EMBASSY-SPONSORED CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY SPEAKER

UNCLAS QUITO 000485 DEPT FOR IIP/S-WHA CBARONE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON EINV EINT ETRD EC SUBJECT: EMBASSY-SPONSORED CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY SPEAKER PROVES A HIT WITH ECUADORIAN AUDIENCES ¶1. Summary: With the goal of highlighting the positive impact of the U.S. business community in Ecuador, Embassy Quito used its 2009 I-bucks funding to bring to Ecuador Celina Pagani-Tousignant, an expert on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR),the week of May 18-22. Pagani-Tousignant gave polished and well-received presentations on CSR to student and business groups in Ecuador. These events allowed the Embassy and US businesses to raise public awareness about the benefits of investment by the U.S, and the positive activities of U.S. businesses in Ecuador. End Summary. ¶2. Celina Pagani-Tousignant runs an independent consulting firm called Nomisur and has a broad range of experience with Corporate Social Responsibility programs. She has previously worked for U.S. companies like Chevron and Levi Strauss, and she currently works with the Boston College Center for Work and Family. Her native Spanish and impressive resume made her an attractive speaker for Ecuadorian audiences. The Embassy and Consulate arranged for her to give presentations before business and student groups in multiple cities during her visit. In collaboration with the local chapters of the Ecuadorian American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham),she gave inspiring talks to audiences that included AmCham members as well as the general public. Embassy officers were pleased that large numbers of students attended these events, with some traveling from outside towns to do so. The AmCham event in Guayaquil received particularly positive television coverage. Pagani-Tousignant's AmCham presentations were combined with speeches by Ambassador Hodges in Quito, Consul General Griffiths in Guayaquil, and Senior Commercial Officer Eric Olson in Cuenca, who used the events to emphasize the importance of trade with the US in Ecuador's economy, as well as the long history of commercial ties between our nations. The AmCham events also included presentations by local experts on CSR, along with presentations by a panel of representatives from AmCham member companies. The companies' presentations allowed the U.S. business community to showcase its CSR successes to the Ecuadorian public. ¶3. The Embassy and Consulate also arranged presentations by Pagani-Tousignant at several universities and Ecuadorian businesses. The audiences ranged from small groups of only 10 people to large groups of up to 170 people. Regardless of the size, Pagani-Tousignant's presentations were always well-received. The current widespread interest in CSR enabled the Embassy to arrange a presentation in one left-leaning university that had previously been resistant to accepting visitors from the Embassy. Pagani-Tousignant's talk was so effective and well-attended that this university has since invited an Embassy economic officer to return for a presentation on the global financial crisis. ¶4. In addition to her speaking events, Pagani-Tousignant did several radio and newspaper interviews, significantly expanding her audience within Ecuador. The Embassy received many expressions of gratitude from university, business, and AmCham officials for its role in facilitating this visit. We consider this to have been a very successful outreach effort and appreciate the assistance provided by our Washington-based colleagues. HODGES