 The CII-ITC Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Development is a co-creation of the apex national Chamber – the Confederation of Indian Industry and ITC. With its abiding objective of promoting sustainable business practices amongst corporates, the Centre is engaged in a wide spectrum of value-added and targeted services. By creating awareness in business and industry, providing thought leadership, building capacity of organisations and professionals and rewarding exemplary performances, the CII-ITC Centre has become a unique focal point of Sustainablity movement. The Centre is steered by its Advisory Council, led by Chairman, ITC Ltd, Mr Y C Deveshwar and comprises members from industry, government, civil society and institutions which provide strategic direction to the organisation.
During the year, the Centre introduced three new service lines in the areas of stakeholder engagement, climate change strategies and training of sustainability assurance professionals. It is the only certified trainer for sustainability assurance professionals in South-east and South Asia. The Centre was involved in a number of capacity-building activities throughout the year, including training and raising the awareness of over 1200 employees across various sectors on sustainability best practices. It also conducted the first ever in-house Sustainable Business Strategy Programme. The CII-ITC Centre is today playing a major role in engaging with policy makers to create an environment that encourages the adoption of sustainable business practices. The Centre is a consulting partner in several policy interventions such as Green Guidelines for Public Procurement, Low Carbon Expert Group of the Planning Commission, National Innovation Council, Ministry of Corporate Affairs on CSR policy.
The annual flagship event from the Centre, the 5th ‘Sustainability Summit: Asia 2010’ was organised in response to the growing demand for new growth models that are more ‘sustainable and inclusive’. Specific focus was given to key areas such as Innovation-led Inclusive Growth; Clean Energy Mix Pragmatism; Stringent Accountability; Water: Survival & Sustainability; Mainstreaming Responsible Mining and Making Cities Smart.
The Summit was addressed by Mr Jairam Ramesh, Minister of State for Environment & Forests and was attended by over 400 participants, representing all stakeholders including experts from the industry, government and civil society from India and from several other countries across the world. |
