corporate social responsibility

Four hundred foreign students complained to the State Department that the Hershey chocolate company abused a foreign-exchange program to put them to work packing chocolate and stashed them in overpriced company housing that leaves them only $40 to $140 for a week's work.

Earlier this year, MTN was ranked as the only African brand in the BrandFinance Global 500 list... During the 2nd quarter of this year, MTN was recognised as the most socially responsible brand in the country... In the first half of 2011, the MTN brand has been rated as the country’s most valuable brand, according to a league table of both African and South African brands compiled by Brandirectory.

A computer application called “The 3rd Intifada” has been removed... from App Store for iPads and iPhones.Israel's Minister for Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs, Yuli Edelstein, had sent a letter to Apple, pointing out that the application called for an Arab uprising against the State of Israel and asking that it be removed.

The BMW Group and Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation introduce New York City as the first site of a six-year social science project to improve urban living, beginning August 2011.

A few weeks ago, an array of University of Southern California student organizations hosted Genocide Awareness Week. While U.S. diplomacy with Sudan regarding the genocide in Darfur has stalled, the use of public diplomacy can create many opportunities for organizations to advocate for change.

APDS Blogger: Emina Vukic

Apart from the Embassy in Hanoi, in Vietnam, Canada has been represented by the Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City since 1997. In light of the economic crisis facing the world, Public Affairs efforts have suffered significant budget cuts in most countries’ diplomatic offices, and Canada is no exception. Thus, Canada decided to focus on trade and education as the priorities in its official presence and efforts in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

While on the ground I have been meeting with various private and public sector officials to analyze the extent to which corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a priority for companies operating in Vietnam. Based upon the information gathered thus far, the answer appears to be yes, but with many shades of gray.

PD Magazine announces the launch of the Winter 2011 issue: "Corporate Diplomacy". This unique publication examines a variety of factors that make the private sector an important source of innovation and collaboration within the public diplomacy process.

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