Continuing the theme of “CSR Practices in Multinational Companies” a special lecture was held at Beijing Foreign Studies University on December 16th 2009, jointly organized by CIBE and the Theory Study Association of BFSU. The keynote speaker for the event was Alexis Vannier, China Communication Director at PSA Peugeot Citroen.

In his speech Mr. Vannier gave an overview of the corporate values at Citroen Group and explained in detail some of the sustainable development strategies which have been developed and implemented across its global operations.  One of the most significant challenges facing the automobile industry currently is managing carbon dioxide emissions. It is estimated that fourteen percent of greenhouse gas emissions in the world today are produced by transportation, of which automobiles play a large part. Within China, pollution from automobiles has been growing rapidly as the economy has grown, a trend which has been further exacerbated with the growing car ownership rates. Mr. Vannier discussed the solutions that Citroen has adopted, using creativity and investment in advanced technology in order to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

Mr. Vannier argued that sustainable development demands we strike a balance between economic, social and environmental priorities. He took the poliy used by French government as an example of how these different needs can be met. The French government policy consists of a system of rewards and penalties which strongly encourage vehicle users to lower emissions and thus provide great incentives to automobile manufacturers to invest and innovate. According to data from 2006, through its efforts to become a leader in sustainability, Citroen Group has already captured 30% of the European auto market, in which cars  produce on average less than 120 grams of carbon per kilometer. Citroen Group is a good example of a company which takes social responsibility seriously and has thus benefited greatly in terms of improving its brand reputation with consumers and other stakeholders.