Maclean's Magazine Unveils Canada's Top 50 Socially Responsible Corporations

Second annual survey proves it pays to have a conscience

Also in this issue, on newsstands now:
• Is the G8/G20 Summit a billion-dollar waste of time?
• Ottawa's new immigration policy: Which countries are on the blacklist?

TORONTO, June 10 /CNW/ - For many successful companies, corporate social responsibility is no longer just a boardroom buzzword—it's a key to business. So, for the second year in a row, Maclean's, in partnership with Jantzi-Sustainalytics, has uncovered the country's top 50 Socially Responsible Corporations.

While the reasons each company was selected vary—from Gildan Activewear donating more than half a million dollars to Haitian relief efforts to Loblaw's commitment to acquiring all of its seafood from sustainable sources by 2013, to Nike making World Cup jerseys for nine national teams out of bottles found in landfills—the underlying goal is the same: make the world a better place.

Some of Canada's top socially responsible corporations
(In no particular order—the 50 companies were not ranked.)

• BMW
• Last year, it introduced the ActiveHybrid X6 and the ActiveHybrid 7, which consume 20 per cent less fuel than conventionally powered models; the company's first fully electric car, the Megacity, will be available in 2013

• HSBC
• One of only six global financial institutions to adopt the Climate Principles, a voluntary framework to help financial institutions manage the opportunities and risks of climate change.

Cascades Inc.
• In 2009, Cascades' Norampac division launched the "no-wax" box as an alternative to traditional waxed food packaging. The box is 100 per cent recyclable.

IBM Corp.
• Incorporates life-cycle analysis into its product stewardship program—this includes reuse or recyclability, responsible end-of-life disposal, energy efficiency and material selection.

Also in this week's issue of Maclean's:
A BILLION-DOLLAR WASTE OF TIME
For a meeting that is supposed to make the world safer and more secure, the combined G8/G20 summit in Huntsville, Ont., and Toronto entails an enormous amount of destruction and dislocation. There will be a great economic inconvenience to citizens and businesses for the benefit of 20,000 international dignitaries.

OTTAWA'S NEW IMMIGRATION BLACKLIST For years, the government has been gathering data on the performance of newcomers and their children based on ethnicity. While immigration officials deny they use information to identify the best countries from which they recruit, the numbers tell a different story. Are we quietly engaged in country profiling?

OUR MAN IN SOUTH AFRICA Four years of relentless training have brought Hector Veraga to what will be his final World Cup. The 43-year-old assistant referee hails from the soccer cold-bed of Winnipeg, and with the absence of Canada's national team, or indeed any Canuck-born players, is this country's sole on-field representative at South Africa 2010.

About Maclean's

Maclean's is Canada's only national weekly current affairs magazine.  Maclean's enlightens, engages and entertains 2.4-million readers with strong investigative reporting and exclusive stories from leading journalists in the fields of international affairs, social issues, national politics, business and culture. Visit www.macleans.ca. 

For further information:

Louise Leger
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