The Oxford-Achilles Working Group
on Corporate Social Responsibility

Abstract: Multinational corporations have extensive experience implementing their global CSR strategies in China, while Chinese companies have demonstrated growing understanding of best practices and are developing increasingly sophisticated programs. With a heavy government presence in all sectors of the economy and limited civil society, multinational companies have to adapt global strategies to local conditions when designing and implementing a CSR strategy in China. Perspectives of CSR and sustainability amongst government officials and Chinese companies have evolved quickly, often shaped by seminal events such as the Sichuan earthquake in 2008. A unique identity for CSR in China is emerging, one that potentially presents challenges for multinational corporations and NGOs seeking to import standards and principles that serve them well elsewhere. This seminar will examine how government notions of nationalism, sovereignty, governance and accountability shape corporate sustainability and CSR practices in China and the implications for corporate-government relations and innovative CSR approaches such as Public Private Partnerships.

Biography: Drew Thompson is the Director of China Studies and Starr Senior Fellow at The Nixon Center in Washington, D.C. Prior to joining The Nixon Center, he was the National Director of the China-MSD HIV/AIDS Partnership in Beijing, a 5 year, $30 million HIV/AIDS program established by Merck & Co. and the Chinese Ministry of Health. Drew served previously as Assistant Director to the Freeman Chair in China Studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). He also was the President of a Washington, D.C. company that manufactured snack food in Qingdao, China. He lived in Shanghai from 1993 to 1998 where he was the General Manager of a U.S. freight forwarding and logistics firm, overseeing offices in Beijing, Shanghai, and Nanjing. He was the founder and Chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce Transportation and Logistics Committee in Shanghai and has travelled extensively throughout China in both urban and rural areas. Drew studied Chinese language at Beijing University in 1990, and was a graduate student in 1992 at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Chinese and American Studies in Nanjing, China. He graduated cum laude with a B.A. in Asian Studies from Hobart College in 1992, and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. In 2004, Drew received an M.A. in Government, with a concentration in Homeland Security, from Johns Hopkins University. Drew has authored articles on Sino-US relations, international security, public health and HIV/AIDS in Foreign Policy, China Security, The China Business Review, The International Herald Tribune, The Financial Times, China: An International Journal, The South China Morning Post and is a regular contributor to China Brief. He has conducted live television interviews for CNN, C-SPAN, Fox News, Bloomberg, the BBC, Voice of America and CNBC Asia. In addition, he has conducted interviews on National Public Radio, including appearances on the Diane Rehm show.

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