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UK Report on Corporate Social Responsibility calls for industry Code of Conduct in nanotechnologies

Published: Tuesday 8 September 2009

The UK Government Report for Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) has launched a report entitled ‘An examination of the nature and application among the nanotechnologies industries of corporate social responsibility in the context of safeguarding the environment and human health’, the report was commissioned by the DEFRA and has been undertaken by the ESRC Centre for Business Relationships, Accountability, Sustainability and Society of Cardiff University.

According to the Executive Summary, the report ‘aims to provide a clearer understanding of the role which corporate social responsibility (CSR) currently plays in influencing the activities of companies involved in the nanotechnologies industry in the UK, and how CSR may contribute to protecting society from any health and environmental risks which may emerge from nanotechnology applications in the future.’

Findings are based on three phases of research, which comprised:

  • Phase 1: A review of the literature on risks associated with nanotechnology and the role of CSR.
  • Phase 2: an online survey of global nanotechnology companies and products either currently on the market or in development.
  • Phase 3: a programme of 22 interviews (7 public and 15 private sector) to examine attitudes towards and assumptions about CSR activities relevant to the aims and objectives of the research.

Findings:
One key finding from the research is that the scope of individual companies’ current CSR activities is significantly affected by their size and the degree of commercialisation in their sector. Two key areas where size and sector make a particularly significant difference are:

  • Stakeholder engagement: wide engagement is not generally undertaken by smaller companies. […]
  • CSR reporting: levels are very low among smaller companies and those engaged in B2B activities and nanotechnology R&D […].

Recommendations:
The report makes several recommendations […], relating to what tools may be needed in order to promote voluntary regulation as a response to the regulatory uncertainty surrounding nanotechnologies. Regulators should:

  • Promote an effective industry code of conduct;
  • Facilitate access for all companies to CSR and wider technical expertise;
  • Encourage collaborations between companies to develop CSR practices to “crystallise” industry code of conduct, with the aim or promoting sectoral differentiation of practices and principles where appropriate;
  • Encourage sharing of CSR expertise within existing supply chains.

Follow these links to find out more about the DEFRA-commissioned project, or to download the full report from the DEFRA website.

 
Related Links:
The proceedings of a 2-day workshop on nanotechnologies in a New Zealand context call for ‘more information on health and environmental impacts of nanotechnologies’. Entitled ‘Nanotechnology – here and now’, the proceedings from the conversations of the workshop held on the 23rd and  – 24th April 2009 report the discussion sponsored and hosted by the MacDiarmid Institute of Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology, the Ministry of Research, Science and Technology, the Ministry for the Environment, Toi te Taiao: the Bioethics Council, and the Royal Society of New Zealand. (13th July 2009)
 
The online publication service of the journal ‘Regulation and Governance’ has published an article entitled ‘Counting on codes: An examination of transnational codes as a regulatory governance mechanism for nanotechnologies’ (DOI: 10.1111/j.1748-5991.2009.01046.x; published online: 28th April 2009). (25th June 2009)
 
Switzerland’s Centre for Technology Assessment (TA-Swiss) has published a report on ‘Nanotechnology in the food sector’, recommending specific labelling of nano-materials in ingredients and in packaging, as well as offering the freedom of choice to consumers, whilst rejecting the enaction of a specific ‘nano food law’. (23rd January 2009)
 
The Swiss Retail Organisation (IG DHS) published a Code of conduct for nanotechnologies. By adopting the Code, the members, amongst whom are some of the most important actors in the Swiss Retailing, commit to a high degree of transparency for consumers and to the application of the precautionary principle. (14th April 2008)
 
The European Commission recommended to the Member States to adopt a code of conduct for responsible nanosciences and nanotechnologies. The Commission Recommendation of 7th February 2008 on a code of conduct for responsible nanosciences and nanotechnologies research highlights the history of the EC’s initiatives in nanosciences and nanotechnologies recommends: [...] (7th February 2008).