Annual review 2006 - The Prince of Wales

RESPONSIBLE BUSINESS
With his long-standing interest in community affairs and
close connections with leading fi gures from the business
world, The Prince of Wales is well-placed to use his
position to support the development of corporate social
responsibility initiatives throughout the UK and abroad.
He believes that the private sector has the ability to make
a real difference to many of the issues and problems
facing communities.
ABOVE
The Prince gives a speech for
Business in the Community.
The Prince told business
leaders that as well as
addressing social issues
they also had a “crucial role”
in tackling climate change,
which he described as
the biggest challenge facing
the world today.
Encouraging businesses to help alleviate social problems has long been
central to the work of Business in the Community (BITC), one of The Prince’s
largest charities whose 750-plus member companies are committed to
working together to improve their impact on society and the environment.
One of BITC’s most effective initiatives is The Prince of Wales’s Seeing is
Believing Programme (SIB) that encourages business leaders to help tackle
social problems by visiting some of the country’s most deprived urban areas
to see the challenges fi rst hand. In December 2005, His Royal Highness
celebrated SIB’s 15th anniversary at a conference and reception in London.
Among the projects set up as a result of a SIB visit is the Business
Action on Homelessness initiative, and one of its benefi ciaries spoke
to business leaders at the conference. Mark Davies, a former homeless
ex-serviceman and drug addict, explained to the audience how his life
had been transformed by BITC. After spending some time in prison,
Mr Davies went through a detoxifi cation programme before taking up
a work placement arranged through BITC. He now has a full-time job
as a painter and decorator, and as he explained: “Homelessness is not
a disease and it can happen to anyone. I encourage companies to offer
work placements more often, as it does change lives like it changed mine.”
At the reception, The Prince told business leaders that as well as addressing
social issues they also had a “crucial role” in tackling climate change, which he
described as the biggest challenge facing the world today. One of His Royal
Highness’s most important initiatives in this area is the Corporate Leaders’
Group on Climate Change organised by his Business and the Environment
Programme, a charity based at Cambridge University.
28 | ANNUAL REVIEW 2006