Award-Winning Author, Blogger and Corporate Strategist Christine Arena To Produce Segments For 3BL TV, 3BL Media’s New Web Video

Christine is an award-winning author, syndicated blogger and corporate strategist whose books, The High-Purpose Company (Collins, 2007) and Cause for Success (New World Library, 2004), as well as her “Case in Point” blog, separate the strategies and companies that make a positive difference from those that don’t. Christine’s work appears on websites including The Christian Science Monitor, Global Post, Fast Company, Ethical Corporation, APEsphere and others. Her purpose is to inspire stakeholder activism and a greater level of transparency amongst America’s powerful corporations.

3BL Media Announces Launch of 3BL TV, Featuring Web Video Content from CSR’s Most Influential Bloggers – Christine Arena, Chris Jarvis, and Fabian Pattberg | 3BL Media

(3BLMedia/theCSRfeed) – Northampton, MA – January 27, 2010 – 3BL Media, the experts in corporate social responsibility (CSR), sustainability and cause marketing communications, today announced plans to launch 3BL TV (Triple Bottom Line TV), a Web video channel scheduled to debut next month.  At the core of the channel’s programming will be regular video segments produced by Christine Arena, Chris Jarvis, and Fabian Pattberg, who are recognized as the most respected and widely read bloggers covering topics related to CSR and sustainability.

“3BL Media’s initial foray into Web video, the CSR Minute, is now recognized as the leading daily Webcast for CSR news and information,” said Greg Schneider, co-founder and CEO, 3BL Media. “With the launch of 3BL TV, we are building on that success and increasing our reach as a media company at the intersection of CSR, social media and web video.”

Programming on 3BL TV will include:

• theCSRminute – a daily video digest of CSR and sustainability news

• theCSRreport – an in-depth look at the CSR world via company profiles and interviews.

• CSRunscripted – personal essays featuring viewpoints, opinions, and insights.

About the Featured Contributors:

Christine Arena – corporate strategist, syndicated blogger, and award-winning author whose books include The High-Purpose Company: The Truly Responsible (and Highly Profitable) Firms That Are Changing Business Now (Collins, 2007), and Cause for Success: 10 Companies that Put Profit Second and Came in First (New World Library, 2004). Christine’s “Case in Point” blog, which separates the strategies and companies that make a positive difference from those that don’t, is currently published on a number of major business news websites.

Chris Jarvis – keynote speaker, consultant, and author of the Realizing Your Worth blog that focuses on CSR and corporate volunteering. In working with business and non-profits to create outstanding volunteer programs, Chris presents examples and practices that create value for companies while providing important benefits to the community.

Fabian Pattberg – a sustainability, CSR, and social media professional with many years experience whose expertise includes managing the production of multiple sustainability/CSR reports; planning and coordination of stakeholder engagement campaigns; advising companies on their CSR strategy/ implementation; and the use of social media for companies to promote their sustainability credentials.

”I’m excited to be working with Christine, Chris, and Fabian,” said John Howell, Editorial Director, 3BL Media. “Their experienced, authoritative voices brought to Web video on 3BL TV will allow 3BL Media to further support our mission of raising awareness for the importance of corporate responsibility.  This venture brings our viewers and readers beyond the CSR Minute’s headlines, to in-depth profiles and interviews, opinion, and analysis.”

About 3BL Media
3BL Media is the leading CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility), sustainability, and cause marketing communications company. The company’s experienced team of professionals helps organizations—from nonprofits to multinational corporations—have a positive influence on society and the environment through information sharing that leverages the most cutting-edge technology and social media. 3BL Media defines, builds and refines the tools and methods necessary to help organizations communicate their commitment to the Triple Bottom Line in the way stakeholders want and need to know.  For additional information, please visit:

http://3blmedia.com
http://twitter.com/3BLMedia
http://facebook.3blmedia.com
http://linkedin.3blmedia.com

Press Contact:
Steven Wright-Mark
Schwartz Public Relations
steven@schwartzpr.com
212-677-8700 ext. 29
http://twitter.com/SchwartzPRnyc

3BL Media Contact:
Greg Schneider
gschneider@3blmedia.com
866-508-0993 ext. 113
http://twitter.com/Greg_Schneider

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CSR Minute: Global Banking Alliance for Women; Green Mountain Coffee Roasters’ Dilemma

Corporate Social Responsibility News: Global Banking Alliance for Women; Green Mountain Coffee Roasters’ Dilemma

CSR Minute Report: Berrett Koehler Publishers

CSR Minute Report: Berrett Koehler Publishers

Enter the Sustainable Century – Part 1: A Blog By Chad Tragakis

Strategic communication for business will be critical as President Obama ushers in a new green vision for America and the world

“Let’s be the generation that finally frees America from the tyranny of oil. We can harness homegrown, alternative fuels like ethanol and spur the production of more fuel-efficient cars. We can set up a system for capping greenhouse gases. We can turn this crisis of global warming into a moment of opportunity for innovation, and job creation, and an incentive for businesses that will serve as a model for the world.”
— From Barack Obama’s speech announcing his Presidential Bid in Springfield, Illinois, February 10, 2007

From his campaign kick-off more than two-and-a-half years ago right up through his inauguration this past January, the environment and environmental sustainability were central themes and important priorities for candidate Barack Obama.  He’s been in office for only nine months, but President Obama is moving quickly to reframe the environmental debate and reset expectations on the part of many stakeholders.  All this change will have both an immediate and a long-term impact for business.

Click here to continue reading.

via 3blmedia.com

CSR Minute: October 8, 2009 – Coca-Cola’s Sustainability Initiatives; Newsweek’s 500 Green Rankings; GoodBusiness Joins UN Global Compact

Corporate Social Responsible News: Coca-Cola’s Sustainability Initiatives; Newsweek’s Top 500 Green Rankings; GoodBusiness International Joins UN Global Compact

3BL Media and the Centre for Sustainability and Excellence (CSE) Announce Strategic Partnership

3BL (Triple Bottom Line) Media and the Centre for Sustainability and Excellence (CSE) announced today a strategic partnership which will provide CSE clients with access to the world’s largest corporate social responsibility and sustainability news distribution network.  The partnership will bring global recognition to the sustainability initiatives undertaken by leading progressive businesses as part of their work with CSE.

CSE provides services for Sustainability Management and Reporting, Climate Change Solutions, including LCAs and Carbon footprint Strategy, Green Marketing, CSR Assurance and Sustainable Investment. CSE also conducts executive training workshops in more than 18 countries around the globe.

“In support of our global efforts to promote Sustainability, we consider our partnership with 3BL Media vital in enabling organizations to communicate their Corporate Responsibility commitments, as well as share best practices via a comprehensive distribution network,” says CSE Managing Director, Nikos Avlonas.

3BL Media’s communications strategies include the production and distribution of videos, podcasts, media advisories, press releases and blogs.  3BL Media produces “theCSRminute” which is viewed by media professionals, business executives and consumers, and is considered a major source of reliable issues and trends, of breaking news and profiles of businesses and organizations. 3BL Media news distribution reaches the largest, most relevant audience through a proprietary network that includes thousands of media points, social networks, bloggers, video sharing sites, affiliates, aggregators and partnerships with major news outlets worldwide.

“As a recognized leader in CSR and sustainability consulting worldwide, we are honored that CSE chose 3BL Media to communicate the important work that their clients are doing.  We look forward to working closely with CSE and helping to keep stakeholders informed,” says 3BL Media CEO, Greg Schneider.

via 3blmedia.com

Business Ethics Blog: CSR is Not C-S-R

Regular readers will know that, over the last month, I’ve posted 3 blog entries critiquing the term “corporate social responsibility” (CSR). I’ve asked, rhetorically, whether the “C,” the “S,” and the “R” make sense. I’ve argued that, no, in each case the word those letters stand for fail to capture the range of issues devotees of “CSR” typically think are important. Basically, the conclusion is that “Corporate Social Responsibility” isn’t (just) about corporations, isn’t just about social questions, and isn’t just about responsibilities.

Now, this isn’t to say that there’s no topic at all that would suit the term “CSR.” If you really are just interested in corporations (and not other kinds of businesses), and if you really are just interested in their obligations (and find questions of rights, permissions, values, and virtues relatively uninteresting), and if you really are only interested in corporations’ outward-looking, specifically social obligations, well, then I guess you really are talking about CSR. But I suspect the number of people — and the number of companies — whose interests are that narrow is pretty small.

So, this all seems to imply:

• If you want companies to think carefully about the full range of normative (ethical) questions related to commerce, don’t ask them about CSR.
• If you want business students to be prepared for the decisions they’ll one day face as manager, don’t teach them courses in CSR.
• If you’re interested in learning a bit more about the ethical challenges faced by business, don’t read a book with “CSR” in the title.
• If your company wants to manage effectively the full range of ethical issues it’s likely to face, and not just one subset, don’t hire a “CSR” consultant.

Now, clearly I’m trying to be a bit provocative. You could have good reasons to do each of the things I’m warning against above. And many companies and consultants who use the term “CSR” use it, I’m sure, as a mere term of convenience, and are fully aware that it’s only a very rough label for the full range of ethical issues in business. But if you care about the topics I’ve covered in the last 3 blog entries on this topic, and if you happen to find yourself talking to a company or consultant (or professor) who’s excited about CSR, you might want to ask a few questions about what they mean by that.

This blog entry by Chris MacDonald appeared originally on The Business Ethics Blog.

Debunking the Myth of Sustainable Brands

Let’s face it: there is no such thing as a ‘sustainable brand.’ Achieving true sustainability means constantly thinking about ways of giving back more than a company takes from the environment and society. In essence, sustainability means creating tangible value for stakeholders.

While brands are important corporate assets, the value they create for stakeholders tends to be largely intangible in nature. Brands themselves do not physically pollute, clean-up, employ, invent, invest, engineer, design, reach out, assist, collaborate and singlehandedly, they cannot save the world. Corporations and the networks, innovations and people inside them, on the other hand, can – and often do.

Irrespective of how catchy the phrase ‘sustainable brand’ is, the fundamental issue remains: either a company is sustainable, or it’s not.

Some companies approach sustainability with an unparalleled level of innovation and fearlessness. I have written about such companies numerous times in books, essays and articles, which is why I am so disappointed to see many of them continuously omitted from the surveys, articles, and highly-touted lists pulled together and promoted by the corporate social responsibility (CSR) industry – particularly those citing the “greenest,” “most ethical” or “most sustainable” citizens or brands.

In March, CRO Magazine chose Merck, Monsanto, Chevron, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, Smithfield Foods and other questionable choices as “Best Corporate Citizens of 2009” (read my response here).

Last week, a survey released by Cohn & Wolfe, Landor Associates,  Penn, Schoen & Berland Associates; and, Esty Environmental Partners indicated that Clorox Green Works, not Seventh Generation, was the “Top Green Brand.”

Perhaps this result was to be expected given that Clorox Green Works now owns over 40 percent of the green cleaning category. But I found the result disappointing, since Seventh Generation is a 20-year old pioneer in the green cleaning market, a leader in green business practices, and is well on its way to becoming a truly sustainable company. Clorox Green Works was recently introduced and has basically relied on its marketing muscle and existing distribution infrastructure to achieve success with Green Works. Although the Green Works product line is a step in the right direction for Clorox, the company also markets highly profitable toxic products like Formula 409, Tilex, and Armor All.

As frustrating as Seventh Generation’s pass over was, the icing on last week’s faux ‘sustainable brand’ cake had to be Forbes’ lead story: “ExxonMobil: Green Company of the Year.”

Exxon’s latest marketing campaign sends a message to stakeholders: “Taking on the world’s toughest energy challenges” while “preserving and protecting the environment.” Some people might buy that message, along with the company’s pitch that, despite its past and allegedly present efforts to fund global warming skeptics, a sizable investment in natural gas equals a genuine commitment to “going green.” But judging from the reader commentary posted on the Forbes website, not everyone is easily persuaded:

What are you smoking Forbes?? Besides Natural Gas?? Or did Exxon just buy a lot of advertising from you? Calling the company that denies global warming is real “green” is akin to calling the Mob a bunch of nice guys. Burning natural gas is not green, period. Cleaner, yes. But not green. Do some real investigative journalism and not just regurgitate some PR hack’s false truths!

As this reader commentary correctly points out, by calling an unsustainable company like ExxonMobil “green,” Forbes crosses the line between journalism and public relations. In the same way, by labeling other unsustainable and ethically dubious companies “Best Citizens,” “Greenest Brands,” “Sustainable Brands,” or what have you, the CSR industry is effectively perpetuating a standard of greenwash.

Greenwash is dangerous to our economy because it runs the risk of breeding consumer and investor cynicism toward genuinely sustainable companies that create environmental, social and financial value through the products they sell, the investments they make and the issues they relentlessly fight for. All of this ‘information greenwash’ being spun out of research groups, media companies and the CSR industry accumulates on the web over a period of months and years. In time, consumers and investors will be left with a data trove of incomplete and arguably inaccurate information with which to make investment and purchasing decisions. That means their money could end up in the wrong places – in companies and investment funds that, if they knew better, they would not support.

That problem is as serious as it is unjust.

Christine Arena is the author of The High-Purpose Company – The Truly Responsible (and Highly Profitable) Firms that are Changing Business Now Like what you just read? Get your daily dose of corporate insights.

Follow Christine Arena Twitter: @christinearena

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