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Chile 2010 Notes

26 June 2010

I am staying at La Casa Roja hostel in Santiago. I took a little walk around the neighbourhood. To be honest, it’s quite run down – lots of graffiti, crumbling buildings and general urban decay. This is most likely a story of poverty rather than neglect. Just a few blocks from the hostel, I saw a man ‘sleeping rough’ on a bench. These are the real homeless and I wince to think of people like him outdoors at night when temperatures are sub-zero.

Tomorrow, after the football, I will take a walk downtown (fortunately we are close). I will probably head for the Arts & Culture Museum, and take it from there. It is my favourite part of any trip – discovering a new city, soaking up the urban delights, practicing a kind of cultural osmosis. I far prefer this slow, partial approach – getting intimate with my local surroundings – rather than rushing around with a ‘must-see, must-do’ tourist checklist.

27 June 2010

I took a walk downtown and discovered a castle – Santa Lucia. It’s on a little hill and has fantastic views of Santiago, including the backdrop of ice-capped mountains. Many photos later, I walked on to the Art Gallery. There were a few unusual sculptures, but not many paintings that grabbed me. The exception was a portrait of a Chinese coal miner. They also had lots of historical photos from the late 1800s, which gave some insight into a bygone, pre-Fordian era. The best one was of a group of kids, each with a different expression on their faces.

After the gallery, I walked to the main city square. By then, the sun was setting and I arrived just in time to witness a religious procession – a few hundred people, most with candles, some with banners of the Virgin Mary, and some in religious robes. The priests leading the march were swinging incense, and somewhere in the middle was an altar with a statue of Jesus. Then bells tolled and hymns played over the speakers of a van set up for the purpose. Everyone joined in singing, including spectators. Quite touching really, even though the religious practices themselves hold no meaning for me anymore.

The cathedral itself is on the square, so I went in and drifted a while in its reverential ambience. The square is also the place for street artists and buskers. Before leaving the square, I went over to listen to a singer who had drawn a bit of a crowd (Precila Guzman; I bought here CD to remember the moment). Some of the people were watching, but most – young and old – were spontaneously dancing. I was almost moved to tears, to see such natural joy, such celebration of life. It is one of the things I love about Latin culture. Music moves them, literally.

05 July 2010

I am staying for a few days in Valdivia with Manfred Max-Neef (“barefoot economist” and author of Human Scale Development). It took us 10 hours to drive from Santiago – very picturesque, especially with the Andes. The city is right on the sea, with a massive river going through it, and the university (of which Manfred was President a few years ago) is on an island.

Valdivia was the site of the worst earthquakes in recorded history in the 1960s (much worse than the one they had in Chile earlier this year, which was bad enough). As a result of all the subsidence (about 3 metres), a lot of the city became a wetland. This attracted all kinds of birdlife, including the rare black-necked swan. Unfortunately, due to pollution, they all died or relocated to other parts. Now, as I look out the window from Manfred’s study, there are 2 garden sculptures of these swans, which he keeps in memory of their brief period of abundance.

We took a brief drive around the campus, which is beautiful; lots of trees. Unfortunately, it is raining, so we can’t go for a walk in the Botanical Gardens. Apparently, a big storm is coming. The office here has a view over the river.

I am once again struck by how local and immediate life is. Collecting experiences is all well and good, but what we are doing now, in this moment, how we are feeling, who we love and are loved by – only these things keep us content and motivated. In a sense, we have to keep on creating the means of our own happiness, as if life is a river in which we always must have an oar in the water if we don’t want to be swept away.

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New Zealand 2010 Notes

19 June 2010

I arrived in Auckland after marathon flights from China to Greece and then to New Zealand. Luckily, the jetlag is not too bad, as the time zone here is not too different from Shanghai, and I wasn’t in Athens long enough to re-adjust to European time. I am staying with family in the quaint village of Howick.

One of my discoveries in Howick was a quaint coffee shop called Cafe Paris. How would I describe it … eclectic! The walls are crammed with an odd, colourful collections of paintings and art – flying pigs, lavender fields, a family at the beach, a musical trio (tuber, whistle and violin) and a Rembrandt/Renoir. Also little ornaments on the sills: tortoises, cats, mice, a hippopotamus, a penguin, a pig, a pelican, horses and a fat lady in a swimming costume. From where I am sitting, I can see 4 mirrors (2 heart-shaped) and 6 clocks! I could go on and on. Very quaint.

I went to a wonderful classical concert the night before leaving for Wellington, featuring the Sibelius violin concerto and Grieg’s Peer Gynt Suite, which was simply divine. Before that we drove up to the top of Mount Eden, which is a volcano crater on the edge of Auckland city – you will have seen it on one of the photos; it is all grassed now. In the morning, we took the ferry to Waiheki island, where we walked around the craft markets. It has a real village / hippie feel about it. We also managed to squeeze in a visit to the tranquil Fo Guang Shan Buddhist temple.

At the airport, I found some New Zealand music – a soprano called Kiri Te Kanawa and a modern Maori singer called Maisey Rika, who reminds me a bit of Freshly Ground and Nora Jones.

22 June 2010

I am sitting in the cafe in Te Papa (The People), which is the museum in Wellington. It is an impressive space with some stunning exhibitions, especially of the Maori and islander history, culture and art. Most remarkable of all (for me) are the wood carvings. I think the detail and quality surpass anything I have seen anywhere else, except perhaps Thailand.

Interestingly, the carvings, which are mainly masks, draw a lot of their inspiration and beauty from the tattoo art of the tribes, which is also exquisite. Apart from traditional culture, the museum also tells the story of colonialism. I will copy some of the treaty ‘Her Majesty’ entered into with the Confederation of Tribes. It is so blatantly exploitative as to almost seem like a joke.

25 June 2010

I have had a good day in Christchurch. This morning, I met with Jye Lu, a PhD student in CSR. We found a coffee shop for breakfast, then she showed me around the city, including the Canterbury University campus and the beach. The weather was perfect for sea-photos – overcast but with bright sun reflecting on the waves and shoreline. I managed to get a few photos of the seagulls in flight and reflected on the sand. Jye then took me to a discount store that sells outdoor clothing, so I could buy gloves, a scarf and a beanie, plus a fleece. Now I’m all geared up to face the South American winter!

As I write this diary, I am in Annie’s restaurant, at the Christchurch Arts Centre, sitting next to a log fire. I just had a delicious winter vegetable soup with home-made bread, and now I am sipping a port and scribbling away. The Arts Centre here is quite lovely. It used to be the university campus and all the buildings have an English abbey kind of feel to them. There are numerous galleries and also studios where you can watch the artists at work. One of the most interesting is someone who does ‘stone kinetics’ – essentially photography of male models in various poses with stone sculptures.

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Greece 2010 Notes

12 June 2010

This has been a crazy leg of the trip, but worthwhile. I delivered the keynote address at an inaugural conference on CSR 2.0, hosted by CEO & CSR Money Conference 2010 and sponsored by EuroCharity.

It was nice to be in Athens again. The first time I visited, in the late 1990s, I was in transit with 10 hours to spare, so I rushed around the city, visiting the Acropolis and other historic sites. It was hot, crowded and I wasn’t terribly impressed. One of my most vivid memories was of all the half-starving stray cats in the parks. Of course, I could hardly do the city or country any justice in 10 hours!

The second time I came to Greece, it was for a meeting of the ICCA (the organisation that sponsored The A to Z of CSR book). I was whisked out of Athens to some luxurious coastal part and remember having a bath in my hotel room with a view over the bay. Luxury indeed!

This time is different again, although no less luxurious – I stayed (if arriving at 2 am and checking out the same morning qualifies as ‘stays’) at the 5-star Olympic hotel, which overlooks the historic heart of the city, with views of the Acropolis as well. It is strange to think that Plato or Aristotle could have been in that very place thousands of years ago.

As my colleague, John Elkington, who shared the platform with me at the conference, said to our hosts: ‘Thanks for civilization!’ The conference was in one of the historical buildings right in the centre of Athens’ green lung. Apart from the wonderful cool marble floors and walls, the towering pillars and patterned ceilings were beautiful. Terrible acoustics for a talk (lots of echoes) but a welcome change from the usual plush hotel conference rooms.

Being in Athens again really made me thing about how things have changed in the past 10 years or so. When I came the first time, it was in the lead up to the 2004 Olympics and I remember a conversation with a taxi driver, who was optimistic about the future for Greece. Now, their economy is in tatters and their national pride is severely damaged. They have unwittingly become the ‘canary in the mine’, a warning for the rest of Europe and the world about the consequences of corruption and greed (or are they just a victim of shareholder-driven capitalism?).

How the world turns!

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China 2010 Notes

30 May 2010

Peking University campus – There is a large lake about 5 minutes walk away, where I plan to walk (or maybe even jog!) every day. There are also several sculptures that I am taking pictures of.

I once started a university course in Mandarin. I never got very far, but it is an indication of how long I have been fascinated with Chinese culture, and in love with its written language. To me, the script is like art. The closest thing to a religion that I align myself with these days is Taoism – the ancient Chinese philosophy of harmony and balance. The Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu is poetry and wisdom combined.

I think the West is far too judgemental of China. No doubt, there are some policies that we would find difficult, but what I see is an emerging nation, full of dynamism and progress, including on many social, environmental and ethical issues. Just this morning, I read in the paper that new regulations make evidence obtained under duress inadmissible in court.

There’s a palpable sense here that the only way is up, that the future is all to play for and that a combination of vision, national pride and hard work make all dreams possible. It all seems rather familiar – the same sort of ideals that built the American Dream. The 21st century will be the century of the Chinese Dream.

 02 June 2010

One of the things I love about the Chinese is that they value the artistic side of life. And not just paintings and sculptures. They see art in nature. For example, in many temples and palaces, they will simply frame a slab of marble stone with a beautiful pattern, or erect an interesting stone formation as a sculpture, or even just create a window frame with a view onto a tree or garden.

06 June 2010

It is Sunday, my last ‘free’ day before my workshop tomorrow. Last night, it was good to get off the campus and into the city. The underground is excellent – very clear and simple, with constant updates. The trains have electronic maps of the tube lines, where a flashing red dot and a green arrow tell you exactly where you are and the direction you are travelling. And it is ‘cheap as chips’ – about 20p to travel anywhere in the city. Even the taxis are cheap – about £5 to go from the centre to the outskirts of the city (and Beijing is bigger than London).

After a British embassy event choral event, I went on with some friends to the ‘Stone Boat’ bar, a beautiful bar/restaurant in the middle of a park, overlooking a lake and literally on a stone boat. Stone boats are an ancient tradition of the emperors of China. After that, we went to a jazz club with live music, then I took a taxi back to the campus.

It is interesting to see how many Westerners are moving to China – many of them permanently. Clare is English and has been here about 7 years. In our group were also two Americans, one Canadian and a Pakistani. It is testimony, I think, to the fact that China is seen by many as ‘the brave new world’ – the superpower of the future.

I have been very content here in Beijing and I could easily spend a month here, just writing, walking around the lakes and parks and occasionally heading into the city for a change of scenery. There are some amazing buildings downtown, many of which were built in preparation for the 2008 Olympics. From what I can gather, the Olympics had a dramatic positive effect, not only in improving infrastructure and public transport, but also in reducing pollution and opening up to Western ideas.

Tomorrow night, I take the overnight train to Shanghai, sharing a compartment of four. I am looking forward to it. It brings back memories of the two day train my sister and I took a few times from Cape Town to Bulawayo. There is something wonderful about watching the world speeding by outside the window, having time to read, falling asleep to the clickety-clack gentle sway of the train.

10 June 2010

My time in Shanghai and China has been all too brief. There is so much to see and explore that I expect I will keep coming back for the rest of my life, especially given my interest and affinity for the culture.

Yesterday, I did a video interview with Jacylyn Shi, one of my hosts here. We found a quiet park near the venue for my talk to do it. Then it turned out that a man was doing Tai Chi in the background while I was filming – just wonderful! After the interview, we were walking through the park and we saw the Tai Chi man again. So Jacylyn asked him to teach me some Tai Chi moves. She took some photos of me looking very clumsy trying to copy him, but it was an unexpected and delightful experience.

Of course, Shanghai is not only ancient but rapidly turning into one of the most modern cities in the world. Some people say it lacks soul and that it is too commercial – all brands and no substance. But I like it – it’s vibrant and constantly changing.

The Expo was just a glimpse into what is possible in this city now. There were some fabulous buildings and exhibits, even though I only saw about a quarter of the Expo site. It is probably no coincidence that the quietest pavilions were the eco-design ones, while the oil and Cisco (technology) displays were among the most popular. Some, like the China and Saudi pavilions had 7 hour ques! I’m not sure any exhibit is worth such a long wait, but it just shows the excitement and thirst for new experiences among the Chinese. The Expo is getting 500,000 people a day!

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Ukraine 2010 Notes

27 April 2010

My visit to Kiev, Ukraine, to deliver a talk at the IV International CSR Conference was worthwhile, but far too fleeting. From the brief night-tour I had, I can see that it is a beautiful city, with lots of fascinating architecture and history. The Kiev equivalent of the Statue of Liberty, which stands 8 metres higher than it’s American counterpart, is a case in point.

While here, my favourite books of all time – Possession, Time Traveller’s Wife and Bridge Across Forever – have been wrested from top spot by the epic, gritty, poetic, Bombay-based biography that is Shantaram. It is at once compelling and disturbing, beautiful and ghastly, insightful and confusing. It blurs the lines between good and evil, between love and tragedy, between life and death.

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India 2010 Notes

17 April 2010

Now, after a few days back in Kuala Lumpur to pick up my India visa and an overnight stop in Singapore, I am on my way to India, a place I have dreamed of visiting for many years. Much like the Far East, so many of my philosophical and spiritual influences originate here that it feels like a soul homecoming of sorts (although culturally, these countries are very foreign and unfamiliar). It will essentially be a working trip, as my two weeks are packed with talks and workshops (in Mumbai, Raipur, Delhi, Chennai and Pune), but sometimes that is the most authentic way to get to know a country.

21 April 2010

My first few days in India have been all work and no play, but rewarding nevertheless. The evening that I arrived in Mumbai, I interviewed the founder and researcher at Karmayog, an organisation which runs an information and sharing portal for NGOs and citizens, including the ability to report corruption. It also runs a CSR Rating of the top 500 companies in India.

The following day, I travelled to Raipur to deliver a talk on the Future of CSR, hosted by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). The flight back to Mumbai was via Bhopal, which felt somehow significant, given my work and the number of times I have used the 1984 Bhopal disaster as a case in my talks and writing.

Yesterday, in Delhi, I did a workshop on CSR Around the World, hosted by the national power supplier (NTPC). Several power cuts during my stay at their guest house seemed ironic, but just highlights the scale of the challenges India faces. Today, I do a workshop on CSR, Marketing and PR, hosted by NASSCOM.

My impressions of India so far are still in flux. On the one hand, I didn’t get the ‘assault on my senses’ that I had expected, other than the heat – it has been 43 Celsius during the day and 30 at night, the highest April temperatures in 52 years. Poverty is everywhere in evidence, but is not as overwhelming or pervasive as I had expected. Perhaps I am just accustomed to slums and scenes of hand-to-mouth existence, having grown up in South Africa and travelled extensively in developing countries.

What is more notable is the traffic. Not only are the roads swarming with cows, bicycles, bull carts, rickshaws, auto-rickshaws, taxis, cars, buses and trucks, but there appear to be no rules of the road, other than ‘take the gap’. Traffic lanes, stop signs and traffic lights have no meaning. Hooting is constant. Many cars and trucks even have ‘Horn .. ok .. please’ painted on their bumpers, seemingly encouraging hooting in the interests of safety. Somehow, this lack of rules makes drivers more alert and aware, so in a chaotic way, it works.

Cutting through the dust and (in Delhi) the smog are iridescent colours – of the women’s saris, the brightly painted trucks and the temples, shrines, gods and goddesses. I find this fascinating, that the hottest, driest and often poorest places in the world are also the most colourful. Perhaps it is compensation for a harsh and bland environment, or perhaps it is simply the richness of indigenous cultures.

There is also a real sense of diversity and dynamism among the people here – constantly busy and bustling, wheeling and dealing, in animated discussion, struggling to make themselves seen and heard amidst the crowd, manoeuvring, manipulating, engaged in the cut and thrust of survival. What is also different is that people and animals mix and move freely together, on the streets and pavements, through waste dumps and in markets. It is a moving morass of life that is unmanageable and incredible.

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Cambodia 2010 Notes

17 April 2010

Last Saturday, I headed to Cambodia with my mom and dad. Siem Reap is a bustling town, totally geared for the tourist trade, but without having lost its agricultural and cultural roots. I felt very relaxed among the people, dusty roads, scooters and market stalls. Our visit to the various Angkor Wat temples was fascinating. They are just as one imagines jungle temple ruins should be.

We had a very informative guide, who was very patient with our endless picture taking and videoing. My favourites were the two temples that were returning to nature, with trees growing throughout the crumbling complexes and roots clinging to the remaining walls. We also had a hot hike through the jungle to an area where a rocky river bed had been carved.

The only pity, for both Thailand and Cambodia, was that we were too early for the rainy season. As a result, the temperatures were scorching (over 35 or 40 degrees most days and over 25 most nights), the landscape was not very green, the rice paddies were still dust bowls and the waterfalls were hardly more than trickles. Despite this, it was an incredible 2 weeks or so, with many amazing sights and rich experiences.

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Thailand 2010 Notes

05 April 2010

Arrived in Koi Samui, after a few days in Bangkok, spent with my parents. We took in the usual sights – a visit to the Grand Palace, a canal boat ride, a tour to the floating markets, a trip into the city to buy dad a new camcorder with digital hard drive and a ride on a tuk-tuk.

The most interesting part for me was that our hotel was right in the heart of the red-shirts protest zone. That made it a very noisy 36 hours, with constant sloganeering and speechifying over the load speakers set up about 250 metres from the hotel (including throughout the night). I didn’t really mind. The protests were all peaceful (at that stage) and it was interesting having such a close-up window on a rising social resistance movement.

My 3 hour speech on Friday – hosted at the Thailand Stock Exchange, with sponsorship and support from Thai Health Promotion Fund and NGO Business Partnership – seemed to go down well. Certainly, it was an honour to be the expert guest, with over 150 participants. I also took my parents to the Cabbages and Condoms restaurant, a social enterprise to promote awareness on safe sex and HIV/AIDS with décor made from condoms and pills.

17 April 2010

I haven’t written since arriving at Koh Samui. On the Tuesday before my sister’s wedding, both sets of families and friends had a day of adventures together, travelling by boat from Koh Samui to various islands for snorkelling, kayaking, and hiking to an enclosed lagoon (where they filmed The Beach, I think). The snorkelling along a small coral reef was amazing; definitely something I’d like to do more of, or even scuba diving. Mom, Dad and I also spent a day exploring some of the Buddhist and Hindu temples, including a giant gold statues of Buddha and a 12-armed goddess.

The bachelor party the night before the wedding was lots of fun. After dinner, we headed to the part of the island where all the night-life happens. The open-air, circular bars were quite an eye opener, with girls serving drinks, playing games (like Jenga) with customers and pole dancing (fully clothed), all while trying to entice clients into buying more than just a drink. Very bizarre.

The wedding itself in Koh Samui was really lovely – an idyllic setting, beautiful floral arrangements, thoughtful words of love in the ceremony and grand finale with an elephant ride for the bride and groom. The setting meant that everyone was fairly relaxed; I even wore my crocs! The size of the wedding also meant that it was quite intimate. My sister looked absolutely stunning and it all went off wonderfully.

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Malaysia 2010 Notes

29 March 2010

My first emotion, on stepping out into the baking heat of Kuala Lumpur (KL), was relief. I was back in a developing country (albeit a fairly prosperous one), with all that implies. For me, it is like the difference between classical music (Europe, or Singapore), pop (USA) and jazz (the Third World). I like all three styles, but jazz countries are where I feel most relaxed, most soulful.

I am staying at Tune Hotel, downtown KL. This is part of the low cost airline group, Air Asia, and in some ways it shows. Any luxuries (like a bathroom towel, toiletries, air conditioning and wireless) cost extra. Also (a new first for me) there are billboard adverts inside the room: McDonald’s above the bed and Maggie (noodles) in the bathroom. However, it is clean and rather spacious (even a separate toilet and shower!).

My first week here has been more work than play – what with my Indian visa application, La Trobe University assignments and exams to mark, a Journal of Business Ethics paper to review and a backlog of Cambridge interviews to analyse, not to mention preparing for tomorrow’s Future of CSR workshop. The Starbucks across the road has become my virtual office (caffeine + aircon + free wireless internet = happiness in KL :).

I have had a few excursions beyond the hotel and “office”. On Monday, Nabil Muruga (my host) treated me to a Malaysian-Indian style lunch (deliciously spicy) and on Thursday Sanjukta Choudhury Kaul took me out for an “uptown” dinner. She is an amazing person. Despite losing most of her hearing during pregnancy, she is full of energy for life, and is now working on a PhD on CSR and disabilities.

I had a chance to meet and interview Puvan, Chief Sustainability Officer at Sime Darby (I had met him briefly at the EU conference in Singapore). With the Greenpeace Nestle/Kit-Kat story having just hit the headlines, and with Sime Darby supplying nearly 10% of the world’s palm oil, it was an interesting time to speak with him. I also met and interviewed Tan Lin Lah, Executive Director of the UN Global Compact for Malaysia, and had a drink with some of the members.

Saturday was a tourist day, so I headed for the Petronas Twin Towers (88 storeys and still the highest building duo in the world), walked around the park (discovered a beautiful whale sculpture), then got on the hop-on-hop-off tourist bus. The panoramic view 250 metres up, from the KL Tower viewing deck, reveals extensive green space among the gleaming spires and sprawling asphalt. On the tour, I heard about Malaysia’s long trading history in tin, rubber and now palm oil.

Over the weekend, I watched two movies – the quirky Chinese film, Just Another Pandora’s Box, and the melodrama, Remember Me. With no TV in the hotel, perhaps I am suffering from audiovisual deprivation :). I also discovered Malaysia’s love (or is it obsession?) with shopping. Ten storey shopping malls are the new cathedrals to modernisation, and this gorging consumerism seems to have most of Asia in its grip. Perhaps an inevitable consequence of rapid economic development and Westernisation. And who are we to judge?

Today, I did a 30 minute radio intervciew with the gorgeous Freda Liu on BFM (The Business Station) and tomorrow I run the workshop. I hope my voice holds out. I’m still battling a throat infection. I’m sure the fluctuations of hot weather and cold aircon haven’t helped. With the Heat Index (comining temperature and humidity) reaching into the 40s (Celsius) some days, and night temperatures of around 25 degrees, aircon buildings serve as a welcome respite. The afternoon tropical storms with lashings of rain are also a glorious relief, recharging all the heat-doped senses.

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Singapore 2010 Notes

20 March 2010

It is raining steadily, as I sit overlooking the Singapore River, with my hot tea and curly fries. Not exactly sightseeing weather, but as it is not cold, I am content enough. It’s only a bit of water after all. Besides, having nearly lost my voice through a throat infection and a bit of a cold coming on, I’m not bouncing off the walls. It seems a good time to reflect on my few days here, before I make my way to Malaysia tomorrow.

Apart from the balmy weather, there’s a lot to like about Singapore. It is organised without feeling over-policed (despite the joke that it is a fine city – for everything, there is a fine). Everything works, and the people are friendly. Because of the mix of cultures and the cornucopia of shopping malls, there is a very cosmopolitan feel about the place. And yet, it is not all neon lights and concrete; there are plenty of green spaces and cultural sites to visit.

After arriving on Monday night, I had a ‘rest day’ and took a city tour. My favourite part was the story of how the merlion represents Singapore’s past as a fishing village – hence the mermaid’s tail – and the future, a lion representing power and progress. Singapore literally means ‘lion city’ and has 5 colossus merlion statues in the city. Another memory I will take away is walking along a busy boulevard (Orchard Road), just when the sun was setting and the trees roaring with the deafening sound of birds roosting for the night.

The botanical gardens, which I only visited briefly, are extensive and beautiful. I was hoping to see the Singapore Symphony Orchestra playing there tonight in an open air amphitheatre, but they are playing in another public venue. I might still go to listen, depending on how the weather holds up. Meanwhile, I will head down the Singapore River towards the waterfront. I have heard there are some sculptures in the area.

The food is, as one would expect, a fabulous mix of Asian cuisine. I had a particularly delicious dinner on Thursday evening at Tambuah Mas, an Indonesian restaurant. I was also spoiled with a dinner at the top of the 64 story Republic Plaza Tower, hosted by the EU ambassador to Singapore. Besides the food, a trip to the Singapore Art Museum was more weird than wonderful, but it was interesting to see several exhibitions making political statements against oppression in countries like Indonesia.

My work in Singapore has been quite good, despite being unpaid. On Wednesday I gave a 2 hour talk on The Future of CSR hosted by the Singapore Compact for CSR and had about 80 people in attendance, and there were about 250 people at the EU conference on CSR, where I gave the concluding talk. My accommodation – the YMCA Orchard Road – has also been a pleasant surprise: far more hotel than hostel. Unlike in my Melbourne pad, the toilet was not actually in the shower cubical! 🙂

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