Weekend links #1

My weekend links are the weekly roundup of what I came across this week on the web – blogosphere, twittosphere, and online media – and that are representative of what’s going in the CSR and Sustainability space. In few words, some online conversations that caught my attention!

Link no.1: An interesting blogpost around the issues of supply chain, CSR and reputation management, it is here. The rule no.1 when it comes to CSR is and will always remain: Walk the talk. Once it is done, you can then talk the walk and engage key audiences around a strong value proposition, around your brand and organization.

Link no.2: Kevin Rudd, Prime Minister of Australia starts a personal blog on climate change, here on PM Connect. Already very online and web 2.0 (you can follow him on Twitter here), Kevin Rudd goes further, and focuses on issues a paramount importance at both national and international levels. Through his blog, Kevin Rudd may be able to provide the political leadership that we are desperatly needing for COP15 in December (see my previous post here).

Link no.3: We are not facing an economic recession, but an economic reset. We are now in a world that’s been “reset” by a trio of global crises: the sharp worldwide recession, accelerating climate change, and a collapse of trust in business. And this situation is calling for new solutions: a renewed approach to stakeholder relations with regards to the social contract between them and companies. This is what will be at the core of BSR’s annual conference this year, “Reset economy. Reset world”.

Link no.4 and 5 and 6: Few links for Wal-Mart this week, as the very charismatic CEO Lee Scott  announced the future launch of the Sustainability Index, to measure the sustainability of every product Wal-Mart sells. A promising announcement for the world’s largest retailer with potential huge impacts! You can read more about it here, here or here.

Most interestingly, the company has been leveraging multiple social media channels to positively engage consumers and netizens this week. Wal-Mart was even a trending topic on Twitter on Thursday!

The way the Sustainability Index was announced shows how sustainability reporting has evolved away from the traditional annual reporting to something that is now being integrated into mainstream and new communications channels, and that becomes an implicit attribute of products, and companies/brands as a whole. Now is the time for interactive, on demand transparency, real time reporting and engagement with tailored communications for each key audience. In few words, it is : right information, right time, right way.