back to home

See also the following sections of this website:

• Electrical appliance companies
• Office equipment companies
• Freedom of expression & information

Websites:

Company Policies for EEO [Equal Employment Opportunities] in Information and Communications Technology Manufacturing and Services (International Labour Organization)

The Digital Partnership:...The first pilot programme is currently being set up in South Africa with the support of national and international business including leading global IT companies, content partners, Government and public authorities in South Africa, foundations and grant support from the World Bank. (Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum)

EIA: Electronic Industries Alliance

Financial Compensation for Nazi Slave Laborers website (ReligiousTolerance.org)

Global Environmental Coordination Initiative (GECI) [electronics industry initiative, with stated aim of orderly transition of the industry toward environmental compliance]

Global e-Sustainability Initiative: An initiative of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) service providers and suppliers, with the support of the United Nations Environment Programme and the International Telecommunication Union

• What we stand for (Global e-Sustainability Initiative)

Global Internet Policy Initiative (GIPI)

Green Design Index [environmental design issues relating to computers including eco-labeling, and advances in phasing out chemicals and metals, such as lead, halogenated compounds and CFCs] (Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition)

Green Power Market Development Group: a collaboration of 10 leading corporations [Alcoa, Cargill Dow, Delphi Automotive, DuPont, General Motors, IBM, Interface, Johnson & Johnson, Kinkos, Pitney Bowes] and the World Resources Institute dedicated to building corporate markets for green power. 

The health hazards of environmental and occupational exposure [relating to high technology] - Lower income people of color live, work and play on the unhealthful front lines (Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition)

High tech's hidden labor (SiliconValley.com)

Holocaust Litigation (including German Slave/Forced Labor) (Cohen, Milstein, Hausfeld & Toll law firm)

The IBLF [Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum] in Zambia [refers to collaboration with private sector, including BP Zambia, Phonix Contractors, Zambia National Business Society, Investrust Merchant Bank Zambia, Zambia Association of Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Zamcell] (Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum)

Information Technology Agreement on the WTO website

IT & development [India] (InfoChange [India])

Pilot project: Southern Africa Business and Gender Initiative [companies participating: ABSA, SAB-Beer Divisions, Vodacom, Toyota, Old Mutual] (Resource Centre for the Social Dimensions of Business Practice)

Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition

• Clean Computer Campaign

• Global Semiconductor Health Hazards Exposed!

• The Health Hazards of Environmental and Occupational Exposure

• High-Tech Production

• Sustainable Water--a new way of life

Statements by business people about human rights and business:

Sune Skadegård Thorsen, Senior Advisor, Ethics & Social Affairs, Novo Group (Denmark)

Statements by business people about general corporate social responsibility:

Michael R. Bonsignore, CEO, Honeywell (USA)

Minoru Mkaihara, Chairman, Mitsubishi Corporation (Japan)

William C. Norris, Founder, Control Data Corporation (USA)

Jack Welch, Chairman and CEO, General Electric Company (USA)

Other materials:

2003:

Ford and Fannie Mae Top List of 50 Best Companies for Diversity [USA] -...The ranking took into consideration many different aspects of diversity, including race, gender, sexual orientation, and disability, among others...The top ten companies on the list included Ford, Fannie Mae, American Express, Verizon, IBM, SAFECO, Deloitte & Touche, Eastman Kodak, Bank of America, Xerox (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 24 Apr. 2003)

Sierra Club & Staples team up to recycle mobile electronics - New Program With CollectiveGood Makes Recycling Used Cell Phones, PDAs and Pagers Easy & Convenient [USA] (Sierra Club, 24 Apr. 2003)

• Staples Launches In-Store Recycling Programs for Mobile Electronics and Rechargeable Batteries [USA] - Staples Makes Recycling Easy and Convenient, Reducing Hazardous Pollutants in the Waste Stream -...Staples is working with CollectiveGood, a mobile electronics recycling company, and the Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation, a non-profit organization dedicated to rechargeable battery recycling...In addition, a portion of the proceeds from recycled mobile electronics will be donated to the Sierra Club (Staples, 24 Apr. 2003)

Earth Day Founder Not the Only One to Link Climate Change and Investing - The voices of institutional investors representing public pension funds join those from the insurance industry to advance a business case for addressing climate change...Mr. Hayes [Earth Day founder Denis Hayes] pointed out that precious few companies are following the examples of BP, DuPont, IBM, and Johnson & Johnson, which are recognizing the business case for improving environmental performance and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 22 Apr. 2003)

ENERGY: OECD-Linked Agency Pushes Efficient Appliances - The International Energy Agency called today on rich countries to use more efficient appliances, a move the agency said could cut the countries' energy use by one-third in seven years and curb greenhouse gas emissions...Home appliances like toasters, computers, refrigerators and televisions are quickly emerging as the biggest energy drains, after automobiles, in OECD countries. The devices consume about 30 percent of the electricity flowing in OECD countries and produce about 12 percent of the bloc's greenhouse gas emissions.  (UN Wire, 22 Apr. 2003)

• OECD nations can cut energy use by 1/3 by 2010 - IEA (Reuters, 22 Apr. 2003) 

Women's Group to Target Augusta Members [USA] - The leader of efforts to force the Augusta National Golf Club to admit women said Tuesday she will take her protest next to companies whose top executives belong to the club. Martha Burk, head of the National Council of Women's Organizations, said her group plans to request meetings with the top officers of several corporations - among them IBM, General Electric, AT&T, Ford and Microsoft - who hold memberships at the golf club, home to the prestigious Masters tournament. She said her group also is considering appealing to pension fund administrators and other investors to sell stock in companies whose executives belong to the golf club. (Jonathan D. Salant, Associated Press, 15 Apr. 2003)

{···français} Apartheid: des firmes sommées de réparer - Des plaignants sud-africains réclament des milliards de dollars ( Sabine Cessou, Libération, 12 avril 2003)

Intel e-mail case heads to state high court [California] - Ruling could redefine parameters of free speech rights in cyberspace - When Ken Hamidi was fired from Intel over a work injury dispute...the engineer sent six e-mail messages to thousands of Intel employees from 1996 to 1998, criticizing the computer giant's employment practices. Intel asked Hamidi to stop and tried to block his e-mails, but to no avail. (Harriet Chiang, San Francisco Chronicle, 2 Apr. 2003)

TECHNOLOGY: World Summit Draft Released For Public Comment -..."The objective of the summit [World Summit on the Information Society] is to develop a declaration of principles and an action plan that will ensure the benefits and rights of the information society are extended to all," said a statement by the International Telecommunication Union, a U.N. specialized agency that is sponsoring the summit along with other U.N. agencies. (UN Wire, 27 Mar. 2003)

• World Summit on the Information Society - An information society for all and an opportunity for all to comment -...All comments received by 31 May 2003 will be included in a reference document (International Telecommunication Union, 25 Mar. 2003)

• World Summit on the Information Society: Geneva 10-12 December 2003 - Tunis 2005

• Draft declaration of principles (World Summit on the Information Society)

• Draft action plan (World Summit on the Information Society)

• {···español} La Cumbre Mundial sobre la Sociedad de la Información: Ginebra 10-12 diciembre 2003 - Túnez 2005

• {···français} Sommet Mondial sur la Société de l’Information: Genève 10-12 décembre 2003 – Tunis 2005

Labour department to investigate local firm [St. Lucia] - Officials of the St Lucia Labour Department are expected to undertake an investigation into claims by the National Workers Union (NWU) that a company called Windward Ltd is mistreating its employees. (St. Lucia Star, 26 Mar. 2003)

The UK Corporate Sustainability Reporting Awards [refers to The Co-operative Bank, Shell,  BT Group, Risk and Policy Analysts Ltd., Unilever, Scottish Power, Canary Wharf Group, Best Foot Forward Ltd, FRC Group, Co-operative Insurance Society, Traidcraft, British American Tobacco] (Tobias Webb, Ethical Corporation Magazine, 25 Mar. 2003)

Must do better to stay on FTSE4Good - The first companies were ejected from the FTSE4Good 'ethical' stock market indices last week after environmental criteria were tightened, and many others were warned that they will have to do better if they want to stay in after the next review in six months' time...Three UK companies have been kicked out by the FTSE4Good committee: the printer St Ives, financial software house RoyalBlue, and Goldshield, which sells vitamins and other food supplements such as Evening Primrose Oil and Flexeze. Elan, the troubled Irish pharmaceutical firm was also evicted from the indices. (Roger Cowe, Observer [UK], 23 Mar. 2003)

An Age Of Discrimination? The U.S. sees an increase in suits complaining of age and religious bias -...Although EEOC complaints are relatively easy to file, they face tough outcomes. Only about 20 percent of the complainants prevail. [refers to age discrimination complaint against Seal Dynamics; religious discrimination complaint against Computer Sciences Corp., Foot Locker Inc., Ford Motor Co.] (Carrie Mason-Draffen, Newsday, 23 Mar. 2003)

Tanzania orders destruction of toxic transformers - The Tanzanian parliament has ordered the removal of electrical equipment containing highly toxic polychlorobiphenyls (PCBs) from Dar es Salaam International Airport. The order reflects growing concern about the alleged 'dumping' of harmful or outdated products by industrialised countries in Tanzania. The equipment, consisting of 12 transformers, was installed in the airport in 1984 by the French company, Bouygues, that built the airport...some members of parliament have alleged that Bouygues knew that the transformers were prohibited at the time that they installed them, and are considering filing for compensation. (Deodatus Balile, SciDev.Net, 19 Mar. 2003)

• company website: Bouygues

Sun Hit With Discrimination Suit [USA] - In a class action suit against Sun Microsystems Inc., a former Sun employee claims the company discriminated against him and other employees when it layed off about 2,500 workers in 2001. Former Sun software engineering manager Walter Kruz...claimed that Sun engaged in age and race discrimination when it fired him and others. (Jeff Moad, eWEEK, 19 Mar. 2003)

TECHNOLOGY: UNIFEM, Task Force Work To Increase Access For Women - The U.N. Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) and the U.N. Information and Technologies Task Force signed an agreement last week aimed at strengthening collaborative efforts to increase women's access to information and communication technologies. The agreement calls for the joint mobilization of resources to encourage countries, international organizations and the private sector to provide equal opportunities for women in employment, training and advancement in the technology sector. (UN Wire, 17 Mar. 2003)

• UNIFEM and UN ICT Task Force Strengthen Joint Efforts to Increase Women’s Access to Information Technology - Launch of Digital Diaspora Initiative in Africa scheduled for May - An upcoming joint initiative will be the launch of the UNIFEM Digital Diaspora Initiative in Uganda...It seeks to undertake projects that empower women economically through capacity building in the use of ICTs, identifying business opportunities, creating business partnerships, and providing access to finance as well as building the knowledge-base on ICTs for poverty alleviation. (UNIFEM, 14 Mar. 2003)

The launch of the UK Corporate Responsibility Index - Toby Kent reports from the launch of the BitC [Business in the Community] Corporate Responsibility Index, highlighting its main components and the major issues it raises. (Toby Kent, in Ethical Corporation Magazine, 14 Mar. 2003)

• Results of first Corporate Responsibility Index published [UK] - Business in the Community has released the results of its first annual Corporate Responsibility Index today. The index publicly benchmarks the responsible business practice of top companies in the UK...Companies in the top quintile are: 3M; AstraZeneca; Aviva; BAA; BP; BT Group; Carillion; Dow Chemical Company; ISIS; J Sainsbury; Marks & Spencer; mm02; National Grid Transco; Rio Tinto; Safeway; ScottishPower; Shell International; Tesco; Unilever; Waste Recycling Group; Co-operative Bank; Co-operative Insurance Society; Innogy Holdings; Lafarge Cement UK; Vivendi Water. (Business in the Community, 12 Mar. 2003)

• Corporate Responsibility Index (Business in the Community)

• 2002 Index Results (Business in the Community)

• New UK Index Rates Corporate Social Responsibility Performance (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 13 Mar. 2003)

Global Compact Participants Implementing Host of Supply Chain Initiatives - Reflecting a growing trend within the Global Compact initiative, Tweezerman, a leading manufacturer of personal-care products, announced that it plans to implement a new supplier agreement that mandates adherence to the nine principles of the Global Compact...Other companies that have submitted related examples [actively incorporating the Global Compact principles into their supply chains] to the Global Compact Learning Forum are: Petro-Canada, William E. Connor & Associates, Bayer AG, Li & Fung (Trading) Ltd., Ericsson, Robert Stephen Holdings, OneNest, and Engineers India Limited (U.N. Global Compact, 13 Mar. 2003)

ELECTRONICS: UNESCO Explores Recycling Outdated Equipment - UNESCO plans to host electronics specialists in Paris tomorrow and Saturday to discuss strategies for recycling outdated high-tech equipment by giving it to developing countries lacking technology...A survey of 20 European and U.S. global corporations found that more than 1 million personal computers will be decommissioned in the next three years. (UN Wire, 13 Mar. 2003)

• UNESCO hosts meeting on recycling information technology equipment in developing countries -...Among those attending will be: Timothy Anderson (World Computer Exchange); Tony Roberts (Computer Aid International); Lyndall de Marco (The Digital Partnership); David Sogan (Digital Links International); and Chris Mullaney Sundlie (Microsoft Corporation). (UNESCO, 12 Mar. 2003)

ICICI Onesource Evolves New Code Against Sexual Harassment [India] - Corporates are slowly waking up to issues of sexual harassment in the workplace and how they will impact employees. At ICICI Onesource Ltd, it’s therefore deploying initiatives that will therefore better team management and awareness enhancement. A new internal policy on sexual harassment has also been evolved. This has been formulated after conducting benchmarking studies with corporates like GE, Wipro Ltd and Infosys. (Tarun Narayan, Financial Express [India], 12 Mar. 2003)

NEC Announces Environmental Management Vision for 2010 - NEC Corporation recently announced a new companywide environmental management vision, which aims to achieve zero CO2 emissions by fiscal year 2010. (GreenBiz.com, 10 Mar. 2003)

Factory fined RM20,000 for discharging effluents [Malaysia] - An electronics factory here was today fined RM20,000 by the Sessions Court for discharging effluents above the permissable levels into Sungai Melaka. (A. Hafiz Yatim, New Straits Times, 10 Mar. 2003)

AT&T Research to Pay $75,000 in Bias Case - AT&T Research Laboratories is to pay $75,000 to settle an age discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on behalf of a 50-year-old man denied a job in favor of an applicant almost half his age. (AP, 7 Mar. 2003)

Tara Whelan - Coroner's Inquest Outcome [UK] - Tara Whelan was a BT Customer Service Engineer...tragically she was involved in an accident in Trowbridge, Wiltshire on Friday 25th May 2001, whilst working on a BT pole...The Jury wanted an investigation to establish whether there was a case for Corporate Responsibility for Tara's death. On this issue the Coroner ruled that as the CPS had already ruled on a prosecution for Corporate Manslaughter not being possible, he was unable to take forward this recommendation...At the close of the inquest, CWU [Communication Workers Union] approached BT's Head of Health and Safety to request an immediate review of their procedures. (CWU News, 7 Mar. 2003)

new book: Buying into the Environment Experiences, Opportunities and Potential for Eco-procurement -...Many initiatives have been undertaken in OECD countries, most successfully in Japan and Denmark where green public purchasing has been proven to be workable and highly effective, while, in other countries, city municipalities have successfully pioneered the development of sophisticated public environmental purchasing policies...The book, organised under the auspices of the International Council on Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) analyses national approaches already tested, and provides in-depth surveys on the pioneer cities such as Hamburg, Malmö and Zürich...The most relevant product groups for eco-procurement such as construction, transport, energy, information technology, furniture and food. are also analysed. (Edited by Christoph Erdmenger, International Council on Local Environmental Initiatives, Mar. 2003)

Intel's Hudson Plant Stays In the Loop With Water Recycling (GreenBiz.com, Mar. 2003)

Beyond philanthropy - Roger Cowe looks at attempts by major corporations to tie social opportunities into the very core of product and market development [refers to Lattice work with young offenders & school truancy; Centrica recruitment of disabled workers; BG Group funding a geosciences course at Univ. of West Indies;  EdF providing solar energy in Mali; Hewlett-Packard project in Sao Paolo to bridge digital divide; National grid Transco work with young offenders; Deutsche Bank’s experiments with micro-credit; HSBC’s development of Islamic mortgage products; work by Barclays and LloydsTSB on diversity; Unilever “small pack” initiative that makes detergents affordable to the poor, and its role in creating the Marine Stewardship Council; Procter & Gamble developing products which meet social needs] (Roger Cowe, in Ethical Corporation Magazine, 28 Feb. 2003)

Electronics Cos. Focus on Eco-Friendly Goods -...Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics (LGE) are developing environmentally friendly lead-free solder handsets, targeting production in 2005...U.S. cell phone maker Motorola has already developed a new type of handset composed of lead-free solder, recycled plastic and which comes with an energy-efficient charger...leading Japanese electronics, including Hitachi and Toshiba, have already stopped using CFC in their freezers, not only for domestic market, but also for that overseas markets. (Seo Jee-yeon, Korea Times, 27 Feb. 2003)

Electronics Recyclers Pledge: “No Export, No Dumping, No Prisons” - Sixteen private electronics recycling firms representing 22 facilities throughout North America have pledged to uphold rigorous environmental and social criteria for the dismantling and recycling of e-wastes. (GreenBiz.com, 25 Feb. 2003)

• 15 computer recyclers to sign take-back deal [USA] -...Fifteen electronics recyclers in North America -- including the largest in Texas and the Southwest, Resource Concepts of Carrollton -- are expected to sign a pledge today promising to not send electronic waste to landfills or incinerators or allow it to be exported...The environmental campaign also targets Dell, the Austin-based manufacturer that is the largest producer of personal computers, in an effort to get the company to take back its old equipment. (Neil Strassman, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 25 Feb. 2003)

China Serves as Dump Site for Computers - Unsafe Recycling Practice Grows Despite Import Ban -...The real costs are being borne by the people on the receiving end of the "e-waste." In towns along China's coast as well as in India and Pakistan, adults and children work for about $1.20 a day in unregulated and unsafe conditions. As rivers and soils absorb a mounting influx of carcinogens and other toxins, people are suffering high incidences of birth defects, infant mortality, tuberculosis and blood diseases, as well as particularly severe respiratory problems, according to recent reports by the state-controlled Guangdong Radio and the Beijing Youth newspaper. (Peter S. Goodman, Washington Post, 24 Feb. 2003)

Scandal of Toxic Waste Exports to Developing Nations Continues - A coalition of NGOs are calling on Thailand to ban the import of all toxic wastes into Thai territory, following the discovery that the country is becoming a target for international toxic waste traders. Last March it was revealed that hazardous waste from the wealthy West was being sent to less well-off nations such as China, India and Pakistan. Basel Action Network (BAN) and the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition revealed that poor workers in China were being employed to break apart obsolete computers, coming into contact with toxic substances from lead-laden cathode ray tubes to soldered circuit boards. (Edie, 21 Feb. 2003)

EU Laws on E-Waste Clear the Way for Similar Laws in U.S. -..."The enactment of these laws is a critical first step in the transition to extended producer responsibility as an important new code of conduct for the global electronics industry," said Ted Smith, executive director of the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition and coordinator of the national Computer TakeBack Campaign. (GreenBiz.com, 21 Feb. 2003)

TVs, PC monitors should be recycled, says L.A. official - A proposal that would require electronics retailers to set up recycling for discarded televisions and computer monitors, the first proposed law of its kind in the United States, has been introduced by a Los Angeles city official. (Reuters, 19 Feb. 2003)

ENSR Lauded for Using IT to Enhance Environmental Projects - ENSR International, a Massachusetts-based environmental services firm, has been awarded the Environmental Business Journal 2002 Merit Award for Information Technology. EBJ singled out ENSR for its extensive use of "extranets" to provide clients and project teams with global, 24-hour availability to environmental project resources to improve efficiency and performance while reducing costs. (GreenBiz.com, 7 Feb. 2003)

14 Organizations to Cut GHGs 4% by 2006 - Fourteen organizations, including several large corporations, have entered into a legally binding agreement to cut their greenhouse gas emissions by 4 percent within the next four years. The 14 entities announced last week that they are forming the Chicago Climate Exchange...The 14 entities include American Electric Power; Baxter International Inc.; the city of Chicago; DuPont; Equity Office Properties Trust; Ford Motor Company; International Paper; Manitoba Hydro; MeadWestvaco Corporation; Motorola, Inc.; STMicroelectronics; Stora Enso North America; Temple-Inland Inc.; and Waste Management, Inc. (GreenBiz.com, 23 Jan. 2003)

DISASTERS: U.N. Agency, Telecom Firm Help Poor Countries Manage Relief - Some of the world's least developed countries are set to get telecommunications equipment and other assistance to help manage disaster relief through a new partnership between the communications firm Inmarsat and the International Telecommunication Union (UN Wire, 7 Jan. 2003)

Sustainability reporting is setting the scene for the future of business management, report says -...Striking the balance is co-authored by three industry leaders: Bert Heemskerk, Chief Executive Officer, Rabobank Group, Pasquale Pistorio, President and Chief Executive Officer, STMicroelectronics, and Martin Scicluna, Managing Partner, Global Strategic Clients, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu. (World Business Council for Sustainable Development, 6 Jan. 2003)

NEC Pioneers "Green" Computer - NEC reverses the computer industry's foot-dragging on addressing environmental liabilities by introducing the PowerMate eco, the first eco-efficient computer. (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 2 Jan. 2003)

Total Business Awareness: The Corporate Contracting Behind John Poindexter’s Total Information Awareness Program [USA] - The Total Information Awareness System, the controversial Pentagon research program that aims to gather and analyze a vast array of information on people in the United States, has hired at least eight private companies to work on the effort...The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), which oversees the Total Information Awareness System (TIA), awarded 13 contracts to Booz Allen & Hamilton amounting to more than $23 million. Lockheed Martin Corporation had 23 contracts worth $27 million. The Schafer Corporation had nine contracts totaling $15 million. Other prominent contractors involved in the TIA program include SRS Technologies, Adroit Systems, CACI Dynamic Systems, Syntek Technologies and ASI Systems International...Grassley [Senator Charles E. Grassley] questioned the parameters and scope of TIA, how Poindexter was selected to head it, and what protections are in place to ensure civil liberties are not violated...Senator Dianne Feinstein, D-California, says that she plans to introduce legislation to address any threats to privacy rights that TIA poses.. (Adam Mayle and Alex Knott, Center for Public Integrity, in Multinational Monitor, Jan./Feb. 2003)

Open Networks, Closed Regimes: The Impact of the Internet on Authoritarian Rule -...Based on methodical assessment of evidence from these cases—China, Cuba, Singapore, Vietnam, Burma, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt—the study contends that the Internet is not necessarily a threat to authoritarian regimes. (Shanthi Kalathil and Taylor C. Boas, Jan. 2003)

2002:

Verizon Partners with State of New Jersey to Reduce GHG Emissions - Verizon will implement measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and promote increased energy efficiency as a result of a recent agreement signed with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities. (GreenBiz.com, 16 Dec. 2002)

HAZARDOUS WASTE: Cell Phone Makers, Treaty Countries Join Forces - Basel Convention countries and 10 cellular telephone makers agreed yesterday to cooperate on seeking environmentally friendly ways of disposing of and recycling telephones...The companies that signed the agreement are LG, Mitsubishi, Nokia, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, Panasonic maker Matsushita, Motorola, NEC, Philips and Siemens. (UN Wire, 13 Dec. 2002)

Launch of the First Women-Oriented ITU Internet Training Centre at Makerere University - Makerere University in Kampala (Uganda) has been chosen as the site of the first women-oriented facility established by the ITU Internet Training Centres Initiative for Developing Countries (ITCI-DC). The ITCI-DC is an initiative between ITU and the private sector in which Cisco Systems Inc. is a key partner. (International Telecommunication Union, 2 Dec. 2002)

press release: China: Internet users at risk of arbitrary detention, torture and even execution (Amnesty International, 26 Nov. 2002)

• full report: People's Republic of China: State control of the internet in China -...Amnesty International is concerned at reports that some foreign companies may be providing China with technology which is used to restrict fundamental freedoms. [refers to Websense, Sun Microsystems, Cisco Systems, Nortel Networks, Microsoft, Sohu.com - a Chinese Internet portal reportedly funded by overseas companies and financed by leading investment banks and other venture capital firms from the West] (Amnesty International, 26 Nov. 2002)

• {···español} China: los usuarios de Internet, expuestos a la detención arbitraria, la tortura, e incluso la ejecución (Amnistía Internacional, 27 noviembre 2002)

Companies Will Pay for Polluting New Jersey Water [USA] - Nineteen polluters will together pay a total of $3 million to compensate the state of New Jersey and East Hanover Township for contamination of the local drinking water supply...The settling parties are: Voltronics Corporation; G & F Management; Vincent and Irene Muccione; Viscot Industries, Inc.; MCE/KDI Corporation; Colgate-Palmolive Company; Deforest Investment Co. L.L.C.; Philomena Gasparine; Estate of Sylvio Gasparine; Prime Fabricators, Inc.; Township of East Hanover; Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation; Foster Wheeler Energy Corporation; Dorine Industrial Park Partnership; Precision Rolled Products, Inc.; Phelps Dodge Corporation (f/k/a Cyprus Amax Mineral Company); GTE Operations Support Incorporated; Ingersoll-Rand Company and Royal Lubricants Company, Inc. (Environment News Service, 25 Nov. 2002)

Cheap products' human cost - China's success in the PC revolution lies in its mostly young and low-wage workers, who put in stunning amounts of overtime -...With its estimated 100 million migrant workers and its notoriety for low wages and lax enforcement of labor and environmental laws, China is fast becoming the world's premier electronic workshop...Pilla [a Microsoft spokesman] said Microsoft plans to monitor compliance with labor standards as part of routine quality audits of its contractor factories. [also refers to Dell, Flextronics, Seagate] (Karl Schoenberger, San Jose Mercury News, 24 Nov. 2002)

Congress assails use of prison labor [USA] - Congressmen on Thursday criticized a government-run corporation that uses prisoners to make products, saying it puts other Americans out of work. Federal Prison Industries Inc. makes 150 products, including office furniture, electronics and textiles, and its entire product line is sold exclusively to federal agencies. (Nedra Pickler, Associated Press, 22 Nov. 2002)

ELECTRONIC WASTE: Asian Summit Examines Threats To Health, Safety (UN Wire, 22 Nov. 2002)

COMPUTER CHIPS: Manufacture Takes Heavy Toll, U.N. Study Shows - A new U.N. University study shows that computer chips take a heavier toll, by weight, on the environment than do automobiles, BBC Online reported Tuesday. (UN Wire, 15 Nov. 2002)

• Chips cost environment dear -...The manufacture of the tiny, wafer-thin slivers of silicon leaves behind a mountain of waste. (BBC News, 12 Nov. 2002)

NGO Launches US Apartheid Reparations Law Suit [lawsuit in U.S. court against companies for past conduct in South Africa] - A non-governmental organisation has filed a lawsuit against 21 multinational corporations and leading international banks for helping prop up the apartheid state...The companies and banks named in the lawsuit are: Citigroup, JP Morgan Chase, Exxon Mobil, Caltex Petroleum, Fluor Corporation, Ford, General Motors and IBM in the United States; German-based Commerzbank, Deutsche Bank, Dresdner Bank, DaimlerChrysler, and Rheinmetall; Credit Suisse and UBS in Switzerland; Barclays Bank; British Petroleum, Rio Tinto and Fujitsu ICL in the United Kingdom; Total-Fina-Elf from France and Royal Dutch Shell from the Netherlands.  The list was expected to grow by at least 100 names. (South African Press Association, 12 Nov. 2002)

• Global Firms in Court for Supporting' Apartheid - A lawsuit has been lodged in a US court against 21 global business giants alleged to have earned billions through propping up apartheid. (Rob Rose, Business Day [South Africa], 13 Nov. 2002)

• Apartheid victims file lawsuit in US (AFP, 12 Nov. 2002)

• International Law Suit Filed on Behalf of Apartheid Victims - Khulumani et al. v. Barclays et al. - Today the law firm of Cohen, Milstein, Hausfeld & Toll, P.L.L.C. along with other firms in the United States, joins with the South African firm, Abrahams Kiewitz, in filing a complaint that seeks to hold businesses responsible for aiding and abetting the apartheid regime in South Africa in furtherance of the commission of the crimes of apartheid, forced labor, genocide, extrajudicial killing, torture, sexual assault, and unlawful detention...For example: IBM and ICL provided the computers that enabled South Africa to create the hated “pass book system” and to control the black South African population. Car manufacturers provided the armored vehicles that were used to patrol the townships. Arms manufacturers violated the embargoes on sales to South Africa, as did the oil companies. The banks provided the funding that enabled South Africa to expand its police and security apparatus. (law firm of Cohen, Milstein, Hausfeld & Toll, 12 Nov. 2002)

• Summary of the Complaint - Khulumani et al. v. Barclays et al. (law firm of Cohen, Milstein, Hausfeld & Toll, 12 Nov. 2002)

Cisco Systems helps Afghanistan join the digital age -...Cisco trained the Afghan teachers and provided networking equipment for the academy. UNDP supported the training, provided computer hardware and facilitated the partnership with the university (U.N. Development Programme, 5 Nov. 2002)

Kodak Fires Worker For Anti-Gay Message [USA] - Eastman Kodak Co., known for its support of a diverse workforce, is under fire for firing an employee for disagreeing with the company's position on supporting gay and lesbian workers...Recent lawsuits against AT&T and Verizon Communications involved employees who felt they were being unfairly reprimanded for not supporting the companies' respective diversity policies. (C Lisotta, Gay.com/PlanetOut.com Network, 31 Oct. 2002)

• Kodak Manager's Firing Ignites Christian Right [USA] - Eastman Kodak Co. is fielding both praise and protest for its decision to fire an employee who sent an email to about 1,000 Kodak employees in which he described National Coming Out Day as "disgusting and offensive." (Gfn.com News [Gay Financial Network], 30 Oct. 2002)

Unions say threats to free speech and other rights a growing issue in white-collar workplaces [USA] -...Limits on scholarly research in colleges and universities by conditional corporate giving....Soley [Professor Lawrence Soley] charges that priorities and research of physics and engineering departments are being influenced by large defense contracts; biology and chemistry departments by drug companies and biotech firms; and computer science departments by chip makers and software firms – a development that has led many universities to place the interests of business ahead of students and basic research. (American Federation of Teachers, AFL-CIO, 23 Oct. 2002)

PluggedIn - Recycling phones to charities, not landfills [refers to Sprint PCS, Cingular Wireless, Verizon Communications, AT&T Wireless, Working Assets, NPI wireless, Radio Shack, The Body Shop] (Elinor Mills Abreu, Reuters, 23 Oct. 2002)

NATURAL RESOURCES: Consumer Demand Still Fueling Wars, NGO Says - A new report released today by the nongovernmental Worldwatch Institute urges better monitoring of trade in natural resources taken from conflict zones, saying that such imports fuel brutal conflicts in the developing world..."Brutal wars over natural resources like coltan -- a mineral that keeps cell phones and other electronic equipment functioning -- diamonds, tropical woods and other rare materials have killed or displaced more than 20 million people and are raising at least $12 billion a year for rebels, warlords, repressive government and other predatory groups around the world," the institute says...Opium, gems, oil, timber, natural gas, precious metals, coffee and cocoa are among the resources cited as helping to pay for wars over the past 50 years. (UN Wire, 17 Oct. 2002)

• FROM WAR ZONES TO SHOPPING MALLS: New study reveals deadly link between consumer demand and third world resource wars -...Child and slave labor is used to extract the resources...Renner [Michael Renner, author of The Anatomy of Resource Wars] calls for the following actions:...Develop corporate codes of conduct in resource extraction industries, support NGO campaigns that "name and shame" companies into doing business in more responsible ways, and increase corporate transparency and accountability (for instance, by requiring companies to disclose all taxes, fees, royalties, and other payments they make to host governments...). [refers to Afghanistan, Angola, Burma, Cambodia, Colombia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Indonesia, Liberia, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Sierra Leone] (Worldwatch Insititute, 17 Oct. 2002)

Muslim worker wins right to pray [Australia] (Natalie Davison, AAP, 15 Oct. 2002)

• Muslim Worker Wins Right To Pray [Australia] - The Australian Services Union today secured an agreement with TPG that will allow IT worker Kamal El-Masri to take a prayer break at work in accordance with his Islamic beliefs. (Labor Council of NSW [New South Wales], LaborNET, 14 Oct. 2002)

Beer Boiling, Green Traffic Lights Scoop EU Business Awards - Ten companies have won European Business Awards for their efforts in sustainable development [includes reference to BP, B&Q, Bofferding brewery, brewing-technology expert Steinecker, Integral Umwelt und Anlagentechnik, ST-Microelectronic] (Edie News, 11 Oct. 2002)

Muslims Snubbed in Discrimination Laws [Australia] - Kamal El-Masri, a member of the Australian Services Union, has been threatened with dismissal from telecommunications company TPG over his commitment to praying, in his own time, at work. (Labor Council of NSW [New South Wales], Workers Online, 11 Oct. 2002)

British firms act to boost mobile phone recycling - A group of British mobile phone operators and retailers launched a programme this week to encourage the reuse and recycling of handsets, which can pose serious environmental dangers when thrown away...Companies taking part in Fonebak include Britain's five mobile phone operators - Vodafone, Orange, T-Mobile, mmO2 and Virgin - and retail group Dixons, including its mobile phone boutique chain The Link. (Braden Reddall, Reuters, 26 Sep. 2002)

Corporate Responsibility: Myth or Reality? [includes references to initiatives by Bell Helicopter, Bank of America, Wal-Mart, Caterpillar, ITT Industries, John Deere, General Electric, Procter & Gamble, Sun Microsystems, Daimler-Chrysler] (Otto J. Reich, U.S. Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, Remarks to the Inter-American Development Bank Conference on Corporate Social Governance, 23 Sep. 2002) 

Study published on labour rights at Nokia Brazil - Finnish metal unions sponsor evaluation of Finnish transnational's social-labour performance at its Manaus plant - The detailed report...evaluates the degree to which Nokia is complying with fundamental labour rights... and examines issues related to workplace health and safety and the environment. (IMF - International Metalworkers' Federation, 19 Sep. 2002)

AltaVista tries to beat Chinese ban - AltaVista has hit back at the Chinese ban on its search engine, promising to find alternative ways to reach China's 46 million surfers. (BBC News, 12 Sep. 2002)

Current List of Annual Company Meeting Statements Made by Socially Responsible Shareholders [includes Alltel - Sexual Orientation Discrimination; Eastman Chemical Company - Health Risks of Cigarette Filters; Gannett - American Indians / Diversity Reporting; Hasbro - Sweatshops (Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility, 10 Sep. 2002)

Feds: Fine Phone Co. in Job Death [USA] - Federal regulators on Monday proposed fines totaling $55,500 against Verizon for numerous safety infractions that led to the electrocution of a telephone lineman in March. (AP, 9 Sep. 2002)

Google, Alta Vista: Resist Chinese Censorship - Dear Dr. Schmidt and Mr. Barnett [CEOs of Google & AltaVista]: We are writing to express our outrage at the Chinese government's reported blocking of access to Google and AltaVista...Companies that do business in China have an opportunity to play a proactive role in opening space for Chinese citizens to express themselves freely. Unfortunately, Yahoo!, along with a number of Chinese internet businesses and research institutes, has voluntarily signed a public pledge on "self-discipline" in China that commits the company to investigate and block websites based on their content. (Human Rights Watch, 7 Sep. 2002)

Bell Canada settles pay equity case for $178 million - Bell Canada has tentatively settled a long-running pay equity dispute with thousands of its mainly female staff for $178 million. (CBC News, 4 Sep. 2002)

Big business and labour sign deal at the World Summit for Sustainable Development [South Africa] - The union-inspired South African declaration for achieving sustainable environmental conservation targets within realistic economic and production strategies is now set to go international. South African signatories include Sasol (synfuels and chemicals), Iscor (steel production), Columbus Stainless, Eskom (power generation), Telkom (telecommunications) mineral resources companies Assmang Chrome, De Beers, Goldfields, Impala Platinum (Implats) and Ingwe Coal and industrial groups, Barloworld, Dorbyl Engineering and Rotek Engineering, and unions MWU-Solidarity and the National Union of Mine Workers. Among the companies locally who have firmly said they will not sign for the present are Highveld Steel, the country second largest producer, and multinational operators Dow Chemicals and Sappi (pulp and paper). (Lawrence Bedford, EyeforChem, in Ethical Corporation Magazine, 28 Aug. 2002)

Environmental Fiduciary: The Case for Incorporating Environmental Factors into Investment Management Policies - In this report, we show that fiduciaries who manage funds for institutional investors such as pension funds, foundations and charitable trusts should incorporate environmental factors into their portfolio management policies. [includes reference to DuPont, ST Microelectronics, IBM, Baxter Intl, Smithfield Foods, US Liquids, Weyerhauser, Georgia Pacific, ChevronTexaco, Marathon Oil, Deutsche Telekom, Nestle, Southern California Gas, ITT, Textron, Corning, Whole Foods, Hains Celestial] (Susannah Blake Goodman, Jonas Kron & Tim Little, The Rose Foundation for Communities and the Environment, 21 Aug. 2002)

Technicolor settles harassment suit [sexual harassment lawsuit] [USA] - Company ordered to pay $875,000 to 18 staffers at VHS duplication plant. (Daniel Frankel, Video Business, 14 Aug. 2002)

13 Companies Earn Perfect Score on First HRC Corporate Equality Index [USA]: Demonstrate Leadership with Regard to Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Employees - A total of 13 major U.S. corporations earned 100 percent on the Human Rights Campaign Foundation's first Corporate Equality Index, released today. The index rates large corporations on policies that affect their gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender employees, consumers and investors...The 13 companies that scored 100 percent are: Aetna Inc.; AMR Corp./American Airlines; Apple Computer Inc.; Avaya Inc.; Eastman Kodak Co.; Intel Corp.; J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.; Lucent Technologies Inc.; NCR Corp.; Nike Inc.; Replacements Ltd.; Worldspan L.P.; and Xerox Corp...At the other end of the scale, three companies scored zero: CBRL Group Inc./Cracker Barrel; Emerson Electric Co.; and Lockheed Martin Corp. (Human Rights Campaign, 13 Aug. 2002)

• New Index Rates U.S. Corporations' Treatment of Homosexuals - A survey by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) of 319 U.S. companies... found that 92 percent include sexual orientation in their non-discrimination policies, one of seven criteria the HRC used to create its 2002 Corporate Equality Index...Companies that scored near the bottom include Emerson Electric, Exxon Mobil, Lockheed Martin, and Perot Systems. (Business for Social Responsibility News Monitor summary of article in DiversityInc, 13 Aug. 2002)

Workers take Xerox to court for 'blacks in a noose' discrimination [USA] - Black employees of Xerox in Cincinnati are bringing a federal court action against the company, claiming that black dolls with nooses round their necks were left in three of its branches, and that racist slurs were common. (Duncan Campbell, Guardian [UK], 9 Aug. 2002)

Yahoo! Risks Abusing Rights in China - Yahoo! Inc. risks complicity in rights abuses if it remains a signatory to China's "Public Pledge on Self-discipline for the Chinese Internet Industry," Human Rights Watch said today...Signatories to the voluntary pledge agree to investigate all websites to which they provide links, block anything the Chinese government would consider "harmful information," and report those sites to Chinese authorities. (Human Rights Watch, 9 Aug. 2002)

• Yahoo! Risks Abusing Rights in China - Human Rights Watch Letter to Terry Semel [Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Yahoo!] (Human Rights Watch, 30 July 2002)

Xerox cited again for racial discrimination [USA] - The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has found that Xerox Corp. discriminated against black employees -- the second such finding in recent months, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday. (Reuters, 8 Aug. 2002)

Book Review: The Ecology of the New Economy -...The collection acts as a tour guide through the jungle of conflicting information about the environmental impacts of the new digital economy. (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 7 Aug. 2002)

Programme: Digital Opportunities: Global Strategies & Local Initiatives to Level the e-Playing Field for Sustainable Development - 30 Aug. 2002 - Johannesburg (IUCN - World Conservation Union) [posted to this site on 7 Aug. 2002]

• Dialogue: Information and Communications Technologies for Sustainable Development - 30 Aug. 2002 - Johannesburg (IUCN - World Conservation Union)

Shell faces South Africa apartheid lawsuits - Royal Dutch/Shell, the oil company, is to be cited in a multi-billion-dollar class action lawsuit brought by a team of lawyers on behalf of the victims of South Africa's apartheid regime, a lawyer said on Friday...Shell, which is accused of supplying the white minority regime with oil in violation of an anti-apartheid embargo, will be added to the list, which already includes IBM, the computer company, Deutsche Bank, Dresdner Bank, CommerzBank, UBS, Credit Suisse and Citicorp. (Nicol Degli Innocenti, Financial Times, 2 Aug. 2002)

Computer Sector's Social and Environmental Performance Needs Upgrade - A recent report from Oekom Research identifies shortcomings in the corporate responsibility performance of IT and computer companies, particularly concerning social issues...Hewlett Packard topped the group with an overall grade of B-. Apple was close behind, also earning a B-. NEC came in third with a C+. Other companies assessed included Dell, Fujitsu, IBM, and Sun Microsystems. Gateway did not provide any information..."One outcome of the survey is that supply chain management is not satisfactory," said Ms. Bohle. "None of the companies has implemented detailed measures to monitor basic labor conditions of its suppliers, for example in terms of local working hours or wages. Furthermore, the companies assessed have not implemented measures to assess the human rights situation in non-OECD countries." (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 31 July 2002)

AT&T sued for alleged age discrimination [USA] - Telecommunications giant AT&T is being sued for allegedly rejecting a man in his 50s for a job at its Florham Park laboratory because he was too old. (Rob Seman, Daily Record [New Jersey, USA], 26 July 2002)

The Sorry Union History of a Mexican Tech Factory - Bloomberg's Terminal Troubles -...At one time, up to a thousand people toiled in this plant [in Cananea, Mexico] nine hours a day in sweatshop-like conditions for less than 40 cents an hour, manufacturing computer keyboards and video games. And it is here that a company named Maxi Switch Inc. [subsidiary of the Taiwanese corporation Lite-On/Silitek Global EMS Group] smashed the independent union its workers formed in November 1995...Beside Bloomberg LP, Maxi Switch's clients include major companies such as IBM, Dell, Sega, Gateway, and Lexmark. (Laurence Pantin, Village Voice, 24-30 July 2002)

Infosys Board Member Quits After Charges of Sexual Harassment - The sales and marketing head of Infosys Technologies, a leading Indian software company, has quit after a former U.S.-based employee sued him for alleged sexual harassment. (Associated Press, 23 July 2002)

TCS to teach computer skills to ‘special children’ [India] -...Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has set up a fully-equipped computer training laboratory for children from the Society for the Welfare of the Physically Handicapped and Research Centre, in Pune. (InfoChange [India]), sourced from Indian Express, 19 July 2002, and Times News Network [India], 20 July 2002)

Inside China's sweatshops [refers to factories making toys, clothes, shoes, paint, electronics] (BBC News, 20 July 2002)

BILHARZIA: British, U.S. Institutions, WHO Launch New Control Initiative The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has granted $30 million to Imperial College London, the Harvard School of Public Health and the World Health Organization to found the Schistosomiasis Control Initiative (UN Wire, 18 July 2002)

For High-Tech Companies, Energy Efficiency Can Help Avert Financial Losses - High-tech information companies like data centers can cut their energy bills in half and protect computers and other electronic equipment from crashing by utilizing new power technologies, the Center for Energy and Climate Solution reported today (GreenBiz.com, 11 July 2002)

Augusta resists pressure from women's group [USA] - A leading women's coalition has asked Augusta National Golf Club [site of The Masters tournament] to open its membership to women, but chairman Hootie Johnson says the club will not be coerced into changing its membership...Johnson said in his statement that he feared a public relations campaign against the club and tournament sponsors IBM, Citigroup and Coca-Cola. (Jerry Potter, USA Today, 10 July 2002)

Cybernet, Shekha sign contract [Bangladesh] - Cybernet, a computer service provider and Banchte Shekha, an NGO, signed a contract for an education project...The objective of the project is to provide IT education to the deprived poor grass-roots people in the rural areas and help them to better their socio-economic conditions. (sourced from The Independent [Bangladesh], ProPoor website, 8 July 2002)

Best companies for minorities [USA] - Diversity Leaders -...these companies have not abandoned their commitment to hiring, promoting, and retaining talented employees of all races [lists the 50 top companies; top 10: Fannie Mae, Sempra Energy, Advantica, SBC Communications, McDonald's, PNM Resources, Southern California Edison, United States Postal Service, Freddie Mac, BellSouth] (Fortune, 8 July 2002)

A Hopeful Way Out of Poverty -...Communications and information technology have enormous potential in furthering sustainable development. (Shashi Tharoor, United Nations Undersecretary-General for Communications and Public Information, in International Herald Tribune, 5 July 2002)

Mobile fears of world health leader - Parents have been warned against letting their children spend too much time on their mobile phones by the head of the World Health Organization (WHO). (BBC News, 2 July 2002)

Longer hours lead to lawsuits over pay [USA] [regarding lawsuits about unpaid overtime; refers to Starbucks, Wal-Mart, Tyson Foods, Rite Aid, Bank of America, Pacific Bell, Farmers Insurance Group]  (Fay Hansen, Christian Science Monitor, 1 July 2002)

Beyond Good Deeds: Case Studies and a New Policy Agenda for Corporate Accountability [coverage includes oil industry & high tech industry; environment; pollution & its impact on human health; health & safety in the workplace; labour rights; security arrangements & human rights abuses; supply chain; codes of conduct; legal accountability; case studies on: Nigeria - Chevron & Shell; Azerbaijan & Kazakhstan - Unocal & Chevron; Ecuador - Occidental; Peru - Shell; Taiwan - Shengli Chemical Co.; Thailand - Seagate Technology, Advanced Micro Devices, Read-Rite, IBM, Lucent Technology, Hana Microelectronics, Philips; India; Malaysia - Seagate Technology, Agilent Technologies, Advanced Micro Devices, Intel, Dell, Fairchild Semiconductor, Integrated Device Technology, Iomega, Knowles Electronics, KOMAG USA, Linear Semiconductor, MCMS, Motorola Technology, Quantum Peripherals, Solectron Technology, Xircom Operations; Costa Rica - Intel, Romic; California] (Michelle Leighton, Naomi Roht-Arriaza & Lyuba Zarsky, California Global Corporate Accountability Project, July 2002)

HP donates world summit hardware [World Summit on Sustainable Development] - Hewlett-Packard has been named as the exclusive hardware sponsor for the event, and will supply 2300 PCs, 128 servers, 53 notebook computers, 10 scanners, 274 printers and 135 digital cameras. (Business Day [South Africa], 27 June 2002)

DOT Force releases report on bridging global digital divide - The G8 Digital Opportunities Task Force, or DOT Force, today released a report that outlines how governments, businesses and civil society can work together to advance human development and reduce poverty through the use of information and communications technologies. (G8 Digital Opportunities Task Force [DOT Force], 25 June 2002)

• {···français} Les technologies de l'information au service de tous (GEANT - Groupe d'experts sur l'accès aux nouvelles technologies, juin 2002)

Disability no bar in Chennai software firm [India]: Two-thirds of the employees of Lasersoft Infosys are challenged - In a country which mostly ignores its about 70 million-strong disabled population, Chennai's Lasersoft Infosys Ltd is setting standards for the professional excellence the physically challenged can attain. (InfoChange [India]), sourced from IANS, 24 June 2002)

Three Companies Achieve Breakthrough in CRT Recycling - As concern and interest in recycling electronic products rise, Panasonic, Techneglas, and Envirocycle are collaborating to provide a model for the recycling of cathode ray tubes (CRTs) in televisions and computer monitors, and to demonstrate the cost-effectiveness of using recycled glass in producing new CRTs. (GreenBiz, 18 June 2002)

CEOs pledge no less than 20 per cent of philanthropic budgets to ICT [information and communications technology] for development: Microsoft Joins Hewlett Packard, Equitable Cardnetwork, Masreya, MIH Group, Vivendi Universal as Signatory of CEO Charter for Digital Development - At a special meeting of the General Assembly today, Microsoft announced its commitment to pledge no less than 20 per cent of its philanthropic budget to information and communications technology (ICT) for development under the CEO Charter for Digital Development, a recent initiative by the World Economic Forum. (United Nations, 17 June 2002)

• TECHNOLOGY: U.N. Calls On Rich, Poor To Bridge Digital Gap (UN Wire, 19 June 2002)

Age-bias claims up 23% over two years [USA]: It is the fastest-growing category of discrimination cases. Complaints tend to rise as layoffs increase. - On June 6, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's Philadelphia office filed a lawsuit against Honeywell, seeking class-action status. (Jane M. Von Bergen, Philadelphia Inquirer, 17 June 2002)

Microsoft Israel fired man for being gay, court told - Since January, Tel Aviv District Labor Court has been sitting in camera on a lawsuit filed by a man who claims he was fired from Microsoft Israel because he is homosexual. The company adamantly rejects the man's contention, saying that his dismissal had nothing to do with his sexual orientation but was due to his poor professional performance. It is the first lawsuit filed in Israel on such grounds. (Ran Reznick, Ha'aretz [Israel], 13 June 2002)

GM, IBM, Kinko’s Announce Green Power Initiatives - General Motors Corporation, IBM, Johnson & Johnson, and Kinko's, Inc. have announced renewable-energy projects as part of the Green Power Market Development Group, a commercial and industrial partnership dedicated to building corporate markets for green power...The Green Power Market Development Group was launched by World Resources Institute and Business for Social Responsibility in August 2000. (GreenBiz.com, 11 June 2002)

Taiwan workers mull US lawsuit over toxins - Taiwanese workers who used to make televisions and semiconductors for a US-owned factory have told officials here that employees at the plant suffered illnesses because they were unknowingly exposed to toxic chemicals. More than 200 employees of a former Radio Corp of America (RCA) facility in Taiwan's northern county of Taoyuan died, and about 1,500 still suffer from cancer, said the workers...Richard Knoph, a spokesman for RCA's current owner, Thomson Multimedia of France, denied any correlation between the workers' illnesses and the facility (Danielle Knight, Inter Press Service, in Asia Times, 11 June 2002)

Cyber café for the blind in Mumbai [India] -...The National Association of the Blind (NAB) has opened a cyber cafe for the visually impaired in its office at Worli, Mumbai. Set up with help from Microsoft, the cyber cafe, which is a month old, has five computers, all provided with screen reading software and headphones. (InfoChange [India]), sourced from Times of India, 10 June 2002)

New Report Assesses the Status of Corporate Social Responsibility: Echo Research reports on how corporate social responsibility is increasingly important for global corporations, and rates how CSR is being incorporated into business practices -...Ford and BP topped Echo's CSR Perception Index for the second year in a row. IBM and GlaxoSmithKline rounded out the top four this year. Echo applauded Ford's "Time Budget" program, which encourages employees to advance CSR initiatives, and BP's integration of social reporting into its business model. IBM earned high ranking due to its promotion of education, while GlaxoSmithKline distinguished itself as the most prominent CSR practitioner in the pharmaceutical industry. (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 6 June 2002)

Electronics and Appliances Sector Rated Highly for Environmental Performance: German research firm also finds, however, that there is much room for improvement in the sector's social performance -...This most recent report evaluates the world's top 16 manufacturers of office electronic equipment and domestic appliances...The Oekom study revealed the sector's dismal record for employing women in management positions, especially at Japanese firms. Sharp and Toshiba...have a mere 0.5 percent of their top executive positions filled by women. Oekom compares this to Xerox, the U.S.-based rival that employs 31 percent women in the upper echelon of its management. (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 4 June 2002)

Four Indian IT initiatives rewarded for harnessing innovation for poor:  Expat Indians reward four national social entrepreneurs for bridging the great divide between information technology and the common man -...Drishtee, an ISP (internet service proider) offering e-Government solutions in rural villages in India, topped the selected list, with an award of Rs 5 million (Frederick Noronha, InfoChange [India], 1 June 2002)

US EPA urges recycling, not dumping, computers -...Under a new recycling program proposed yesterday by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), fewer of the lead-contaminated relics would be buried in local landfills. (Chris Baltimore, Reuters, 30 May 2002) 

Journalists List Corporations Found Guilty of Crimes throughout the 1990s - A simple list of corporate crimes, presented along with guilty pleas or fine payments, hints at the pervasiveness of poor corporate ethics...journalists Russell Mokhiber and Robert Weissman have compiled a list of The Top 100 Corporate Criminals of the Decade...The authors point out that six corporations--Exxon (now ExxonMobil), Rockwell International, Royal Carribbean Cruises, Warner-Lambert (now part of Pfizer), Teledyne, and United Technologies--appear more than once on the list. (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 29 May 2002)

• Top 100 Corporate Criminals of the Decade [includes full list] (Russell Mokhiber, 1999)

• Annotated list of the top 100

• Top 100 Corporate Criminals of the 1990s (Russell Mokhiber and Robert Weissman, in Mother Jones, 7 Sep. 1999)

Gates' charity shifts policy - Bill Gates, the Microsoft founder and a recent global health campaigner, has invested $205m in nine large pharmaceutical companies. The investment has been made through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation...Investment in drugs firms could leave the foundation open to criticism. (David Teather, Guardian [UK], 18 May 2002)

Economic benefits of high tech investment in developing countries are compromised by environmental and health costs, concludes new report - Despite voluntary efforts to reduce environmental impacts, semiconductor companies are not adequately grappling with the environmental, health and labor impacts of their production and assembly operations, especially in developing countries and global supply chains (Nautilus Institute for Security and Sustainable Development, 17 May 2002)

• full report [can be downloaded from the following page]: Dodging Dilemmas? Environmental and Social Accountability in the Global Operations of California-Based High-Tech Companies [refers to Advanced Micro Devices, Agilent Technologies, IDT Technologies, Intel, Hewlett Packard, National Semiconductor, Seagate Technologies & Solectron - based on case studies in Taiwan, Malaysia, India, Thailand & Costa Rica] (Lyuba Zarsky, Naomi Roht-Arriza & Leif Brottem, California Global Corporate Accountability Project, May 2002)

UN Chief Calls for Urgent Action on "Digital Divide" -...Annan is urging both the public and private sectors to take action to "bridge the digital divide" that exists between the world's rich and poor (Glen Tarman, OneWorld, 16 May 2002)

• Sector Reports - UNEP DTIE is facilitating the preparation of a series of sector reports [for World Summit on Sustainable Development], whereby international, industry organisations and associations take stock of progress towards sustainable development and outline future challenges and actions to be taken (United Nations Environment Programme)

• Sector report - Information and communications technology

CELL PHONES: Group Warns About Dangerous Waste In U.S. - U.S. environmental research group INFORM said in a new report this week that cellular telephones are being discarded in the United States by the hundreds of millions despite containing persistent toxins -- arsenic, antimony, beryllium, cadmium, copper, lead, nickel and zinc -- that are associated with cancer and neurological disorders, particularly in children. (UN Wire, 10 May 2002)

• 130 million cell phones will be discarded annually in the US by 2005: Study recommends ways to reduce the environmental and health impacts of cell phone waste (INFORM, 8 May 2002)

• full text of report: Waste in the Wireless World: The Challenge of Cell Phones (Bette K. Fishbein, INFORM, May 2002)

• Old mobile phones pose growing waste issue - report (Eric Auchard, Reuters, 10 May 2002)

MICRONUTRIENTS: Public-Private Partnership Launches Major Initiative - Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates and UNICEF Executive Director Carol Bellamy along with several top-ranking public and private leaders [including Procter & Gamble Chairman John Pepper] joined together this morning to announce the launch of the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition, a partnership to fight micronutrient deficiency in the developing world. (Michael Kitchen, UN Wire, 9 May 2002) 

Socially responsible corporate partners 'Go Green' in Lebanon - UNDP and UN Volunteers (UNV) are teaming up with several private sector partners [Schtroumpf, a Lebanese restaurant chain, Coca-Cola Middle East, FTML-Cellis, Tetra Pak] in Lebanon on a project to enhance awareness of corporate social responsibility and how it relates to environmental issues. (U.N. Development Programme, 9 May 2002)

Remove obstacles to labour rights: AI urges gov’t - Amnesty International in Malaysia today urged the government to step up its effort to guarantee the basic rights of workers in the country...only in-house unions are allowed in the electronics sector and these unions are estimated to represent only five percent of the country’s 150,000 electronics workers (YS Tong, Malaysiakini [Malaysia], 1 May 2002)

Leading Asia-pacific Telecommunications Companies Join Forces To Tackle Global Environmental Problems - At the first Asia-Pacific Regional Conference on Environmental Issues in Telecommunications held 22-23 May in Hong Kong, it was agreed to establish a regional GeSI (Global Sustainability Initiative), forum to assist Information and Communications Technology (ICT) companies in the region (U.N. Environment Programme, May 2002)

92.5 Million Hewlett Packard Shares Voted in Support of Greater Responsibility for Environmental Impact of Junked Computers - Calvert, the nation’s largest family of socially responsible mutual funds, presented a resolution at the Hewlett Packard Annual General Meeting on Friday, April 26 asking the company to take greater responsibility for disposal of junked computers by studying ways to strengthen its computer take-back and recycling programs. (Calvert Group, 30 Apr. 2002)

ALLTEL Shareholders Vote on Proposal Encouraging Company to Adopt More Inclusive Equal Employment Opportunity Policy - Investors with 21 million shares of ALLTEL Corporation stock, worth more than one billion dollars, voted to support a shareholder resolution at the company’s annual meeting yesterday requesting that ALLTEL amend its non-discrimination policy to explicitly bar discrimination based on sexual orientation. (Calvert Group, 26 Apr. 2002)

Internet users ripped off by Western companies - African Internet users are being forced by Western companies to pay the full cost of connecting to the World Wide Web, while European and American users pay nothing. This is one of the main hurdles blamed for the slow spread of the Internet in the world's poorest continent. (Katy Salmon, Inter Press Service, 25 Apr. 2002)

Manufacturers Step Up to the Challenge to Reduce Hazardous Waste [USA] - Fifty-nine manufacturers in Washington [Washington state] are participating in a new program that provides free technical assistance aimed at reducing the amount of hazardous waste and waste water they produce...The group comprises metal finishers, aerospace-parts manufacturers and circuit-board manufacturers. (GreenBiz.com, 23 Apr. 2002)

Kerala to undertake massive computer education programme [India] -...The Directorate of Public Instructions (DPI) and Intel Asia Electronics have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to spearhead the project in the State. Intel will impart training to 300 teachers as master trainers for the IT@School programme (InfoChange [India], sourced from The Hindu [India], 22 Apr. 2002)

Women Not Welcome in Corporate India -...VN Dhoot, chairman, Videocon, which has no women employees in its corporate office, laughingly says: "We are from an orthodox family."...Experts say only three per cent women occupy senior positions in private sector companies across the country. Most have an average of five to six per cent women employees...Several companies are employing women friendly policies. Chhachhi cites the example of ICICI and Pepsi. (Roli Srivastava, Times of India, 18 Apr. 2002)

IBM Tops List of 100 Best Corporate Citizens: In a survey by Business Ethics magazine, some corporations shine in their commitment to diverse stakeholders - A new survey from Business Ethics magazine ranks public companies based on their relationship to...four groups of stakeholders [shareholders, employees, customers, and community]...The top five companies, IBM, Hewlett Packard, Intel, Procter & Gamble, and Herman Miller... (SocialFunds.com, 18 Apr. 2002)

TECHNOLOGY: U.N., Chinese Officials Urge Sharing Of Breakthroughs - A U.N. conference on technology and sustainable development opened Monday in Beijing with U.N. Undersecretary General Nitin Desai saying scientific advances that aid in balancing ecology and development should be made available to all. Specifically citing nanotechnology, biotechnology and information technology, Desai called for new international mechanisms to help share technological breakthroughs. (UN Wire, 17 Apr. 2002)

EU set to make electronics firms pay for recycling: The European Parliament is set to approve a law today making electrical equipment makers pay for dealing with their products when they have been thrown away, in Europe's biggest-ever drive to promote recycling. (Robin Pomeroy, Reuters, 10 Apr. 2002)

Firms pushed to disclose their impact on society: A coalition of governments, businesses and public interest groups launched last week a global campaign to encourage companies to issue public reports on their impact on society and the environment [Global Reporting Initiative]...The GRI guidelines are already being followed by more than 110 companies worldwide, including German chemicals group BASF AG, British Telecom, U.S. drug giant Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., Japanese printer and photocopier maker Canon Inc., French Food group Danone, U.S.-based sports clothing company Nike and South African Breweries Plc. (Irwin Arieff, Reuters, 8 Apr. 2002)

World summit firm gets more donors, needs more cash: Organisers of a world development summit to be held in Johannesburg later this year said yesterday it had secured more money from local firms but still lacked a third of funds needed to meet its budget...State-owned firms Eskom, the South African Post Office and South African Airways said yesterday they had each contributed five million rand, along with mining giant Anglo American and construction company Murray & Roberts. The country's biggest bank Standard Bank and number two cellphone operator MTN have already contributed. (Reuters, 3 Apr. 2002)

{···français} Emploi - Poussées par la justice, des grandes entreprises indemnisent les militants dont la carrière a été pénalisée par leur engagement syndical [France] - Discrimination syndicale les entreprises se rachètent une conduite:...Les exemples de la SNCF et de EDF démontrent une chose que la France ne voulait pas voir : la discrimination syndicale n'est pas uniquement pratiquée dans quelques groupes emblématiques de l'antisyndicalisme comme Citroën et Michelin. La CGT, première organisation à s'être mobilisée sur le sujet, a établi une liste de plus de soixante-dix entreprises «discriminantes». Parmi celles-ci, on trouve le gratin de l'économie française : Renault, Aérospatiale (maintenant EADS), Matra, Thales, Framatome, Snecma, la SNPE, Comurex, Sollac, Ugine, Delphi, mais aussi la RATP, ou encore des PME comme TLD Tracma, près de Tours. (Hervé Nathan, Libération [France], 2 avril 2002)

Chicagoans to Charge Discrimination Against MCI, WorldCom [USA]: Past and present employees of MCI and WorldCom in Chicago have banded together with some 150 others across the nation to levy a class action lawsuit for having allegedly faced sex, race, disability, age and religious discrimination on a daily basis. (Adam Fendelman, ePrairie.com, 2 Apr. 2002)

UN Global Compact Case Studies of Multistakeholder Partnership: Policy Dialogue on Business in Zones of Conflict (edited by Virginia Haufler, University of Maryland, Apr. 2002)

• Croatia and Post-Conflict Reconstruction [Roots of Peace & Mines to Vines programmes: companies in USA involved in raising money for landmine removal in Croatia - refers to California wine companies, Autodesk, North Face, Digitas Advertising Agency] (Heidi Kuhn, Roots of Peace, Apr. 2002)

Broadening the Corporate Commitment to HIV and AIDS [refers to positive steps by Coca-Cola, Hewlett-Packard, Unilever, Anglo American, BHP Billiton, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Merck, DaimerChrysler, De Beers] (Business for Social Responsibility, Apr. 2002)

Companies in Conflict Situations: Mineral Extraction in the Democratic Republic of Congo [refers to H.C. Stark of Germany (a subsidiary of Bayer AG), Ulba of Kazakhstan, and Cabot Corporation of the United States; French companies Safmarine, SDV-Transintra, Martinair; OSLEG, a company owned by Zimbabwe's army; Zimbabwean investor John Bredenkamp's Tremalt Ltd] (Oxford Analytica, prepared for International Business Leaders Forum and TimeFORTUNE, Apr. 2002)

New partnership promotes business for women and HIV/AIDS education in Africa: UNDP and the Business Women's Network [parent company is New York-based iVillage] recently launched a new alliance to help expand women's entrepreneurship and HIV/AIDS education throughout Africa. (U.N. Development Programme, 28 Mar. 2002)

• company website: IBM (IBM)

{···français} En Belgique aussi, une enquête administrative est ouverte [IBM]: La ministre de l'emploi saisit l'Inspection sociale -...Laurette Onkelinx, la ministre fédérale de l'emploi (PS), a diligenté une enquête de l'Inspection sociale, lui demandant de vérifier notamment si l'entreprise fixait des "quotas d'exclusion", si des femmes enceintes avaient été écartées par ce biais (Le Monde, 15 mars 2002)

China's poor pick profits from toxic tech trash:...Electronic waste can contain 1,000 different substances including lead, cadmium, chromium and mercury - heavy metals which are highly toxic...This brew of toxic substances can damage nervous, kidney and reproductive systems, while some of the metals contain carcinogens...Despite the Basel Convention, which in 1994 banned the export of hazardous waste from rich to poor countries, electronic waste from the United States and to a lesser extent Europe, South Korea and Japan has ended up on Chinese shores, environmentalists say. (Reuters, 15 Mar. 2002)

INTERNET: U.N. Agencies Partner With Web Site To Distribute Publications - Information company ebrary yesterday announced it is forming a partnership with the World Bank, the U.N. University Press, the World Health Organization, the International Labor Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization to provide access to their publications through the Internet. (UN Wire, 12 Mar. 2002)

• ebrary Partners with Leading United Nations Organizations and The World Bank Group to Distribute Publications Online - Library patrons, students, scholars and researchers worldwide will soon have online access to current publications in critical subject areas ranging from environmental issues to world health, labor rights, agriculture, and development economics through ebrary (ebrary, 11 Mar. 2002)

EPA [U.S. Environmental Protection Agency] Administrator Whitman Honors 47 Citizen, Industry, Government Groups for Innovative Efforts to Clean Air [USA]: For their outstanding and innovative efforts in helping clean the nation's air, EPA Administrator Christie Whitman today honored 47 local and state governments, industries and citizens groups at the second Annual Clean Air Excellence Awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. [companies receiving awards include CSX Transportation, Orbital Engine Corporation, Intel Corporation, Georgia-Pacific Corp., Gibson Technologies, Playa Capital Company, Con Edison, Merck] (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 5 Mar. 2002)

Computer training in Tanzania benefits students and their country:...The Tanzanian programme benefits from the Least Developed Countries Initiative set up by Cisco Systems and UNDP to promote ICT training in countries facing the widest digital divide. (U.N. Development Programme, 5 Mar. 2002)

Prison Blues; Starbucks, Nike, others profit from inmate labor [at U.S. prisons] - A partial list of companies that have worked within the prison system, directly employed prison workers, or contracted with companies that employ prison workers, either currently or in the past: Allstate, Best Western, Dell Computer, Eddie Bauer, Hawaiian Tropical Products, J. C. Penney, Kmart, Kwalu Inc., Konica, Lockhart Technologies, McDonald's, Merrill Lynch, Microjet, Microsoft, New York, New York Hotel and Casino, Nike, No Fear Inc., Omega Pacific, Parke-Davis, Planet Hollywood, Prison Blues (jeans), Shearson Lehman, Starbucks, Target, TWA, Victoria's Secret, Union Bay, Upjohn, Washington Marketing Group (Erica Barnett, In These Times, 4 Mar. 2002)

African entrepreneurs join forces with UNIFEM to shrink digital divide for women: UNIFEM announced today the formation of a unique Global Advisory Committee comprised of African IT entrepreneurs living in the Diaspora and in Africa, as well as representatives from the private sector [including Cisco] and the UN system. (UNIFEM - United Nations Development Fund for Women, 1 Mar. 2002)

The Business of the Watchers: Privacy Protections Recede as the Purveyors of Digital Security Technologies Capitalize on September 11 - In the wake of September 11, a wide array of corporations, with the active encouragement of the U.S. government, are developing new and extremely intrusive systems to capture personal data, biometric data and video information. (Wayne Madsen, senior fellow of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, Multinational Monitor, Mar. 2002)

EEOC and Verizon settle pregnancy bias suit; thousands of women to receive benefits [USA] -- The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today announced the settlement of a major class action lawsuit alleging pregnancy discrimination against Verizon predecessor companies NYNEX and Bell Atlantic. (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 26 Feb. 2002)

NETAID: High-Tech Anti-Poverty Promoter Refocuses On Education - Online donation portal NetAid [backed partly by Cisco] has refocused its efforts to support charities that provide education in developing countries, scaling back its original mission after coming under fire for its initial flashy efforts, the San Jose Mercury News reported yesterday. (UN Wire, 26 Feb. 2002)

TOXIC WASTE: "Recycled" U.S. Electronics Pose Risks In Asia, Groups Say - A coalition of environmental groups said in a report today that 50 percent to 80 percent of electronics waste collected for recycling in the United States is sent to developing countries in Asia to be reused, often in dangerous conditions. (UN Wire, 25 Feb. 2002)

• press release: High-Tech Toxic Trash From USA Found to be Flooding Asia: New Report Documents Export of Cyber Age Nightmare - A groundbreaking investigation by an international coalition of environmental organizations has revealed that huge quantities of hazardous electronic wastes (E-wastes) are being exported to China, Pakistan and India where they are processed in operations that are extremely harmful to human health and the environment. The organizations -- Basel Action Network and Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition with support from Toxics Link India, Greenpeace China and SCOPE (Pakistan) -- have produced a astonishing new report on the investigation entitled: Exporting Harm: The High-Tech Trashing of Asia. (Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition & Basel Action Network, 25 Feb. 2002)

• full report: Exporting Harm: The High-Tech Trashing of Asia (Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition & Basel Action Network, 25 Feb. 2002)

• Technology's Toxic Trash Is Sent to Poor Nations (John Markoff, New York Times, 25 Feb. 2002)

Companies 'face rising risks over human rights': Multinational companies face a growing risk of being associated with human rights violations, according to research published in London yesterday by Amnesty International and the Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum. The research examines the operations of 129 leading companies in 34 countries where human rights abuses including torture, forced child labour and denial of freedom of expression occur. (Alison Maitland, Financial Times, 13 Feb. 2002)

• full text: Business & Human Rights: A geography of corporate risk - Amnesty International and The Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum (IBLF) have collaborated to produce a series of seven detailed world maps, which depict where human rights abuses and violations exist and where leading North American and European multinational companies are at risk of being associated with them. The suite of maps covers the extractive, food and beverages, pharmaceutical and chemical, infrastructure and utilities, heavy manufacturing and defence, and IT Hardware and telecommunications sectors. (Amnesty International UK, and Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum, Feb. 2002)

• Atlas pinpoints countries where investment flows despite abuses: A world atlas of countries where multinationals co-exist with regimes inflicting human rights abuse was presented yesterday at the launch of a campaign for ethical investment...The study, the first of its kind, will be used by Amnesty International and the Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum to press companies to take account of human rights when making commercial decisions. (Kim Sengupta, Independent [UK], 13 Feb. 2002)

• Atlas warns firms of rights abuses: Campaigners have drawn up a world atlas of human rights violations to alert multinational corporations to the damage that can be caused to their business and reputations by being associated with human rights abuses in countries in which they operate (Guardian [UK], 13 Feb. 2002)

Private Firms and Nonprofits Link Up to Help Bridge "Digital Divide": The Global Digital Opportunity Initiative...aims to close the "digital divide" by providing pro-bono expertise and tools to help developing countries meet healthcare and education needs, and reduce poverty...Private companies, including AOL Time Warner, Cisco Systems, Grameen Bank, Hewlett-Packard, n-Logue Communication, PicoPeta Simputers, and Sun Microsystems, will offer their services together with nonprofit and international organizations...So far three countries--Bolivia, Tanzania, and Mozambique--have applied to take part in the program. (Beth Bolitho, OneWorld, 11 Feb. 2002) 

Corporate Leaders Discuss Social Role: Corporate leaders have an obligation as global citizens to play a larger role on the world stage, but they need to understand that this role requires them to perform a difficult – and sometimes thankless – balancing act. [panel including CEOs of Microsoft, Renault, Toshiba, Merrill Lynch, Deutsche Bank] (World Economic Forum, 4 Feb. 2002)

Platform collapses killing seven, injuring many: An unauthorised concrete structure at an electronics factory [Delta Electronics, a Thai-Taiwanese joint venture] in Thailand falls on a production line. (IMF-International Metalworkers' Federation, 4 Feb. 2002)

Unlikely Note Is Struck on World Finance Stage - Forum: Bill Gates and Bono challenge the Treasury chief and the U.S. to boost foreign aid...The new focus on health and on environmental problems in poor countries by Gates and other wealthy philanthropists--Ted Turner and the Hewlett and Packard families, among others--has been cited by some U.S. opponents of government assistance as a more efficient and focused form of foreign aid. But Gates argued vigorously here for greatly increased aid from the United States and other official donors. (William Orme, Los Angeles Times, 3 Feb. 2002)

• Gates and Bono give voice to healthcare lobbyists: Bill Gates, the world's richest man, and Bono, the Irish rock star, joined forces on Saturday to urge governments and the private sector to boost levels of spending on global healthcare and disease prevention. (Holly Yeager & Hugh Carnegy, Financial Times, 2 Feb. 2002) 

Being seen to be green helps corporate image: An FT survey that gave companies plaudits for their environmental record included some surprise choices [includes reference to Body Shop, BP, Royal Dutch/Shell, Toyota, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble, Vivendi, Honda, Ford, Siemens, GE, IBM, Volkswagen, ExxonMobil, Ben & Jerry's, McDonalds] (Michael Skapinker, Financial Times, 1 Feb. 2002)

• Due recognition given for effort [environmental record of companies, examined in Financial Times Survey of "World's Most Respected Companies"]  (Alison Maitland, Financial Times, 13 Dec. 2001)

• Company rankings [by media & NGOs] - 2001 - Companies that best manage and effect environmental resources (Financial Times, 12 Dec. 2001)

• Company rankings [by CEOs] - 2001 - Companies that best manage and effect environmental resources (Financial Times, 12 Dec. 2001)

Toys of Misery: Shuihe Electronics Factory, China [report on abusive working conditions at this factory producing for Mattel, MGA Entertainment, Sega, Epoch, Manley, Wal-Mart] (National Labor Committee, Feb. 2002)

Roma groups take IBM to court: A Geneva-based Gypsy organisation has officially launched legal action against the American multinational, IBM, for its alleged role in the Holocaust (Roy Probert, swissinfo/Radio Swiss International, 31 Jan. 2002)

• The legal action against IBM has been lodged by GIRCA in front of the Geneva First Instance Court on January 31st, 2002. Its goal is to make Swiss Courts recognize the complicity of IBM with the crimes against humanity committed between 1933 and 1945. (GIRCA - Gypsy International Recognition and Compensation Action, 31 Jan. 2002)

• Gypsies ask IBM for Holocaust reparation: A Geneva-based Gypsy - or Roma - organisation is planning to sue the technology giant IBM over its alleged role in aiding the Nazi Holocaust (BBC News, 10 June 2001)

• company website: IBM (IBM)

Companies accused of fuelling fight for Congo's mineral wealth: Spurred by growing international concern, campaigners, industry and the United Nations are trying to stop the African trade in a rare mineral crucial to mobile phones and high-tech gadgets - which is blamed for fueling war in Central Africa. (Doug Alexander, Gemini News Service, 25 Jan.-1 Feb. 2002)

Local Utilities and Labor Union Assist Hotel and Restaurant Workers In the Nation's Capital in the Aftermath of 9-11 [Washington, D.C.]: It was an opportunity for hotel and restaurant workers [laid off since 11 September] to apply for discounts on their utility bills...Volunteers from Pepco, Washington Gas, Verizon and the D.C. Water and Sewer Authority (WASA) were on hand to process applications and answer questions regarding utility discount programs. (PRNewswire, 25 Jan. 2002)

Canon Virginia Facility Recognized [by Virginia Environmental Excellence Program] for Environmental Achievements (EarthVision Environmental News, 23 Jan. 2002) 

Working with Ericsson, UN sets up mobile telephone service in Afghanistan:...Ericsson and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) worked to set up a complete mobile telecommunications network dedicated to supporting UN humanitarian operations in the war-ravaged country (UN News Centre, 16 Jan. 2002)

Pataki Recognizes New York's Green Achievers: New York Gov. George Pataki honored...companies Monday for their efforts to reduce pollution at its source and promote cleaner air, land, and water in New York State [G. Willikers, IBM East Fishkill, IBM Endicott] (GreenBiz.com, 16 Jan. 2002)

DRC [Democratic Republic of Congo] mine collapses, killing 33: At least 33 people were killed last week when a small coltan mine collapsed in eastern DRC, local rebel officials said on Tuesday. Coltan is a mineral used in electronics and especially in the manufacture of mobile phones. (South African Press Association, 15 Jan. 2002)

BT, responsibility and the triple bottom line: Ethical Corporation magazine talks with Chris Tuppen, Head of Sustainable Development and Corporate Accountability, British Telecommunications plc about their CSR policies and reputation, customer management and HR issues (Ethical Corporation magazine, Jan. 2002)

2001:

"E-Waste Not," Calvert Says to Computer Companies: The Calvert Group has filed shareowner resolutions with the major U.S. computer producers, urging them to investigate ways to counteract electronic waste. (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 20 Dec. 2001)

An important partner: the private sector - What does the private sector have to do with commercial sexual exploitation of children? Whether by commission or omission, the private sector is involved in the commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC). Three sub-sectors within the realm of private enterprise have traditionally featured in the discussion on CSEC: the travel and tourism industries; the media industries; and those related to new technologies. (background paper for 2nd World Congress against Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children - Yokohama, Japan, 17-20 December 2001)

UNIDO [U.N. Industrial Development Organization]: Interview With Director General Carlos Magarinos [includes section on "The Role Of The Public And Private Sectors"; refers to UNIDO agreement with Ericsson to work in Northern Africa to promote the utilization of information communication technologies, and to program with the government of India & Fiat to develop supply components] (UN Wire, 17 Dec. 2001)

SEXUAL EXPLOITATION: UNICEF Head Calls Practice "Terrorism" [opening session of Second World Congress Against Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children]:...Queen Silvia of Sweden...highlighted...increased efforts by the private sector, including travel, tourism and information companies. She cited efforts by some airlines that run movies on flights to alert passengers to the problem and some tour companies that have instituted codes of conduct. (UN Wire, 17 Dec. 2001) 

Britain scrambles to meet EU rules on junk mobiles: Britain's slim recycling facilities may be swamped by discarded and potentially hazardous mobile phones as millions of people switch to third generation models, industry sources said yesterday. (Amanda Cooper, Reuters, 6 Dec. 2001)

US EPA sends Hudson River dredging plan to New York [regarding U.S. Environmental Protection Agency order that General Electric dredge to remove toxic PCBs] (Reuters, 6 Dec. 2001)

Holocaust Restitution in the United States and Other Claims For Historical Wrongs - An Update [includes updates on human rights-related lawsuits against Credit Suisse, Union Bank of Switzerland, Swiss Bank Corporation, German & Austrian banks, French banks, Barclays Bank, Chase Manhattan Bank, J.P. Morgan, European insurance companies, Ford Motor Co., German corporations including Degussa and Siemens; Japanese corporations including Nippon Sharyo, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Mitsubishi, Mitsui, Nippon Steel; New York Life Insurance Co.] (Michael J. Bazyler, Professor of Law at Whittier Law School, in ACLU International Civil Liberties Report 2001 [American Civil Liberties Union], Dec. 2001)

Virtual Sustainability: Using the internet to implement the triple bottom line. (SustainAbility, Dec. 2001)

• the report: www.VirtualSustainability.com (SustainAbility, Dec. 2001)

Internationally-recognised Core Labour Standards in Malaysia [refers to "serious problems of freedom of association, collective bargaining and discrimination, especially against migrant workers"] - In both the electronics and textile sectors, two of Malaysia’s largest export earners, workers have been dismissed or threatened with dismissal for their trade union activities. (International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, 28 Nov. 2001)

press release: Computer Report Card released, Shows U.S. Companies Lagging Far Behind [behind their overseas counterparts in clean production, protecting workers' health and producing environmentally superior products] - National Computer TakeBack Campaign Launched!..."E-waste (electronic waste) is one of the fastest growing and most toxic waste streams -- threatening human health and the environment" (Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, 27 Nov. 2001)

• full report: 2001 Clean Computer Report Card [evaluates 28 companies: Apple, Compaq, Dell, e-Machines, Gateway, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Lexmark, Micron, Viewsonic, Brother, Canon, Fujitsu, Hitachi, Matsushita/Panasonic, NEC, Oki, Seiko Epson, Sharp, Sony, Toshiba, Philips, Daewoo, Lucky Goldstar, Samsung, Acer, AST, & Wyse Technologies] (Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, 27 Nov. 2001)

TECHNOLOGY: U.N. Task Force To Raise "Global Interconnectivity" - The United Nations launched its Information and Communication Technologies Task Force yesterday in New York, announcing an aim of increasing "global interconnectivity" and spreading the benefits of the digital revolution. (UN Wire, 21 Nov. 2001)

Tech Firms Vie to Veil Web Sites for the Saudis: Net-Filtering Deal Could Yield Millions - Nearly a dozen software companies, most of them American, are competing for a contract to help Saudi Arabia block access to Web sites that the Saudi government deems inappropriate for that nation's half-million Internet users...Responding to critics of the sale of content filters, software company executives say that they are only providing politically neutral tools..."The government feels the need to intervene. Once we sell them the product, we can't enforce how they use it." [Matthew Holt, a sales executive for Secure Computing, of San Jose, California] (Jennifer Lee, New York Times, in International Herald Tribune, 20 Nov. 2001) 

• full article: Companies Compete to Provide Saudi Internet Veil (Jennifer Lee, New York Times, 19 Nov. 2001) 

full report: E-Commerce and Development Report 2001: The Electronic Commerce and Development Report 2001 reviews trends that developing countries need to be aware of as they try to position their economies to take advantage of ICT and the Internet. (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, 20 Nov. 2001) {···english}, with summary in {···español} and {···français}

• press release: E-Commerce to continue its leading role in economic growth; but countries that lag behind risk widening North-South gap, warns new UNCTAD report (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, 20 Nov. 2001)

• {···español} El comercio electrónico continuará su papel preponderante en el crecimiento económico; pero los países rezagados corren el riesgo de un aumento de la disparidad Norte-Sur, advierte un nuevo informe de la UNCTAD

• {···français} Le commerce électronique restera un moteur de croissance économique; mais les pays à la traîne risquent d'aggraver la fracture Nord-Sud, constate un nouveau rapport publié aujourd'hui par la CNUCED

• press release: From selling sheep to transcribing tapes: prospects bright for e-commerce in developing countries, says new UNCTAD report (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, 20 Nov. 2001)

• {···español} Desde vender ovejas hasta transcribir cintas: Buenas perspectivas para el comercio electrónico en los países en desarrollo, dice un nuevo informe de la UNCTAD

• {···français} De la vente de moutons a la transcription de bandes audio: Le rapport de la CNUCED prévoit un avenir radieux au commerce électronique

• Unctad spells out internet commerce benefits: Developing economies stand to make productivity gains worth billions of dollars by encouraging the growth of electronic commerce, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. (Frances Williams, Financial Times, 20 Nov. 2001)

Class Status Denied in Microsoft Race Suit [USA]: A federal judge in Seattle on Friday denied class certification for employees suing Microsoft Corp. over alleged racial and gender discrimination, ruling the software giant's managerial system was sound. Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft had rejected charges that it gave current and former black and female employees subpar pay, promotions and evaluations. (Reuters, 16 Nov. 2001) 

IMF [International Metalworkers' Federation] World Congress Presses GE Global Strategy: "GE exploits workers everywhere," IUE-CWA President Edward Fire said in his presentation to the IMF World Congress. "Wherever the company operates, whether in the United States, Europe, Southeast Asia or Latin America, it resists workers' rights to organize and to trade union representation," he said. The IMF is providing full support to efforts to set the recognition of international labor standards by companies such as GE as a condition for world trade. (Communications Workers of America, 14 Nov. 2001) 

• company website: GE

EPA [U.S. Environmental Protection Agency] Program Recognizes Better Corporate Environmental Performance: Performance Track motivates and rewards businesses that exceed EPA's environmental standards. The National Environmental Performance Track program, launched by the EPA in June of 2000, recognizes the companies and facilities whose environmental performance surpasses the minimum standards set by the government...Performance Track requires participants to have an environmental management system in place, a history of sustained compliance, a foundation of community outreach, and a commitment to continuous environmental improvement. At this time, 251 facilities (listed on the website) have been accepted as Performance Track participants with 300 anticipated by 2002. The company with the most Performance Track facilities by far is Johnson & Johnson, with over 50. Other companies include toolmaker Snap-On with 9 facilities, IBM with 7 facilities, and 3M with 5 facilities. (Trevor Snorek-Yates, SocialFunds.com, 2 Nov. 2001)

Dead cellphones reborn after EU order to recycle:...Europe now has a plan to encourage the recycling of the phones, for both economic and environmental reasons, with new European Union recycling regulation coming into force...After a debate between EU agencies, responsibility will likely fall on equipment makers to take care of their own products (Anna Peltola, Reuters, 2 Nov. 2001) 

Swedish green technology has huge potential - study: Environmentally friendly technology could boost Sweden's exports by eight billion crowns ($749.9 million) in the next ten years, a Swedish Trade Council report showed yesterday. (Reuters, 25 Oct. 2001) 

Bridging the digital divide: A healthy dose of self-interest can be a powerful tool when combined with corporate social responsibility. And in recent years, the shortfall in skilled IT and telecoms workers has encouraged many large corporations in the information and communications technology sector to sink resources in initiatives aimed at tackling the global digital divide. One of the most successful examples has been Cisco Systems Networking Academy (Sarah Murray, in Responsible business in the global economy: A Financial Times Guide, 23 Oct. 2001)

IBM must apologize and open its archives: My book, IBM and the Holocaust, documents IBM's strategic business and consultative alliance with Nazi Germany beginning at the first moment of the Hitler regime in 1933 and continuing right into the war. It was this joint planning and custom production of billions of punch cards per year that endowed the Third Reich with the technology it needed to dramatically accelerate and automate all phases of its Jewish persecution. (Edwin Black, in Star-Telegram [Fort Worth, Texas], 22 Oct. 2001)

Manufacturing Growth With Social Deficits: Environmental and Labor Issues in the High Tech Sector of Penang, Malaysia (California Global Corporate Accountability Project, 18 Oct. 2001)

Nortel Technology Threatens Human Rights in China: A new report released today by Rights & Democracy reveals that the Canadian telecommunications giant Nortel Networks may be contributing to human rights violations in the People's Republic of China. The report points specifically to Nortel's OPTera technology to be launched in China this week at the APEC Leaders Meeting in Shanghai. China's Golden Shield: Corporations and the Development of Surveillance Technology in the People's Republic of China describes how technology developed for commercial purposes by transnational corporations, including Nortel, is being used by Chinese police and security forces to refine the targetting and repression of political dissidents. It also provides an overview of Nortel's long-standing involvement in the development of surveillance technology both at home and abroad. (Rights & Democracy: International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development, 18 Oct 2001)

• {···français: La technologie de Nortel menace les droits humains en chine}

• full report: China's Golden Shield: Corporations and the Developement of Surveillance Technology in the People's Republic of China (Greg Walton, Rights & Democracy: International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development, 18 Oct 2001)

• {···français: Le bouclier d'or de la Chine: Les entreprises et le développement de la technologie de surveillance en Chine}

• company website: Nortel Networks (Nortel Networks)

Netaid directs humanitarian aid to Afghan refugees: Netaid is funnelling donations to two humanitarian agencies with extensive experience of working with Afghan refugees in Northwest Pakistan...UNDP and Cisco Systems are the founding partners of Netaid, which uses the power of the Internet to help end extreme poverty. (United Nations Development Programme, 16 Oct. 2001)

• NetAid Afghan Refugee Crisis - crisis response page (NetAid)

Use technology to uplift people [India]: CM [Chief Minister] - The Technology Summit and Technology Platform 2001, organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), got off to a start with the speakers focussing on the use of technology as a tool to eradicate poverty and achieve growth on the one hand, and the need to develop indigenous technology to suit Indian conditions on the other. (The Hindu [India], 5 Oct. 2001)

IBM Praised for Fighting Pollution: State officials today are hailing a switch in manufacturing methods at IBM Rochester [Minnesota, USA] as one of the most creative ways to combat pollution from hazardous materials last year. (Post-Bulletin [Rochester, Minnesota], 23 Sep. 2001)

AOL UK - The digital divide -...In collaboration with the charity John Grooms, which provides housing and residential care for disabled people, the company [AOL UK] has given free computers, internet access and training to around 50 of the charity’s clients to improve their quality of life, computer literacy and independence. (Ethical Performance magazine, autumn 2001)

FGM Inc. Awarded International Demining Contract: FGM Inc. announced today that the company was awarded a contract with the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining that will give humanitarian demining experts a more accurate picture of the world's landmine problem. FGM will develop an interchange format that will allow the various international mine action information systems to seamlessly share information...International donors including the United States will fund the project. (FGM Inc., 18 Sep. 2001)

Digital Opportunities Are Key to Development: Information and Technology / Closing the Gap (sponsored section, International Herald Tribune and World Business Council for Sustainable Development, 13 Sep. 2001)

In Brazil, Hope Begins With Children: Best Practice / ABB [global technology company] - ABB’s many social action programs — ranging from education to sanitation and the environment — have expanded by more than 300 percent in the past three years. One example is Criança Futuro-Esperança (Children with a Future Full of Hope), a program that supplements the regular school classes of 96 children from slum areas. (sponsored section, International Herald Tribune and World Business Council for Sustainable Development, 13 Sep. 2001)

Solar Power Is Reaching Where Wires Can't: Strategies Unlimited predicts that the leading companies in the industry, like the Royal Dutch/Shell Group, Siemens, BP, Sanyo Electric, Sharp, Kyocera and AstroPower, will continue to have revenue growth of about 20 percent a year from these markets. That will make the remote rural market alone worth roughly $2.5 billion by 2005...International organizations like the World Bank and the United Nations Development Program have started to put money into projects, and businesses, to help solve the financing problem. (David Lipschultz, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2001)

Panel Discussion in Durban about Discrimination is Everybody's business - Discrimination is Everybody's Business: From Discrimination to Diversity - A Corporate Led Initiative in the Framework of the UN Global Compact - The World Conference Against Racism...is the launching ground for this initiative...The six companies behind this initiative are the South African Financial Services Group Sanlam, the Swedish Car Manufacturer Volvo Car Corporation, the Brazilian Media Corporation Organizações Globo, the Indian IT Company Satyam, the South African Energy Utility Eskom, and the American Car Manufacturer Ford Motor Company. (United Nations, prepared in advance of the World Conference Against Racism, 31 Aug. - 7 Sep. 2001)

DSM, Siemens launch paper waste-to-fuel venture: Dutch chemicals group DSM NV said yesterday it and German technology group Siemens had signed an agreement to cooperate on plants that turn recycled paper waste into fuel. (Reuters, 30 Aug. 2001)

NetAid wins award for harnessing Internet to help end poverty [NetAid was created through collaboration between UNDP and Cisco Systems] (U.N. Development Programme, 29 Aug. 2001)

Environmental Racism Shifts the Costs of Industry to the Poor: Environmental racism affects individuals, groups or communities differentially, based on race or colour. It combines with public policies and industry practices to provide benefits for corporations, while shifting the costs to people of colour. It influences local land use, the enforcement of environmental regulations, the siting of industry and the areas where people of colour live, work and play...Environmental racism manifests itself in the sub-standard treatment of workers. Thousands of farm workers and their families are exposed to dangerous pesticides on the job and in labour camps. These workers endure sub-standard wages and working conditions. But environmental racism also extends to the exploitative work environment of garment district sweatshops, the microelectronic industry and extraction industries. A disproportionately large share of the workers who suffer under sub-standard occupational and safety conditions are immigrants, women and people of colour. [article extracted from paper prepared for the World Conference on Racism and Public Policy in Durban from September 3-5, sponsored by United Nations Research Institute for Social Development] (Robert D Bullard [Director of the Environmental Justice Resource Centre at Clark Atlanta University in the USA], Mail & Guardian [Johannesburg], 24 Aug. 2001)

New environment-business collaborative report outlines basis for state's conservation success: Report debunks myth that high-tech industry is strain on California's energy resources: The Silicon Valley Manufacturing Group (SVMG) and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) released today the first independent assessment of California's surprisingly effective energy conservation efforts. (Natural Resources Defense Council, 23 Aug. 2001)

Cisco helps Democratic Republic of the Congo get online: Through a partnership between UNDP and Cisco Systems, a new National Cisco Academy at the University of Kinshasa is helping the war-torn Democratic Republic of the Congo move into the digital age. (U.N. Development Programme, 23 Aug. 2001)

PAHO and IBM Collaborating to Enhance Health Services and Information Technology For Latin America and Caribbean Nations: The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and IBM announced today an extension of a three-year joint project to increase access and enhance the use of information technology by healthcare professionals throughout Latin America and the Caribbean. (Pan American Health Organization, 17 Aug. 2001)

• {···español: OPS e IBM colaboran para mejorar servicios de salud y tecnología de información para América Latina y el Caribe}

UNDP allies with the Global Internet Policy Initiative: UNDP is joining forces with the Global Internet Policy Initiative (GIPI) to promote open and democratic access to the Internet in developing countries to foster development. (United Nations Development Programme, 15 Aug. 2001)

INTERNET: UNDP Supports Democratic Internet In Poor Countries - The UN Development Program yesterday signed an agreement with the Global Internet Policy Initiative to adopt a framework for an open and democratic Internet in developing countries. (UN Wire, 15 Aug. 2001)

Electronics Makers Plan for Lead Free Products: Electronics assembly firms have made a global alliance to plan an early transition to the use of lead free solders in electrical and electronic equipment. (Environment News Service, 13 Aug. 2001)

Xerox to pay penalty for unmonitored emissions: The Xerox Corporation has settled with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on charges that it failed to inspect vats of waste and monitor air emissions from containers and equipment at its facility in Webster, New York. The company has agreed to pay a penalty of $74,000, and will certify in writing that it is in compliance with all applicable regulations. (Anjuli Bose, Earth Times News Service, 9 Aug. 2001)

ENVIRONMENT-US: Old Computers A Toxic Time Bomb (Lili Beit, Inter Press Service, 20 July 2001)

"Digital Divide" Widest In Africa But Focus On "Digital Development," Conference Urged: The African continent - home to one in eight of the world's people - has just one in 50 of the world's fixed line subscribers, one in 60 of the world's mobile cellular subscribers, one in 70 of the world's personal computers and only one percent of the world's internet users, according to the International Telecommunications Union (ITU). (Charles Cobb Jr., allAfrica.com, 18 July 2001)

DIGITAL DIVIDE: UN To Test Pilot Project In Four Countries - Poor countries can raise their living standards by building communications infrastructures, training workers to use the Internet and adopting business-friendly laws, according to a report issued yesterday by the Digital Opportunity Initiative, a consortium comprised of the UN Development Program, Accenture and the Markle Foundation.  The consortium plans to send consultants to Tanzania, South Africa, Romania and Bolivia this summer to test programs on expanding access to the Internet and other communications networks. (UN Wire, 17 July 2001)

WHO: Agency, Project.net Join Forces On New Initiative: The World Health Organization has joined forces with Project.net to launch the pilot phase of the Health InterNetwork initiative, which will include projects in Africa, Central Asia, Eastern Europe, India, Latin America and the Middle East, Project.net announced yesterday in its quarterly review. (UN Wire, 17 July 2001)

{···français} Interview : Mark Malloch Brown, administrateur du PNUD [Programme des Nations unies pour le développement, UN Development Programme] (Le Monde, 16 July 2001)

Companies in new ethical index announced: A third of blue-chip companies have failed to make the grade in a new FTSE index of ethical firms, it was announced today.  Among 34 FTSE-100 Index members not in the new FTSE4Good UK 50 are Tesco, Royal Bank of Scotland and Marconi. (Lisa Bachelor, Guardian [UK], 10 July 2001)

JORDAN: UNIFEM Technology Program Aims To Empower Women: The UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) is collaborating with Cisco Systems and the Cisco Foundation on a $2 million project to empower women in Jordan's technology sector. (UN Wire, 10 July 2001)

Businesses support Kyoto climate treaty: WWF, the conservation organization, welcomes today's call on governments by more than 90 companies grouped together in the "e-mission 55 - Business for Climate " initiative to finalise the Kyoto Protocol. (World Wildlife Fund, 5 July 2001)

EIA Announces Industry Pilot Project for Electronics Recycling: The Electronic Industries Alliance, in cooperation with Canon, Hewlett Packard, JVC, Kodak, Nokia, Panasonic, Philips Electronics, Sharp, Sony, and Thomson, today announced the development of an innovative electronics collection and recycling pilot project.  "Our industry is committed to lessening the environmental impact of our products from design to end-of-life. It is critical that we move forward quickly in finding electronics recycling programs that work."  (Electronic Industries Alliance, 21 June 2001)

Poison PCs/Toxic TVs: A brand new (June 19, 2001) report by Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, Californians Against Waste and Materials for the Future that details the growing piles of electronic waste in the US, the toxics contained in the computers and monitors, and hazards of improper disposal was released. The report also estimates a cost to California tax payers of almost $1 billion for handling e-wastes that consumers and businesses will throw away. (Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, 19 June 2001)

WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY: Call for clean technology to boost exports - Green barriers being put up by Europe [Thailand] (Aphaluck Bhatiasevi, Bangkok Post, 6 June 2001)

A New Voice For The Global Environment: Telecommunications Industry Launches Sustainability Initiative (press release jointly issues by UNEP [United Nations Environment Programme], ITU [International Telecommunication Union] and GeSI [Global e-Sustainability Initiative], 5 June 2001)

Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading Market Emerges in Chicago: A diverse group of 25 large corporations and nonprofit organizations has agreed to participate in the design phase of a voluntary pilot trading market, the Chicago Climate Exchange. (Environment News Service, 30 May 2001) 

DynCorp In Colombia: Outsourcing the Drug War (Jeremy Bigwood, CorpWatch, 23 May 2001)

Colombia: Private Firms Take on U.S. Military Role in Drug War (Juan O. Tamayo, Miami Herald, 22 May 2001)

Hewlett-Packard Recycling Progam Passes the Buck: Customers, not company, paying the cost (Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, 19 May 2001)

• company website: Environment: Return & recycling (Hewlett-Packard)

EU assembly toughens up waste electronics law: The European Parliament voted yesterday to toughen up a draft law to make electrical and electronic equipment makers pay for the recycling of their discarded products (Reuters, 16 May 2001)

'The challenge of eradicating poverty; international community response' special event at Brussels conference on Least Developed Countries (Third United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries, Brussels, 14-20 May 2001, 14 May 2001)

Calvert Celebrates Environmental Achievement at America's Corporations, Tracking Progress in E-Recycling and Energy Efficiency (E-Wire, 23 Apr. 2001)

Electronics Makers Pressed to Take Back Discards (Environment News Service, 16 Apr. 2001)

RCA - The Unacceptable Face of Capitalism in Taiwan: Employees Demand Justice and Compensation from RCA [Radio Corporation of America (RCA), an American-based multinational company] (Self-help Association for RCA Employees Suffering from Cancer and the Taiwan Association for Victims of Occupational Accidents and Diseases, in Asian Labour Update, Apr.-June 2001)

The Knowledge Gap (Avinash Persaud, Foreign Affairs, Mar./Apr. 2001)

Digitally Empowered Development: The Growing Gap (Allen L. Hammond, Foreign Affairs, Mar./Apr. 2001)

IBM and the Holocaust (book review by Christopher Simpson, International Herald Tribune, 31 Mar. 2001)

Anti-IBM Suit [alleging the company aided Nazi Germany] Will Be Dropped (International Herald Tribune, 30 Mar. 2001)

Whitman Recognizes 34 Organizations for Energy Savings (United States Environmental Protection Agency, 20 Mar. 2001)

EPA, Semiconductor Industry Agree to Ten Percent Cut of Most Potent Global Warming Gas (United States Environmental Protection Agency [EPA], 9 Mar. 2001)

Global Warming: Lukewarm - Support for the environment remains elusive in Japan as the government panders to industry (David Kruger and Ichiko Fuyuno, Far Eastern Economic Review, 1 Mar. 2001)

From Silicon Valley to Green Silicon Island: Taiwan's Pollution and Promise in the Era of High-Tech Globalization - A report describing the environmental exchange in Taiwan in March 2001 - Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, International Campaign for Responsible Technology, and Taiwanese Environmental Action Network (Leslie Byster and Ted Smith, Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, Mar. 2001)

U.S. civilians taking risks in Colombian drug war: Companies paid for missions military not allowed to perform (Juan O. Tamayo, Knight Ridder Newspapers, in Messenger-Inquirer [Kentucky, USA], 26 Feb. 2001)

Punch Cards and Persecution: A New Look at IBM and the Holocaust (Michael Dobbs, Washington Post Service, International Herald Tribune, 12 Feb. 2001)

IBM's guilty past (Edwin Black, The Sunday Times, 11 Feb. 2001)

IBM link to Final Solution revealed (Tom Rhodes, The Sunday Times, 11 Feb. 2001)

Sales to Chinese Police Questioned [Motorola sale of communications equipment to China's police] (Human Rights Watch, 1 Feb. 2001)

Bill Gates pledges $100m to fight Aids (Anthony Browne, The Observer [UK], 28 Jan. 2001)

2000:

Most US High-Tech Companies Fail to Earn Passing Grades on Environmental Report Card (Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, 18 Dec. 2000)

Piecework lawsuit settled: Claim over man's home assembly of electronics (K. Oanh Ha, SiliconValley.com, 13 Nov. 2000)

IT MULTINATIONALS: Willing Partners to Repression in China? (Judy Chen, Human Rights in China, 10 Nov. 2000) 

Penang's Secret [Malaysia] (Frederik Balfour, Business Week, 6 Nov. 2000)

Double Standards: U.S. Manufacturers Exploit Lax Occupational Safety and Health Enforcement in Mexico's Maquiladoras: An interview with Garrett Brown (Multinational Monitor, Nov. 2000)

Who Has the Right to Know? (Cees J. Hamelink, Professor of International Communication at University of Amsterdam, in UNRISD News [U.N. Research Institute for Social Development Bulletin], no. 23, autumn/winter 2000)

• {···español: ¿Quién tiene derecho al conocimiento?}

• {···français: Qui a le droit de savoir?}

A Human Rights Perspective on the Digital Divide: The Human Right to Communicate (William J. McIver, Jr., Scholarly Technology Group, Brown University, Sep. 2000)

Unfair Advantage: Workers' Freedom of Association in the United States under International Human Rights Standards (Human Rights Watch, Aug. 2000)

SEZs - Specially Exploitative Zones [China] (Corporate Watch magazine, Issue 11, summer 2000)

Saudi Arabia Business Briefing (Amnesty International UK Business Group, June 2000)

Panel of Independent Judges Selects Six Companies for their Outstanding Responsible Business Practices (Council on Economic Priorities, June 2000)

• 2000 Corporate Conscience Award Winners (Council on Economic Priorities, June 2000)

Investigative team sought for high-tech labor abuses (K. Oanh Ha, SiliconValley.com, 18 May 2000)

Made in China: The Role of U.S. Companies In Denying Human and Worker Rights (National Labor Committee, May 2000) 

Globalization straining planet's health: Alliances needed to safeguard environment (Worldwatch Institute, 25 Mar. 2000)

'New economy' and small companies worst at environmental reporting (PIRC [Pensions Investment Research Consultants], 19 Mar. 2000)

Saudi Arabia: Open for Business (Amnesty International, 8 Feb. 2000)

Council on Economic Priorities Names the Industry Leaders for the Year 2000 [Campaign for Cleaner Corporations] (Council on Economic Priorities, 2000)

1999:

Breakthrough: $5.2 Billion Settlement Reached in Nazi Slave Labor Case (Burt Herman, Associated Press, 15 Dec. 1999)

Hard Issues, Innovative Approaches: Improving NGO-Industry Dialogue on Corporate Responsibility and Accountability (California Global Corporate Accountability Project, Nov. 1999)

relevant sections of Business and Human Rights in a Time of Change (Christopher Avery, Nov. 1999):

• Chapter 2.11: Shareholder resolutions and annual meetings

• Chapter 2.14: A need for more attention to the private sector's responsibility to promote human rights

• Chapter 3.2: Companies adopting human rights principles

Sweatshops tarnish Silicon Valley image (John Naughton, Indian Express, 10 July 1999)

1998:

The social cost of the boom in export processing zones (Natacha David, Trade Union World, 1 Dec. 1998)

Export Processing Zones (International Labour Organization, Dec. 1998)

Mexico - A Job or Your Rights: Continued Sex Discrimination in Mexico's Maquiladora Sector (Human Rights Watch, Dec. 1998)

Chip plants not safe: Semiconductor plants aren't safe and clean as billed, some say (Bill Richards, Wall Street Journal, 5 Oct. 1998)

1997:

Sacred Waters: Life-Blood of Mother Earth: Four Case Studies of High-Tech Water Exploitation and Corporate Welfare in the Southwest [USA] [Executive summary] (Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, 1997)

1996:

African Regional Workshop on the Protection of Workers' Rights and Working Conditions in EPZs and the Promotion of the Tripartite Declaration of Principles concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy (International Labour Organization, July 1996)

Behind the Wire: Anti-union repression in the export processing zones (Jean-Paul Marhoz and Marcela Szymanski, International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, Apr. 1996)