wall Street Journal story by Robin Sidel on Oct. 20, 2008:AmEx recently slapped a $1,100-a-month spending limit on John and Monica Bell’s platinum AmEx charge card. The reason: AmEx customers who pay with plastic at the same places where Mrs. Bell shops and [...]

Advice For Summiteers On Reforming The Global Casino

November 15, 2008, will at last see a summit on how to reform failed global finance.  Invited to the USA, the heart of the failures, by President George W. Bush will be the “leaders” of global finance.  Architects of the failure range from economic globalization enthusiasts Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, Alan Greenspan and free market [...]

Sustainable wealth creation: here is the questionnaire

The Network for Sustainable Financial Markets (NSFM), an international, non-partisan network of finance sector professionals and academics with an interest in long-term investing, is conducting a survey of investment professionals to ask their opinion on how financial services should be reformed in the light of the current global financial crisis. NSFM argues that the financial [...]

The Future of Capital

Mastering value creation in the knowledge economy demands an appreciation for the pivotal role of intangible capital and a thorough understanding of network dynamics.One of the most challenging questions for modern business people is, “How can we convert intangible assets such as human knowledge, internal structures, ways of working, reputation, and business relationships into negotiable [...]

Capital For Good (Xigi.net)

Goldman Sachs Forms Alliance With E+Co

Supporting Clean Energy Through Carbon FinanceNEW YORK CITY - E+Co announced today that The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE: GS) has agreed to purchase the majority of its carbon offset portfolio. Through the multi-year alliance, Goldman Sachs will help promote E+Co’s goal of providing investment capital and support services to small, [...]

Value Networks Discussion Group

› Re: "It's not like we have some crisis"

› RE: "It's not like we have some crisis"

› Re: "It's not like we have some crisis"

A Value Network is any web of relationships that generates tangible and intangible value through complex dynamic exchanges between two or more individuals, groups, or organizations.

VIDEO

Tim Wirth on Creating The UN Foundation with Ted Turner

The President of the United Nations Foundation and Better World Fund discusses how the organization got started and how the UN's governance is so important.

Off The Wires

How climate change could affect corporate valuations

Efforts to reduce carbon emissions could profoundly affect the valuations of many companies, but executives don’t seem to be paying attention. From the McKinsey Quarterly-Log-in required

Achieving a Sustainable Global Economy 

Mindy Luber, President of Ceres - Advancing Sustainable Prosperity recommends these very clear and concrete actions to the new Obama administration:

1. Reform the capital markets to require honest accounting of financial risks that companies and investors face from climate change and other sustainability threats.
2. Stimulate the economy through investments in clean energy technology, energy efficiency, green-collar jobs and training.
3. Pass legislation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent below 1990 by 2020 and 80 percent by 2050.
4. End tax incentives and subsidies for high carbon-emitting technologies and projects and enact mandates that 20 percent of the nation's electricity come from renewable power by 2020 and at least 30 percent by 2030.
5. Promote energy efficiency policies, including stronger building codes, appliance standards, tax incentives and energy efficiency resource standards, to achieve at least a doubling in efficiency.
6. Instruct the Securities and Exchange Commission to address environmental, social and governance issues, including climate change, as part of corporate disclosure by all publicly-traded companies.

The New President and Philanthropy  

The election of Barack Obama could bring about changes for nonprofit organizations and the people they serve. Learn what President-elect Obama thinks on issues of importance to the nonprofit world - The Chronicle of Philanthropy, Campaign 2008 Website

‘Once in a lifetime' opportunity to buy green stocks 

A shift towards an economy based on renewable energy could be one of the only ways to stimulate growth and avoid a prolonged global economic downturn, according to Adam Seitchik, chief investment officer at Trillium Asset Management, the Boston-based SRI fund manager. 

Also see Responsible Investor's SRI in the Rockies: round-up

Starbucks Joins (RED)^TM to Help Save Lives in Africa 

"(RED) is coming to a corner near you thanks to Starbucks. I'm very excited to be able to say that," said Bono, co-founder of (RED). "The business of Starbucks with roots in Africa and branches all over the world is an ideal fit for (RED). It's pretty mind-blowing to think that millions of people can buy (RED) going about their daily lives and in doing so raise millions of dollars to fight AIDS in Africa. That's not a bad hit from your caffeine." 

But it is just a nickel--for some reason--Starbucks can't spare a dime 

Starting on November 27, 2008 and continuing through January 2, 2009, Starbucks will contribute five cents from the sale of any (STARBUCKS) RED EXCLUSIVE beverage* at all company-owned and licensed stores in the United States and Canada to the Global Fund to invest in AIDS programs in Africa.

Wall Street ‘made rod for own back'

FT:  New bankruptcy rules seen spurring bank failures.

Wall Street unwittingly created one of the catalysts for the collapse of Bear Stearns, Lehman Brothers and American International Group by backing new bankruptcy rules that were aimed at insulating banks from the failure of a big client, lawyers and bankers say.The 2005 changes made clear that certain derivatives and financial transactions were exempt from provisions in the bankruptcy code that freeze a failed company's assets until a court decides how to apportion them among creditors.The new rules were intended to insulate financial companies from the collapse of a large counterparty, such as a hedge fund, by making it easier for them to unwind trades and retrieve collateral.

Water Footprint Network 

Founded by inventor Dr. Arjen Hoekstra, Professor in Multidisciplinary Water Management, University of Twente in the Netherlands says:   "It's interesting to see the growing interest from businesses in proper water management in their supply chain   I really see forward to corporations recognizing that reduction of the corporation's water footprint should be part of its corporate social responsibility." 

Dr. Hoekstra will be presenting the keynote at the Corporate Water Footprinting conference on December 2-3 in San Francisco.

Calvert Foundation Wins Award for Nonprofit Innovation.

The Drucker Institute at Claremont Graduate University honored Calvert Foundation Tuesday for exemplifying innovation in their many products and services. Calvert Foundation, the third-place winner, shares this honor with two other organizations striving to alleviate poverty. KickStart International, an organization that helps African entrepreneurs get their businesses started, received the first-place award. Second place was awarded to Hidden Harvest, an organization that employs low-income farm workers to salvage produce left behind by commercial buyers. This model provides fresh fruits and vegetables to distribution agencies in Coachella, CA.

> Read the article from Market Watch

Giving Voice to Values 

The Aspen Center for Business Education has just made available online the highly acclaimed and widely used Giving Voice to Values (GVV) Curriculum Initiative.

A wide collection of GVV teaching materials, including Teaching Modules and Cases, are now available through CasePlace.org.

Doing Well - Very Well - by Doing Good

GE's 2008 Ecomagination Revenues Rise 21%, to over $17 Billion. 

Despite growing concerns about the global economic downturn, GE has affirmed that there is good money to be made in doing right by the environment. The company expects that revenues from its range of energy efficient and environmentally advantageous products and services will surge by 21% to over $17 billion in 2008. GE also predicts its annual investments in clean technology research and development will soon pass the $1.4 billion mark.

FTSE signs sustainability index venture with US provider KLD 

FTSE, the London-based index provider, has signed a deal with KLD Research & Analytics, the Boston-based US sustainability index group, under which the two groups will co-brand KLD's suite of ESG benchmarks.

Investors suffer as US ethanol boom dries up

UN launches Green New Deal for sustainable investment 

The United Nations is backing a global Green New Deal, which it says could be a ‘historical' opportunity to rebuild economies debilitated by the credit crisis and target future investment for environmentally friendly markets. The initiative, launched by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), is to receive $4m (€3.1m) in funding from the European Commission, Germany and Norway. But its impact could be felt far wider as it becomes a political catalyst at European and global talks for government and market-based investment into areas such as clean technology and renewable energy. Source: Responsible Investor.

US Debt clock runs out

Finance crisis: in graphics

Some of the key facts and figures behind the turmoil in the global financial markets from the BBC.

Wanted: a fairer capitalism, Will Hutton 

I never imagined I would live through events like those of the past three weeks. The western banking system faces disintegration. Economists and policy-makers are at loggerheads over how to intervene to stop the panic that is sweeping the world and inspire sufficient trust for the key money and credit markets to reopen.This is a crisis that has been thirty years in the making - a Gordian knot of libertarian free-market fundamentalism, unregulated globalisation, the collapse of social and... more »

CECP Honors Co-Founder Paul Newman

Paul Newman passed away on Friday, September 26, 2008. Nearly 10 years ago, Mr. Newman helped to found the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy, a consortium of global CEOs in support of corporate giving.

Mr. Newman inspired corporate leaders through his passion and perseverance in changing the way business interacted with its communities. Part of his legacy has been to rally senior executives to discuss the value of corporate philanthropy with their peers. As a result, he has helped to establish a new definition of true leadership - encouraging CEOs to take an active role as spokesperson and advocate for corporate community investment.

It was Mr. Newman's sense of business responsibility, civility, and passion for a healthy society that guided his life and set the tone for the Committee. Mr. Newman was an inspiration to community and business leaders alike, and his good work will live on through the continued efforts of CECP members to realize the dual business and social value of corporate philanthropy.

In his own words, Mr. Newman said, "I helped to start CECP with the belief that corporate America could be a force for good in society." The loss of Paul Newman will be felt not only by his family and fans, but the many corporate and nonprofit leaders who took his words to heart and created successful cross-sector partnerships, influencing the way business is conducted across the globe.

"Paul Newman was a person of unique accomplishments, sensitivity, generosity, intellect, and abundant good humor, who touched many lives," said CECP Executive Director Charles Moore. "He worked tirelessly to make companies more humane, urging executives to adopt philanthropic programs into their businesses. We are so grateful to Paul's commitment to CECP and his tremendous leadership in corporate philanthropy."

About CECP: The Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy is the only international forum of business CEOs and chairpersons focused on raising the level and quality of corporate philanthropy. Membership includes more than 175 executives representing companies that account for over 40% of reported corporate giving in the United States.

CONTACT: Lindsay Siegel
Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy
LSiegel@CorporatePhilanthropy.org
212.825.1256

US 'War on Terror' Has Not Weakened al Qaeda, Says Global Poll

The US's 'war on terror' has failed to weaken its prime target al Qaeda, according to people in 22 out of 23 countries surveyed in a new poll for the BBC World Service.

On average only 22 per cent believe that al Qaeda has been weakened, while three in five believe that it has either had no effect (29%) or made al Qaeda stronger (30%).   

This indicates that the war may turn out to be an even worse investment than the ‘rescue package' for Wall Street.Source: http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/

What the Financial Sector Meltdown Really Means for Nonprofits and Philanthropy. 

Rick Cohen of the Cohen Report addresses the tough times facing the nonprofit sector: "As the always-sharp Melissa Berman of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors noted in a recent Wall Street Journal article, nonprofits face a dual crisis -- the collapse of some major corporate givers and the timing of the collapse just before many nonprofits' core fundraising time at the end of the calendar year.  The Economist in covering the Clinton Global Initiative this week described the impending problem succinctly: "the financial crisis means that there will be a greater need for philanthropy than ever -- both because existing foundations will see their assets fall, and because the huge cost of bailing out the financial system will mean that government has far less to spend on everything else."

His look at the numbers -- the amount of philanthropic grant making that will be lost due to the financial freefall that has enveloped the likes of Lehman Brothers, Bear Stearns, Merrill Lynch, Washington Mutual, Wachovia, Countrywide Financial, IndyMac, and, not to be forgotten, the two housing finance GSEs, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac--is well worth checking out, just click on the headline.

Poor prep for low carbon economy could slash sector values by 65 per cent 

Carbon Trust/McKinsey report says investors must now start discriminating against climate change laggards. Companies in the aluminium and automobile sectors could see up to 65% of their value wiped out in the coming years if they do not prepare for the transition to a low carbon economy, according to a report published today (Sept 22) by the Carbon Trust, an independent company set up by the UK government in response to the threat of climate change.>>>See full story by Hugh Wheelan of Responsible Investor

What are The Eco-Patent Commons?

The objectives of the Eco-Patent Commons are to facilitate the use of existing technologies to protect the environment, and encourage collaboration between businesses that foster new innovations.  The initiative was launched by IBM, Nokia, Pitney Bowes and Sony in partnership with the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) in January 2008, to provide a unique opportunity for global business to make a difference - sharing innovation in support of sustainable development.   Today, September 8, 2008, Xerox, DuPont and Bosch joined the Eco-Patent Commons.  The newly-pledged patents include:

• A Xerox technology that significantly reduces the time and cost of removing hazardous waste from water and soil;
• A technology developed by DuPont that converts certain non-recyclable plastics into beneficial fertilizer;
• Automotive technologies from Bosch that help lower fuel consumption, reduce emissions, or convert waste heat from vehicles into useful energy;
• Technologies developed by founding member Sony that focus on the recycling of optical discs. Membership in the Eco-Patent Commons is open to all individuals and companies pledging one or more patents.  The selection and submission of each organization's patents for pledging is at the organization's discretion.  

The pledged portfolio is available on a dedicated, public Web site hosted by the WBCSD (http://www.wbcsd.org/web/epc).

The Value of Environmental Activists

With decidedly non-profit goals leading them on, how do environmental protection groups such as Greenpeace and World Wildlife Fund create value? Can it be measured?  

A Q&A with Harvard Business School professor Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and case writer Jordan Mitchell.

33 companies identified as new global Sustainability Leaders  

SAM, Dow Jones Indexes and STOXX Ltd. have just announced the results of Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes Review 2008  

A webcast and further information about the new index constituents and the 19 super sector leaders is available at

www.sustainability-indexes.com. For the complete press releases click here. 

The politics of sand,  What constitutes sustainability?

It'S official: extracting oil from Canada's vast deposits of bitumenous sand is unsustainable. So, at any rate, Britain's Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) implicitly concluded when it ruled that Royal Dutch Shell was misleading the public by describing its tar-sands operation as "sustainable".

WWF, the environmental NGO that lodged the complaint with the ASA, dislikes the tar sands (or oil sands, as Shell prefers to call them) because turning them into fuel consumes much more energy than refining crude oil does. If that energy is made by burning natural gas-as it is in all tar-sands projects at the moment-and so involves extra emissions of greenhouse gases, then the resulting fuel is two or three times as bad for the atmosphere as normal petrol or diesel. That is no good for the world's climate, and so, in WWF's view, unsustainable.

Full article  at Economist.com

Environmentalism Sprouts Up on Corporate Boards

Amid rising investor worries over global warming and shrinking natural resources, directors are keeping a closer watch on environmental issues. About 25% of Fortune 500 companies now have a board committee overseeing the environment, compared with fewer than 10% five years ago, estimates Mindy Lubber, president of Ceres, a national coalition of activists, investors and others concerned with the environment.

Google.org invests in geothermal energy

Google.org, the philanthropic arm of the search giant, has announced a $10.25 million investment in geothermal energy technology. The money will back two start-up companies that specialize in enhanced geothermal systems (EGS), the process of pumping water underground to crack hot rocks and use the resulting steam to power a turbine and create electricity.

The good people at Grist point to these resources:sources: Reuters, CNET News, Forbes, Google Inc., Earth2Tech
see also, in Grist: Google.org invests in plug-in hybrids and solar thermal
see also, in Grist: An interview with Google's green energy czar

Gilberto Gil: open minister, by Jose Murilo

The resignation of Gilberto Gil as Brazil's minister of culture was announced on 30 July 2008. The great and influential musician says that music - and family matters - have after more than five years in the post called him back from his political responsibilities: "I feel like I have come full circle and I want to remove myself. I felt a big pressure on my artistic work that was accumulating."

Some of openDemocracy's collection on Gilberto Gil and open culture is here... more»

Rising Energy Costs May be Good News for 'Clean Tech' Firms -- and Their Investors  

The amount of venture capital invested in "clean tech" -- the raft of technologies that would create a greener economy -- nearly doubled from 2005 to 2006, reaching about $3 billion, according to a study conducted at the University of California at Berkeley. Figures like these have some analysts warning that clean tech is in the throes of a bubble, which could end just like the Internet and real estate booms did -- badly. Published: August 06, 2008 in Knowledge@Wharton

More financial advisors hiring psychologists

Wachovia just hired a full-time associate director of family dynamics for one of its wealth management units. Bank of New York Mellon Corp., Commonwealth Financial Network of Waltham, Mass., and Wells Fargo & Co. also use psychologists and therapists. In many cases, the psychologist get directly involved with client issues. This is a great idea-says Jim Kim at FierceFinance.com-because it is a way to help tether clients to the firm, boosting wallet share.  It may be hard to quantify the ROI, but it can't hurt.

"Lost There, Felt Here"

Harrison Ford lets the world see a square of hair ripped from his chest in a Public Service Announcement for Conservation International.

CI explains: "That small pain suggested that tropical deforestation happening in other parts of the world effects not only those nearby but people all over the planet. The video is estimated to have reached more than 45 million people worldwide."  What do you think? 

Watch Harrison Ford Lose An "Acre" in his PSA for CI's Lost There, Felt Here campaign

Map of Future Forces Affecting Sustainability

The Institute for the Future has published the Map of Future Forces Affecting Sustainability, prepared for the Global Environmental Management Initiative.

According to the "GEMI website, "The Map has been designed to help GEMI member companies develop their own perspective of a future being shaped increasingly by external forces linked to the concept of sustainable development. 

The Map includes elements that some may view as controversial, but recognizes the objective of this effort is to provoke thoughtful discussions that will help companies shape their business strategies in light of a more sustainability-driven future." 

The site also provides a 45-minute video ‘walk through' of the six columns of The Map

Kenya energy goes green to meet electricity boom

NAIVASHA, Kenya (AFP) - Facing soaring electricity demands, Kenya is opting to go full steam ahead with geothermal energy to boost its production while preserving its rich environmental heritage.

The 37-million-strong nation's electricity supply capacity is dangerously close to its limit at 1,080 megawatts when peak hour demand almost reaches 1,000 megawatts.With a fast-growing economy and demography, demand is climbing by eight percent each year and the country's hydro-electric capacity is peaking and being strained by chronic droughts and the impact of deforestation on rivers. 

Kenya's geothermal energy plan is being supported with donations and preferential loans from France's AFP, the World Bank and German cooperation.

Measuring Impact Framework launched by WBCSD

Geneva, 28 July 2008 - Business knows that "what gets measured gets done." In this spirit, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) launches the Measuring Impact Framework to help companies measure and assess the impact of their business activities on economic and broader development goals wherever they operate.

Business case brief - Why measure? (PDF 4.7 MB)

PowerPoint Presentation (3.4 MB)

Big Agriculture defends ethanol.

CHICAGO (Reuters) July 25th- A new group is adding its voice to the debate on using crops to produce alternative fuels such as ethanol amid rising food prices and shortages in some countries. 

The Alliance for Abundant Food and Energy in Washington D.C. was created by Archer Daniels Midland Co, DuPont Co, Deere & Co, Monsanto Co and the Renewable Fuels Association http://www.foodandenergy.org/

World food prices rose by 40 percent last year, causing food riots, hoarding and bread lines in many countries. 

But this group believes that agricultural innovation -- such as genetically modified crops -- is the best way to address global hunger, not reducing biofuel production.  ADM is one of the world's largest producers of biofuels, and Monsanto is a leading producer of GMO seeds.   So they would say that, wouldn't they?

Accenture Report Finds Data Centers Can Drop Energy Use by Half

OAKLAND, Calif. -- In partnership with the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, Lawrence Berkeley Labs, the Department of Energy and others, the new report shows how adopting energy efficiency policies and hardware management practices can lead to significant cuts in power consumption for any data center.

The full Data Center Energy Forecast Report is available for download from GreenerComputing.com.  Source: GreenerComputing Staff Published July 17, 2008

Environmental risk still neglected - survey

-Environmental Finance, 10 July 2008 - Around two out of five senior executives admit to neglecting environmental risks, according to a survey by the Economist Intelligence Unit.

Out of 320 senior global executives, 43% said they managed environmental risks in an ‘ad hoc' manner, or not at all.

http://www.wbcsd.org/Plugins/DocSearch/details.asp?ObjectId=MzA2ODU

The Future of Social Enterprise

This working paper from HBS considers the confluence of forces that is shaping the field of social enterprise, changing the way that funders, practitioners, scholars, and organizations measure performance.

The authors, HBS professors V. Kasturi Rangan and Herman B. Leonard, and research associate Susan McDonald, trace a growing pool of potential funding sources to solve social problems, much of it stemming from an intergenerational transfer of wealth and new wealth from financial and high-tech entrepreneurs. They further examine how these organizations can best access the untapped resources by demonstrating mission performance, and then propose three potential scenarios for how this sector might evolve.  Download the working paper [PDF].

Patenting the "Climate Genes" in plants

The world's largest seed and agrochemical corporations are stockpiling hundreds of monopoly patents on genes in plants that the companies will market as crops genetically engineered to withstand environmental stresses such as drought, heat, cold, floods, saline soils, and more.

BASF, Monsanto, Bayer, Syngenta, Dupont and biotech partners have filed 532 patent documents (a total of 55 patent families) on so-called "climate ready" genes at patent offices around the world. In the face of climate chaos and a deepening world food crisis, the Gene Giants are gearing up for a PR offensive to re-brand themselves as climate saviours. The focus on so-called climate-ready genes is a golden opportunity to push genetically engineered crops as a silver bullet solution to climate change.

But patented techno-fix seeds will not provide the adaptation strategies that small farmers need to cope with climate change. These proprietary technologies will ultimately concentrate corporate power, drive up costs, inhibit independent research, and further undermine the rights of farmers to save and exchange seeds.

Nonprofit ‘IPO' raises $700,000

A California nonprofit used a staple fundraising technique from the for-profit sector to generate $700,000 to combat homelessness.

Ceres and INCR signatory letter outlines three climate change policy recommendations ahead of Senate debate next month.

Investors managing hundreds of billions of dollars have warned that US politicians must radically overhaul the country's climate change policies or risk losing the potential for business to find solutions to global warming.

A joint letter issued today by 52 of the world's largest investors urges the Senate to reduce US greenhouse gas emissions by 60 to 90% below 1990 levels before 2050.

Africa's farms reap rewards

.....as the prices of raw materials soar - from the barley used to make beer or the cocoa used to make chocolate - leading brewers and food manufacturers from Cadbury Schweppes to Diageo are increasingly recognising their businesses will benefit from investment in African agriculture.Mark Lundy, senior research fellow at the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research, which was created by the World Bank in the early 1970s to find ways of producing more food, claims food producers can no longer afford to ignore farmers.  "It used to be very much a buyers' market ... now companies have to position themselves as good partners."

By Jenny Wiggins in the FT:

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/4f6fe902-1bc4-11dd-9e58-0000779fd2ac.html

IBM's Answer to the Food Crisis

While the world food crisis demands both quick fixes and long-range solutions, time is of the essence. With food costs soaring, more than one billion people could find themselves at risk of starvation or severe malnutrition in the coming years. So a project announced May 15 by University of Washington researchers and IBM's (IBM) World Community Grid to speed development of better rice may be just what's needed. 

By Steve Hamm in Business Week

Corporate-volunteering programs go global

Some of the biggest corporate names are sending their employees around the globe on costly service trips in an effort to bolster company reputations, do "real good," and develop employee skill sets, The Boston Globe reported May 4. Companies like Ernst & Young, Pfizer, Timberland, and IBM have picked up on the trend.

Battle of legends: Milken vs. Lipton

Martin Lipton, the legendary lawyer, says the financial crisis stems from the invention of the junk bond so many years ago. As the New York Times notes, Michael Milken begs to differ. He tells the paper that junk bonds--as well as all the CDOs that invested in them--have precious little in common with subprime mortgages. And he has a point; one could argue that junk bonds in and of themselves are neither good, nor bad. It's what you do with them. Same goes for securitization. In both cases, there can be excesses. In general, Milken has a lot to say about the mess, including a bit about how more regulation will not help. I find it interesting that he has made himself a revered, somewhat nostalgic feature. Even Rudy Giuliani, the man who put him in jail, agrees.For more here's the Times article

Billionaire Texas oil man makes big bets on wind

Legendary Texas oil man T. Boone Pickens has gone green with a plan to spend $10 billion to build the world's biggest wind farm. But he's not doing it out of generosity - he expects to turn a buck.

The Southern octogenarian's plans are as big as the Texas prairie, where he lives on a ranch with his horses, and entail fundamentally reworking how Americans use energy.

Next month, Pickens' company, Mesa Power, will begin buying land and ordering 2,700 wind turbines that will eventually generate 4,000 megawatts of electricity - the equivalent of building two commercial scale nuclear power plants - enough power for about 1 million homes. Reuters, 17 April 2008 -

U.S. maintains highest market-share of the world's prisoners

International Herald Tribune Published: April 23, 2008 [filed under value destruction]

The United States has less than 5 percent of the world's population. But it has almost a quarter of the world's prisoners.  Indeed, the United States leads the world in producing prisoners, a reflection of a relatively recent and now entirely distinctive American approach to crime and punishment. Americans are locked up for crimes - from writing bad checks to using drugs - that would rarely produce prison sentences in other countries. And in particular they are kept incarcerated far longer than prisoners in other nations.

Philanthropy on the commons

The future of philanthropy lies in joining the wave of open source peer-production that is enriching public assets, says Mark Surman on Open Democracy.

Who are the top funders of Wikipedia? Sun Microsystems co-founder Vinod Khosla and Richard Branson's Virgin Unite. Who funds the creative commons? Sun, Microsoft, Cisco, IBM, Yahoo, Facebook as well as a number of foundations created with newly minted high-tech wealth. The commons is clearly on the philanthrocapitalist menu.  More importantly: collaborative, non-market peer-production was born from a world that lives on the fuzzy edge between public and private benefit.

Compensation Consultants and Conflicts of Interest
Companies that use compensation consultants end up paying more to their CEOs, leading to allegations that these consultants push for excessively high CEO packages because many of them profit from doing other work for the company. A recent Congressional committee report supported the idea that such conflicts drive up CEO pay. But a new Wharton study by accounting professor Mary Ellen Carter and two colleagues suggests that conflicts of interest between the consultant and the firm aren't to blame.  Source: Knowledge@Wharton

Global Volunteering Gets Started in Boston

Last weekend in Boston, several hundred people arrived at the Harvard School of Public Health to learn more about doing good around the globe, from the international service opportunities offered by over twenty volunteer-sending organizations to workshops on topics like the basics of global volunteering, linking service and study abroad, volunteering across borders independently, and translating international service experience into a dynamic career.

Participants at the first ever Idealist Global Volunteering Fair This event, hosted by the Harvard School of Public Health, Harvard Graduate School of Education, John F. Kennedy School of Government, and Harvard Divinity School, was Idealist's first ever Global Volunteering Fair!

If you weren't able to make it to the Boston fair, click here for information about the national and international nonprofit organizations who participated. Also, watch for a new resource center on Idealist.org specifically focused on global volunteerism to launch later this year.

The new philanthropy: power, inequality, democracy

The sceptical scrutiny of "philanthrocapitalism" by Michael Edwards is welcome. But markets and social enterprise could help realize the potential of a new donor economy, says Geoff Mulgan  on Open Democracy; one notable quote:

"The majority of press coverage continues to be fawning; conferences celebrate; and most of the books that are published in this field are strings of uncritical anecdotes which wouldn't get past the mildest peer review (see for example Pamela Hartigan & John Elkington, The power of unreasonable people [Harvard Business School Press, 2008])."

Assets under management at SAM doubled in 2007

Zurich-based SAM -Sustainable Asset Management- can look back on an exceptional year in 2007. The milestones included a doubling of assets under management, successful growth initiatives in Asia, and successful expansion into the US and Canada. In the past financial year, SAM's assets under management (AuM) increased by CHF 4.7bn or 125% to CHF 8.5bn. Including the assets managed indirectly (e.g. through mandates and licences), SAM's total AuM now amount to CHF 15.1bn.

[Full disclosure: SAM powers the daily stock indexes featured on this site; for which we are most grateful.]  Read media release

For Art, For Charity, For Fun

CowParade is the world's largest public art event in which life-sized cows are designed by artists and put on display throughout select cities around the world.

Check out their new website: http://www.cowparade.com/

USA 2008: The Great Depression

Food stamps are the symbol of poverty in the US. In the era of the credit crunch, a record 28 million Americans are now relying on them to survive - a sure sign the world's richest country faces economic crisisWe knew things were bad on Wall Street, but on Main Street it may be worse. Startling official statistics show that as a new economic recession stalks the United States, a record number of Americans will shortly be depending on food stamps just to feed themselves and their families.

By David Usborne in New York for the UK's Independent newspaper Tuesday, 1 April 2008

Full story:  http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/usa-2008-the-great-depression-803095.html

British online fundraiser generates over $500M

At a time when most British nonprofits face falling donations, online fundraiser justgiving.com has channeled more than 250 million British pounds, over $500 million, into the sector since its 2001 launch, The Guardian reported March 25. The website has spread the appeal of charitable giving to younger generations with viral marketing techniques and sophisticated technology.

Dow Jones launches Dharma Indexes

Dow Jones Indexes in conjunction with Dharma Investments^TM has created a family of faith-based equity market indexes that screen companies for compliance with Dharmic religious traditions.The first of its kind, the Dow Jones Dharma Indexes^SM are designed to integrate the value system of these religious traditions - especially Hinduism and Buddhism - into the component selection process. Thus, the Indexes restrict companies whose operations are viewed as unacceptable according to the principles of Dharma.

See: http://www.djindexes.com/mdsidx/?event=showDharmaOverView

Toyota Joins Audubon in Latest Corporate-NGO Partnership

In another high-profile partnership announced recently, Toyota gave the Audubon Society its largest grant ever -- $20 million -- to fund conservation projects, train environmental leaders and boost volunteerism, the company said Wednesday.

The Chronicle on Philanthropy blog reports on formation of the World Congress of Muslim Philanthropists, an international effort to help Muslim donors and organizations make the public more aware of their work and to increase organizational capacity.  After years of nonprofit work, including assisting victims of the 2005 Pakistan earthquake, Mr. Cheema said he saw the need to bring together the world's Islamic donors....part of its work, the congress plans to create a Web site, SecureGiving, to rank charities in Muslim countries based on an as-yet-undecided criteria of governance and management standards. Mr. Cheema said the effort will help donors make sure their money is not supporting terrorists posing as Islamic charities, a concern that has grown since the September 11, 2001, attacks.

Pumas, Planets and Pens: How Cues in the Environment Influence Consumer Choice
In a new research paper titled, "Dogs on the Street, Pumas on Your Feet: How Cues in the Environment Influence Product Evaluation and Choice," Wharton marketing professor Jonah Berger suggests that what you see in your everyday world can influence what you buy. "Marketers ... think they have to come up with a catchy slogan or slick advertisement to create a buzz," Berger says. Instead, companies can get a payoff by creating a link between their product and a cue in the environment.
http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/1927.cfm

Activists pressure Fidelity to drop Chinese stocks

Author: Ross Kerber, Boston Globe

That quietest of financial rituals, the mutual fund shareholder meeting, is becoming a forum for social activism. At a gathering that fund giant Fidelity Investments held Wednesday in Boston, shareholder proposals that would bar it from holding assets in...Sinopec and PetroChina [over their presence in Sudan]...were defeated...But while the vote went in Fidelity's favor, activists said their measures received an unusually high number of votes... Read full item here

B Corporations: Verified Sustainability

B Labs takes the guesswork out of which companies are actually working for the future.

Companies that pride themselves on being sustainable have a new badge they can present to show their commitment to the environment, society, and corporate governance. B Labs, a non-profit based in Berwyn, PA, has created a third-party certification for "B Corporations." More than just supplying a sustainable product or service, B Corporations "create a public benefit" as an integral core of their business plan.

Corporations dedicated to the good of the people aren't a new idea. In fact, in the country's first decades, the newly created United States granted corporations charters to operate only if the corporations were considered for the public good; for example, helping create infrastructure such as bridges and roads. Corporations are still granted charters by state governments, giving them special rights and privileges. However, the modern consolidation of corporate wealth and power has overshadowed the public role for corporations originally envisioned by the U.S. founding fathers.

Started in June 2007, B Labs has already certified more than 80 corporations spanning over 20 different industries from coffee to clothing to media marketing. The "B" stands for the public benefit that B Corporations create through their products, practices, and profits. According to B Labs, over 700 companies have been through the B Ratings System.

Full story by Anne Moore Odell of SocialFunds.com

http://www.socialfunds.com/news/article.cgi/2482.html

Merrill Lynch, Carbon Disclosure Project Form Partnership to Expand Project's Reach

Merrill Lynch & Co. and the Carbon Disclosure Project have created a three-year partnership to expand and improve the Project throughout the world.

Wal-Mart Pushing Chinese Suppliers To Go Green

Wal-Mart Stores Inc will meet with its thousands of Chinese suppliers this fall as part of a big push to reduce waste and emissions at factories that make its products, Chief Executive Lee Scott said on Thursday. "We started a very aggressive program in China that is not only going to deal with environmental sustainability, but is also going to deal more aggressively with the issues of sourcing in China," Scott said... The company's top priorities in China will be to address the appropriate disposal of waste as well as to make reductions in both waste and greenhouse gas emissions. Read full item here

Global Leadership Network

The United Nations Global Compact in association with the International Finance Corporation and the Global Leadership Network launched the GLN OpenAccess tool, an interactive self-assessment tool assisting companies to improve their understanding of how the management of social, environmental and governance issues impact their business and stakeholders. The tool is free of charge and available to all companies willing to use it.

Top entrepreneurship papers named

Over the past two years, 4,300 papers on entrepreneurship have been added to an online database, which has logged over 500,000 downloads.

http://www.philanthropyjournal.org/

Can Online Investing End Poverty?

Live Webcast at 4pm EDT on March 19.

WHAT: A Panel Presentation featuring eBay company MicroPlace is presented by The Global Assets Project of the New America Foundation, along with Calvert Foundation and the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), with the support of the International Gateway at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, cordially invite you and your colleagues for a special event discussing one of the newest innovations in asset building and poverty reduction.

WHY: "Invest Wisely. End Poverty." This is the goal of eBay's new online microfinance investment marketplace, MicroPlace. While online microlending has been growing more popular with peer-to-peer offerings such as the nonprofit Kiva.org, MicroPlace is charting a whole new course in the microfinance industry, offering socially-minded Americans a new way to offer microloans to entrepreneurs in the developing world. As the only broker-dealer in the microfinance arena, MicroPlace is the first and only online service offering a way for investors to invest in the working poor, and earn both a social and financial return on the investment.

WHEN:  The event will be webcast live; to view and participate remotely, click here at 4pm EDT on March 19.

Firms buying "illegal" ore are financing rebel arms purchases in DR Congo

A UN panel of experts investigating breaches of a weapons embargo aimed at armed groups in DR Congo has told the UN Security Council that a number of corporations were complicit in violating arms embargoes by allowing illegal armed groups to buy arms with funds raised through levies and unofficial taxes on mining.

Many of the mines are either under the direct control of illegal armed groups or are illegally taxed by them. The two provinces produce the bulk of the country's cassiterite, the primary tin ore used by the electronics and computer industries. The report cited General Laurent Nkunda's Tutsi insurgency and the rebel Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) as two groups using mineral revenues to buy arms used in violence that has resulted in 450,000 civilians fleeing their homes. According to the Financial Times, leading brands, including Hitachi, Microsoft, Pioneer and Samsung are reportedly investigating whether tin originating from Bisie could have entered their supply chain.

For further analysis of this event, see Maplecroft's Global Risks Forecast at http://www.global-risks.com/.

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