There is a fascinating debate that took place between Milton Friedman, Whole Foods’ John Mackey, and Cypress Semiconductor’s T.J. Rodgers last October 2005 on the social responsibility of businesses. After reading the three articles below I am not sure all this talk about Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has added any value beyond being a great marketing ploy. I am beginning to wonder if CSR could even be potentially damaging.

If the debate isn’t the most thought provoking web content you have read in the last week, I owe you a coke.

Background - Milton Friedman’s famous 1970 New York Times Magazine Article
The Debate
Aftermath (only interesting if you read the debate)

Thoughts & Questions:

Friedman and Rodgers believe that doing whatever increases the bottom line while staying within the rules of the game; engaging in open and free competition without deception or fraud, is the only social responsibility that corporations have. In rebuttal John Mackey seems to make a lot of good points which don’t do much more than repackage what Friedman and Rodgers with flowers. Mackey claims the flowers are more than just marketing and rhetoric, but I am not sure he isn’t deceived by his long unbroken success at Whole Foods.

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A recent study by researchers at the University of Granada reveals that housewives are more likely than college students to recycle glass bottles.  Environmental bloggers have expressed their surprise at the findings; Kiera Butler at the Blue Marble Blog, part of social justice nonprofit Mother Jones, concludes sagely that despite college students’ “boundless reserves of idealism… [their] ecological awareness does not necessarily lead to action.” 

In fact, a theme can be drawn through to the world of cleantech products:  creation is sexier than conservation. 

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Peru’s Ministry of Education embarked on an ambitious experiment earlier this year, introducing $188 laptops purchased from the US-based non-profit organization, One Laptop Per Child. Peru, one of a handful of countries involved in the OLPC initiative, purchased 260,000 laptops to distribute to elementary school-age children. In December, the Washington Post profiled the immediate reactions of children in one village. Needless to say, parents and children are thrilled (and have already found the computer games.)

It is easy enough to poke holes in the project:
Will people use these computers? Can they repair or maintain them? Is the pre-loaded content appropriate?
Will teachers know how to incorporate the technology into their teaching? Will students learn any better as a result?
Should Peru have dedicated the resources used to buying laptops to other needs: hiring more teachers? Building more schools or improving the conditions of existing schools? Better salaries for teachers?

According to the World Economic Forum, Peru’s educational system is one of the worst in the world. Given the options, Peru made a radical move. This experiment cannot be deemed a success just yet. Students got their laptops only recently and it will take time to see whether there is any effect on students’ learning or retention. But it will be interesting to see if in one year, we think that the Ministry of Education made a brilliant decision or a misguided one.

Although renewable energy is a popular idea these days, I am not so sure that relying solely on one type of renewable energy is the path to a sustainable future as some might have us think. The reason I say this is because of what has happened to corn prices as a result of ethanol production in the Midwest region of the United States. Because of increased ethanol production in this region, prices for corn, the primary raw material for ethanol, have dramatically increased. In addition, it has put a strain on other industries as farmers use their farmland to produce more corn instead of other less profitable crops.

This highlights the need for careful consideration of any new so-called “renewable” energy source and the effect it will have on resources whether it be human or natural. For example, solar and wind energy could put a tremendous strain on the raw materials needed to produce the equipment/machinery needed to generate electricity. As such, it is a good idea for governments to adopt a policy of diversified energy sources and for consumers to demand diverse energy sources.

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Your friends at PosiPeople would like to wish you a Happy Holiday Season!

We’d also like to share a few words of wisdom with you in a holiday powerpoint presentation. The show has animated quotes from Mother Teresa, Ghandi, Martin Luther King, Jr., and others. (We put this slideshow together last year, but we think it is still appropriate.) Feel free to pass it along!

Have a safe, warm, and ecstatic holiday season and we look forward to making a positive impact with you next year!