There is an exciting social innovation approach happening in India through INDIACSR, which is the first and currently the only online news portal promoting Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), launched in 2009. The loose definition of CSR is for a company to embrace responsibility for its actions and encourage a positive impact through its activities on the environment, consumers, employees, communities, stakeholder and all other members of its public sphere who are also considered stakeholders.

INDIACSR is a pioneer in the Indian sub-continent and has within a very short span of time gained immense popularity among CSR practitioners in India and abroad. It aims to deliver ethical and honest information and covers a wide range of activities with information from national and international sources. It is dedicated to making significant contributions to CSR in India and has become the leading business network for the region. It was set up by Rusen Kumar who saw a gap in the sustainable market and understood that CSR itself is an activity that needs social innovation and creativity. So, he created this online community, which helps companies to engage, share ideas on their best CSR practices and discuss collaborative projects.

This social innovation platform has a mission to support experts and organisations to build responsible and sustainable businesses in India. It does this by providing powerful opportunities for learning experiences with relevant theory, frameworks and tools. On May 9^th it will host a conference in Mumbai themed, “CSR & Competitiveness,” which will look at support for business sustainability. Through its events and activities INDIACSR contributes significantly to make CSR in India strong and more widespread among its corporates.

INDIACSR future plans includes launching an award system to recognise the best and most original practices in the field of CSR, as well as collaborating with global players designing and delivering sustainable business growth and social innovation. It has already made steps towards collective working when it launched its partnership with U.S. platform 3BL Media, the leading distributor of CSR, sustainability news and content. This relationship will expand both INDIACSR and 3BL Media’s news and content distribution network, giving both parties additional worldwide reach. Plus, crucially for INDIACSR, as part of this alliance with 3BL Media it will be bringing the best practices CSR stories from American businesses to Indian CSR professionals.

Rusen Kumar is a media savvy guru who wants to grow his social innovation CSR initiative into an inspiring network of business people working towards the common goal of sustainability and says, “We are dedicated to bringing passion and enthusiasm in our approach by finding novel and innovative ways to go about our business.” INDIACSR has become a key event in the history of CSR in India and has become a site that cannot be ignored!

Sangeeta Haindl

I am a staff writer for Justmeans on Social Enterprise. When I am not writing for Justmeans, I wear my other hat as a PR professional. Over the years I have worked with high-profile organisations within the public, not-for-profit and corporate sectors; and won awards from my industry. I now run my own UK consultancy, Serendipity PR & Media; I am a firm believer in the power of serendipity for business. Do e-mail me if you want to know more and what this means. I also am a Twitter lover and believe that social media is shaping the way we live our lives and do business. I would also describe myself as a Spiritual Entrepreneur, Conscious Explorer and Futurist. I enjoys helping others, paying it forward and being a mum.