Brazil: US Mission's 4th Quarter 2006 Corporate Social

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 BRASILIA 000298

SIPDIS

SIPDIS
SENSITIVE

USAID FOR AA/LA
DEPARTMENT PASS EPA, HHS, CEQ
USDOC FOR 4332/ITA/MAC/WH/OLAC/MWARD
USDOC FOR 3134/ITA/USCS/OIO/WH/RD/SHUPKA
STATE PASS USTR/SCRONIN

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAID ECON SENV BR
SUBJECT: Brazil: US Mission's 4th Quarter 2006 Corporate Social
Responsibility Activities

REF: Brasilia 2678


1. Summary. (U) Since October 2006, when Ambassador launched the US
Embassy's Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Initiative, USAID,
FCS, Embassy and Consulate Sao Paulo have worked exhaustively with
our 31 corporate partners (firms such as Microsoft, GE, IBM, and GM)
to follow-up on this issue. Committees on Visibility, Institutional
Framework and Partnership were formed and met over the following
weeks to solidify the Initiative. Each Committee requested
information on overlapping CSR causes in which US companies could
cooperate, as well as an Intranet site for facilitated
communication. Three surveys on US CSR activities were collected
October 18 - December 13, and the quarter's CSR activities rounded
out with a well-attended event at the US Consulate in Sao Paulo
featuring Dr. Jeffrey Sachs as keynote speaker. All this effort has
generated positive press print and television coverage for the
Mission and its CSR Initiative. End Summary.

CSR Initiative Launch Event
--------------


2. (SBU) Ambassador Sobel launched the CSR Initiative on October
18, opening the roundtable event by recognizing AmCham Sao Paulo for
its CSR work. The Ambassador told the attendees that the roundtable
was an opportunity to create a CSR partnership composed of US
private and public interests aimed at fostering synergies among, and
visibility for, US CSR programs. The Ambassador then highlighted a
number of USAID programs, as well as the Embassy's Youth
Ambassadors, before turning the discussion over to Adolfo Franco,
USAID's Assistant Administrator for Latin America. In his remarks,
Mr. Franco emphasized USAID's relationship with Brazil and the need
to work with partners to address the country's socioeconomic
challenges. Mr. Franco termed Brazil a strategic partner in "a
tough neighborhood," noting that the region's veer to the left has
pushed our two countries closer together. Mr. Franco then opined
that one way for us to offer an alternative vision to that of
Venezuelan President Chavez is for the US government and private
sector to cooperate in addressing the regions' socioeconomic needs.


3. (U) The ensuing roundtable discussion made clear that final
decisions on CSR projects are mostly made in Brazil, although
consultation with corporate headquarters in the US is often
required. The businesses also discussed the benefit of funding CSR
programs near their facilities, thus enabling them to address local
needs over the long-term, at times implementing training programs to
prepare underprivileged area residents for employment. Long-term
project sustainability and relevance to local communities was
repeatedly emphasized as experience shows programs that come and go
generate poor press coverage and public reaction. Calls for more
positive press coverage of US CSR programs peppered the entire
discussion. The participants expressed their appreciation to the
Embassy for leading this initiative, noting the importance of
pursuing the appropriate media strategy to ensure that the local
press disseminates our message.

Survey Looks at Successful CSR Programs
--------------


4. (U) The results from the first of three surveys were revealed
during the launch event. Queried as to potential speakers at a CSR
event, a majority of respondents requested noted economist Jeffrey
Sachs. US companies were also surveyed about their most effective
CSR programs and the challenges they face when implementing CSR
programs in Brazil. Concurring with the group discussion,
respondents indicated that successful programs often are located
near a company's facilities and include training programs for local
residents. CSR implementation challenges in Brazil included:
difficulty choosing only one of Brazil's many needs to address,
adapting to local needs, and vetting potential NGO partners. The
surveys also asked in which CSR committee the business would like to
participate. The top two choices were the Institutional Framework
and the CSR Visibility committee.


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Committee Meetings Solidify Initiative
--------------


5. (U) The Committees each met over the weeks following, and will
continue to meet on a periodic basis. An FCS and/or USAID
representatives attended each of the meetings. The outcomes of
these committee meeting include: (i) an effort to identify areas of
overlay among US CSR activities in Brazil. Such areas, termed
"clusters", entailed common causes like health, education or the
environment. With these clusters in hand, the Committee hopes to
foster further cooperation; (ii) the proposal of a CSR intranet site
with chat and document posting functions to facilitate communication
among all Initiative participants. FCS has constructed the intranet
site on its own server and will present it at the next meeting;
(iii) preparation of a list of all US CSR events in Brazil for
coordination; and (iv) the formulation of a Vision and Mission
Statements for the Initiative, which is currently under development.
Committee meetings also agreed on an increase of the number of US
business taking part on this Initiative (from 31 to 50 businesses).
Again, these outcomes will be presented to Initiative participants
in its next meeting.

Second Survey Clarifies U.S. Corporate Volunteer Programs
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8. (U) A second survey centering on US company volunteer programs
showed that 90% of surveyed companies have formal volunteer programs
involving an estimated 65,000 employees. GE and McDonald's account
for 83% of this total. 75% of the companies directly manage the
volunteer programs, with activities emphasizing education and
philanthropy (collecting toys, clothes, etc). 100% responded "yes"
that their volunteers could participate in an Embassy led volunteer
event.

Jeffrey Sachs Headlines December Event
-------------- --------------


9. (U) Responding to popular demand (as expressed in the October
survey),Ambassador arranged for noted economist Jeffrey Sachs to be
the keynote speaker at a mid-December CSR event at U.S. Consulate
Sao Paulo that drew 75 US business and Brazilian NGO attendees from
53 organizations, along with a slew of local press. (See reftel.)
Sixteen CEOs attended. Ambassador Sobel provided opening remarks
and introductions for Dr. Sachs. Clear throughout Dr. Sachs' speech
was his optimism for Brazil's socioeconomic development. Dr. Sachs
said Brazil would see greater development when its public and
private sectors jointly harnessed the power of education and
technology to address poverty. Dr. Sachs also emphasized that
companies are positive agents for the world economy, though
sometimes anti-globalization activists wrongly see them as
destructive agents. He called upon transnational companies to
expand their efforts to fight poverty


10. (U) A third CSR survey was distributed during the December
event. All 32 respondents agreed to attend a large CSR event in
late 2007, and 30 of 32 agreed to a follow up CSR meeting, likely
for March in Sao Paulo. Nominations for future keynote speakers
were Al Gore, Melinda and Bill Gates, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama,
Robert Kennedy, Paul Wolfowitz and Mohammed Yunis. Qualcomm, Dixie
Toga, WalMart, Monsanto, Merck, Corning, Arvin Meritor, JP Morgan,
Alcoa, Cisco and Intel expressed interest in showcasing their CSR
work at a future meeting.

CSR Initiative Creates Positive Press Coverage
-------------- --------------


11. (U) Two editorials by Ambassador Sobel on CSR have appeared in
local press, the first on October 18 in the respected daily "Folha
de Sao Paulo" and the second on December 5 in the business newspaper
"Valor Economic." The editorials highlighted both the Corporate
Excellence Award, won in 2006 by the small US company Sambazon that
operates in Brazil, and the general importance of CSR, drawing on
Ambassador Sobel's business background. Ambassador Sobel also

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appeared during a five-minute segment on TV Globo shot during the
Jeffrey Sachs event. Dr. Sachs' speech was highlighted in the Folha
de Sao Paulo on December 15, and the weekly newsmagazine Istoe
printed an interview he gave.

Sobel