Center for Science and Environment
| Center for Science and Environment | |
|---|---|
|
|
| legal form | Non-profit organization , non-governmental organization |
| founding | 1980 |
| founder | Anil Agarwal |
| Seat | New Delhi , India |
| purpose | Environmental economics , environmental rating |
| method | Combined forms of data analysis |
| Action space | India |
| sales | 213,954,244 INR (around EUR 3.0 million) |
| Employees | 110 permanent employees |
| Volunteers | 40 (volunteers and fee workers) |
| Website | www.cseindia.org |
The Center for Science and Environment (CSE) is an Indian non-governmental organization and agency for ecological corporate ratings founded in 1980 . It was founded by a group of scientists , journalists , engineers and environmental activists . It is directed by Sunita Narain .
The organization aims to find solutions to the industrial environmental problems in India . The project includes influential personalities from all over India. The income comes mainly from donations (79%) and from own economic activities. The most important donors include a. the Evangelical Central Agency for Development Aid , the Oak Foundation (Switzerland), the Heinrich Böll Foundation , Misereor , Indian ministries and the European Commission .
Ecological company rating
The organization operates the rating of Indian companies according to ecological aspects. The rating is an instrument for monitoring and evaluating companies and is intended to create transparency with the participation of the public and to promote competition for sustainability and ecological performance. It is also intended to give companies incentives for building an ecological reputation .
The rating agency acts of its own accord and asks companies to face the rating process. The sustainability and ecological balance of a company and its products including its production processes are measured . The rating is carried out by specialists and scientists using over 100 criteria. The rating activity also promotes an ecological infrastructure with ecological scientific know-how in India (“Green Network”).
Starting point and objective of the rating
The rating agency has adopted the method for the ecological rating from the United States and adapted it for the Indian market. It is based on the basic assumption that most companies in India are inadequately concerned with environmental protection . The focus of the rating is therefore on the future ecological orientation of the rated companies and not on past actions. In order to be able to determine progress, the evaluation of the companies should be renewed every two years.
Evaluation principles and data collection procedures
In order to measure the ecological performance of a company, the entire value chain of a company is examined. All effects on the environment should be taken into account in the rating.
- Procurement of raw materials
- Life cycle assessment of production (investments, production processes, waste disposal)
- Consumption of the products
- Environmentally friendly disposal of the products or product residues
- Company environmental policy and management system
- Compliance with environmental laws and influences on the living environment of the local population in the vicinity of the company
The primary data relevant for the rating are collected from the following sources:
- The data provided by the participating companies are examined. You will be asked for specific industries and for the company's environmental policy .
- There is a visit to the company headquarters.
- The local population is visited and interviewed.
- Media and publicly available information are evaluated.
- Non-governmental organizations and competent authorities are interviewed.
The company profile obtained from this raw data is assessed by the Technical Advisory Panel . This committee consists of technicians who have an advisory role in the project. The weighting of the criteria is industry-specific. The profile obtained is presented to the management of the assessed company and, if necessary, modified before it is submitted to the Project Advisory Panel , a commission consisting and the like. a. from politicians, scientists and personalities of civil society, is finally adopted and made available to the public.
The rating agency intends to enforce standards that are far higher than the current legal situation for companies in India. The highest rating represents the theoretically best solution, which can differ from the “globally best solution”. Companies receive a grade on a six-point ordinal scale (levels 0 to 5).
Current situation
The agency is currently still trying to focus on internationally oriented and listed companies in India and to evaluate them, as they may a. the financial means are available to acquire world-class environmental technologies.
So far (as of 2011) is active only in four sectors, the rating agency, chlorine production , cement production , automotive industry , and pulp industry . So far, the rating has only been renewed in the area of pulp production. The inadequate recording and continuous evaluation of industrial sectors and their companies still limits the effectiveness of ratings considerably.
Web links
- Center for Science and Environment (Official Website)
- Gobar Times (The Organization's Magazine)
- Disadvantage Delhi: Smog here to stay. Hindustan Times. November 8, 2012 (English).
- Center for Science and Environment rejects proposal to set up a National Investment Board. The Times of India. October 26, 2012 (English).
- Poor planning, climate shifts devastating India's Sundarbans. AlertNet. 17th November 2012.
- Smaller cities are new air pollution hot spots: Anumita Roychowdhury, CSE. Economic Times. November 22, 2012.
literature
- Gobar Times, Institute's Environmental Education Magazine for Young Adults (since 1998)
- Agi Makil: Sustainability for India. Tectum Verlag, 2011, ISBN 978-3-8288-2518-5
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b CSE website: Financial report of CSE for the year 2011-12. ( Memento of the original from September 22, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (As of March 31, 2012; PDF; 418 kB)
- ↑ About us: Timeline. (CSE website)
