Economic CSR: Meaning, and Examples of Companies performing it

The responsibility of the corporates towards the society does not end with setting aside a percentage of their profits to carry out philanthropic activities. What good is a philanthropic activity by an entity that on the other side of the spectrum exploits the Natural and Human Resources?

With rising temperatures and increasing instances of extreme weather events caused due to climate change, it is imperative for companies to step up and make their operations more sustainable. They need to make their economic decisions responsibly in a way that generates profits for its stakeholders, without extreme exploitation of natural resources; and also planning for a net zero future. This is called Economic Corporate Social Responsibility.

Economic Corporate Social Responsibility also includes projects by companies that are not necessarily philanthropic, but wherein economic decisions are made without expecting immediate profits with an aim to build more capacity. For example, if a company invests in skill training or education of its employees, it falls under economic CSR.

Following are some of the companies that are performing Economic CSR.

Adani Group: Commitment to spend $100 billion in Green Energy Projects

Adani Group has committed to invest more than $100 billion in green energy projects to accelerate energy transition, and in enhancing manufacturing capacity to produce all the major components required for generation of green energy. In order to achieve this, the conglomerate, apart from building solar parks and wind farms, is also building major facilities to manufacture electrolysers for making green hydrogen, wind power turbines and solar panels.

Green hydrogen is made by splitting hydrogen from water with the help of electrolysers powered by clean energy. This is seen as a potential panacea for decarbonising the industry as well as transportation.

Gautam Adani, Chairman of Adani Group has asserted that energy transition and digital infrastructure are trillion-dollar opportunities which has a potential to transform India at a local as well as a global scale. He said, “The next decade will see us invest more than $100 billion in the energy transition space and further expand our integrated renewable energy value chain that today already spans the manufacturing of every major component required for green energy generation,” while speaking at ‘Infrastructure – the Catalyst for India’s Future’ event of Crisil.

Adani highlighted that affordable green energy is needed by several sectors in order for them to become sustainable. And to enable this, the company is building the world’s largest single-site renewable energy park in Khavda village of Kutch district in Gujarat. This renewable energy park will generate 30 GW power, which will take the total renewable energy capacity of Adani Group to 50 GW by 2030.

Adani believes that energy transition will fundamentally change the global energy landscape. He said, “The global transition market was valued at approximately $3 trillion in 2023 and is expected to grow to nearly $6 trillion by 2030, and thereafter double every 10 years till 2050.”

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“As many of you know, in the case of India, our country aims to install 500 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity by 2030. This ambitious target will require annual investments of over $150 billion dollars. The transition to green energy in India is expected to generate millions of new jobs in sectors such as solar and wind, energy storage, hydrogen and its derivatives, EV charging stations, as well as grid infrastructure development,” he added.

Zomato’s Pledge of 100% EV-based deliveries by 2030

Zomato has made a commitment to facilitate 100% EV-based deliveries by 2030. Commenting on the campaign, Anjalli Ravi Kumar, Zomato’s Chief Sustainability Officer, Zomato stated, “Sustainability is at the core of Zomato’s business, underscored by its commitment to achieve 100% EV-based deliveries by 2030. Given that over 90% of our emissions arise from last-mile deliveries (within Scope 3 value-chain emissions), the transition to EV-based deliveries is critical, making it one of our most significant steps toward achieving our Net Zero target by 2033. In line with our commitment towards environmental responsibility, Zomato became the first and sole food ordering and delivery platform globally to join the Climate Group’s EV100 initiative in 2021, a strategic move that reflects our steadfast confidence in the advantages of transitioning to EVs, amidst the early stages of India’s 2W EV ecosystem.”

Zomato’s EV program uses four levers to facilitate this transition to EV-based deliveries – improving access to EVs on rent for delivery partners through tie-ups with over 70+EV rental companies and OEMs and a digital referral tool, onboarding EV-based logistics service providers, supporting ownership of EV bikes through collaboration with financial service providers and lastly, enhancing delivery partner awareness of different models and benefits of using EVs for delivery through online and offline activations.

Ambuja and ACC Lead the Way in Green Construction for a Sustainable Future

Ambuja Cements Limited and ACC Limited, the cement and building material companies of the diversified Adani Portfolio, are proud to be at the forefront of sustainability, demonstrating their commitment to environmental stewardship and innovation. The Companies are pioneering green construction with innovative solutions that reduce carbon footprints while improving product quality.

The innovative products range includes Ambuja Cement, Ambuja Plus, Ambuja Kawach, Ambuja Compocem, ACC F2R, ACC Suraksha, ACC Concrete Plus, ACC Gold and ACC HPC, all are GRIHA-listed contributing to sustainable construction. With more than 85% blended cement, the Companies have significantly reduced carbon footprint as compared to ordinary Portland cement, helping preserve natural resources. ACC’s ECOMaxX, a Green Pro-certified concrete, helps reduce the carbon footprint for customers opting to choose a concrete based on their desired levels of CO2 reductions and sustainability objectives.

The Companies have expanded their networks and reach of sustainable products, promoting these practices among Individual Home Builders (IHBs) and professionals alike. Their initiatives, such as the ‘Sapno Ka Ghar’ using their Certified Technology, provides guidance to registered contractors and engineers to ensure high-quality, sustainable construction. Through these initiatives, contractors and dealers are incentivised to adopt sustainable practices, contributing to the overall success and growth of green construction.

Ambuja and ACC offer innovative on-site solutions for resource optimisation and quality enhancement. Ambuja’s modular curing solution has saved 28 million litres of water across 2,327 sites while ACC has conserved 12,000 litres per 1,000 sq. ft. of concrete slab. Further, the instant concrete mix proportioning solutions have reduced water usage and improved quality for more than 18,000 customers and saving 23 million litres in FY’24.

This dedication to promoting sustainable construction is further enhanced by their extensive knowledge-sharing efforts. Their Knowledge Centres serve as hubs for educating architects and engineers about sustainable construction practices, reaching over 20,000 professionals. These centres focus on the use of advanced materials and techniques, ensuring that construction professionals are well-equipped to implement sustainable practices in their projects.

Ambuja Cements and ACC are setting new industry standards and driving the construction sector towards a greener, more sustainable future. Their innovative products and solutions not only meet the current demands of sustainable construction but also pave the way for continued environmental stewardship and progress.

Birla Carbon Plants secures ISCC PLUS Certification

Birla Carbon, one of the leading manufacturers and suppliers of high-quality carbon-based solutions, is happy to announce that four more of its plants – Cubatão and Camaçari in Brazil, Tiszaújváros in Hungary, and Alexandria in Egypt, have secured the ISCC PLUS certification

SCC is a globally applicable sustainability certification system and covers all sustainable feedstocks, including agricultural and forestry biomass, biogenic wastes and residues, circular materials and renewables. With currently over 9000 valid certificates in more than 130 countries, ISCC is among the world’s largest certification systems. It has been developed through an open multi-stakeholder process and is governed by an association with more than 250 members, including research institutes and NGOs. As a no-deforestation standard with a strong commitment to protect forests, high-carbon stock lands and biodiversity, ISCC strives for a world where biomass and other raw materials are produced in an environmentally, socially and economically sustainable manner.

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Speaking on this recognition, John Loudermilk, President and Chief Executive Officer, Birla Carbon, said, “We are delighted to announce that our plants in Brazil, Hungary, and Egypt have achieved ISCC PLUS certification, representing a significant milestone in our sustainability journey. This accomplishment underscores our dedication to environmental stewardship and circularity through the provision of advanced products. He further added, “As we keep securing our certifications worldwide, we are bolstering our commitment to sustainable and traceable practices, setting industry benchmarks, and driving toward a more sustainable future. This achievement reflects the collective efforts of our teams globally, driving us closer to our vision of a world where carbon solutions lead the way to a brighter, greener tomorrow.”

Earlier this year, Birla Carbon achieved a significant milestone by obtaining the ISCC PLUS certification for its facilities located in the USA, South Korea, India, and Italy. The certification process for the rest of its plants is currently underway and is slated for completion through the remainder of CY 2024. These internationally recognized certifications serve as a testament to Birla Carbon’s commitment towards realizing net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Accenture’s Collaboration with Purdue University to teach foundational knowledge in digital transformation

Purdue University is collaborating with industry leader Accenture on an online smart manufacturing education program for organizations looking to enhance employee skill sets.

The Smart Manufacturing Academy curriculum is self-paced and structured asynchronously, meaning employees can engage with course materials at different times and from different locations. It is designed to teach foundational knowledge in digital transformation to machine and line operators, technicians, plant managers, engineers, and employees in other manufacturing roles.

The program, which Purdue and Accenture are making available to businesses and industry associations, includes courses covering such topics as an introduction to smart manufacturing, the industrial Internet of Things, the connected worker, advanced automation and robotics, security, network infrastructure, and business skills.

The Smart Manufacturing Academy expands a five-year agreement between Purdue and Accenture announced in 2022, including support for smart manufacturing teaching and research facilities at Purdue and a smart manufacturing scholarship program.

“As we help our clients reinvent manufacturing and build new facilities in North America, we see time and time again how important it is to take the workforce along the journey,” said Prasad Satyavolu, a managing director in Accenture’s digital engineering and manufacturing service, Industry X, who played a key role in the shaping of the Smart Manufacturing Academy. “For this purpose, we aim to empower the Smart Manufacturing Academy with Accenture LearnVantage learning content for digital engineering and manufacturing. The academy will provide proven know-how, peer experiences and real-life examples to workers and their managers. This learning experience will equip them with critical skills and help turn technology skeptics into active participants in the digital manufacturing reinvention.”

Purdue, which inaugurates its first comprehensive urban campus in Indianapolis on June 27 and officially opens on July 1, already has begun working with Conexus Indiana, an Indianapolis-based organization comprised of member companies with a goal of strengthening Indiana’s competitive advantage in advanced manufacturing. Conexus is promoting the Smart Manufacturing Academy to its members.

Purdue also is working with its numerous engineering, technology and industry partners to promote the Smart Manufacturing Academy and engage employers to opt their teams into the program.

The content is organized and distributed to learners based on their role in the manufacturing industry, but it is also designed to get everyone in an organization speaking the same language. The 15 hours of material is delivered as bite-sized content including interactive tutorials, videos, infographics and other learning aids — all of which encompass a learner-centered approach to education that is engaging, fun and memorable. Learning milestones and curriculum completion are rewarded with microcredentials and digital badges issued by Purdue to mark learners’ new knowledge and skills, with the completion of each module and the entire program.

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The Purdue and Accenture collaboration and the Smart Manufacturing Academy were born from a critical need to address the growing demand for qualified candidates for the anticipated 4.6 million manufacturing jobs that will have to be filled by 2025, as well as provide solutions for the shifting core skills and subsequent reskilling required of current employees.

Turkish Airlines – The Most Sustainable Flag Carrier Airline

Turkish Airlines, the national flag carrier of Türkiye, has been honored with the “Most Sustainable Flag Carrier Airline” award by World Finance. The airline received this honour for the third time in a row this year.

Amid the significant challenges posed by the climate crisis to the aviation industry, Turkish Airlines stands out with its voluntary carbon offset platform CO2mission, use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), sustainable in-flight products, waste management practices, and the sustainable travel experience it offers to its passengers.

Commenting on the award, Turkish Airlines Chairman of the Board and Executive Committee, Prof. Ahmet Bolat, said: “Receiving the Most Sustainable Flag Carrier Airline award for the third-year running is a testament to our dedication to sustainability and environmental stewardship. Turkish Airlines has set a strategic goal to become one of the world’s top 3 airlines in terms of digitalization. In line with our commitment to becoming a Carbon-Neutral Airline by 2050, we incorporated the use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) into our climate change mitigation plans in 2022, and we further expanded our use of SAF to new routes in 2023. We will continue to add new routes to our SAF-powered network and pursue our commitment to sustainable practices throughout our operations.”

Since 2008, Turkish Airlines has conducted over 100 operational optimization projects to reduce its carbon footprint. In 2023, the airline achieved significant successes in fuel savings and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

EPAM-Microsoft Partnership Upskilling Employees

Microsoft’s customer and partner, EPAM Systems is helping its clients engineer the future using Microsoft cloud solutions. The company’s Enterprise Skilling Initiative (ESI), available in a variety of formats, has provided over 2,500 engineers with more than 5,500 Microsoft Cloud certifications. Through this initiative, the employees feel more empowered in their roles and better serve the increasing digital needs of their clients.

“Our client works with us because we deliver results,” states Dmitry Tikhomirov, Vice President, Head of Cloud Technology and Delivery, EMEA & APAC at EPAM. “And we are able to do that because we invest in our people, from technology and platforms to learning and education.”

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The certification journey with ESI started in 2019 when the first 250 engineers signed up for training across Microsoft Cloud technologies (Azure, Security, Power Platform). Initially, on-site certification events and in-class experiences were planned, but the pandemic forced a rapid switch online. Yet, the transition occurred with no disruption.

“We work to understand the business objectives of each department and map corporate learning solutions to those objectives,” reveals Irina Kureichyk, Director of Learning & Development at EPAM. “This way, we can offer our clients the most up-to-date, high-quality skills and services.” Seeing the demand for advanced digital and cloud technology expertise, EPAM decided to participate in Microsoft ESI, which provides hands-on interactive courses and certification in Microsoft Cloud technologies for Microsoft customers.

To date, over 2,500 engineers across 14 countries in Central and Eastern Europe have obtained more than 5,500 certificates. This achievement confirms the company’s outstanding cloud expertise. For its employees, certificates provide a chance to elevate or recalibrate their careers.

Apart from the Enterprise Skilling program, the company participates in Cloud Skills Challenge, Microsoft Training Days, and other joint learning initiatives.