Building the Capacity for CSR Through Supportive Initiatives in Estonia

Estonia is a country that experienced lengthy periods under many foreign powers such as Denmark, Germany, Sweden and Russia. It enjoyed a short period of independence in terms of economic and social prosperity, and was again occupied by the Soviet Union for 50 years. It has been relatively successful as an independent state in rebuilding a sustainable economy and developing a favourable business climate leading to rapid growth in its economy and social dimensions. Now that the initial rapid and radical changes are over, businesses have started to realise the importance of corporate social responsibility (CSR); although, corporate social responsibility and its related topics are not yet being discussed at length publicly, and people may claim that they are not familiar with the concept at all. At the same time, it seems that much more is actually being done by companies; although, these activities are often not acknowledged as CSR. We can see that in most cases CSR is freely accepted by companies, while support from the government is relatively modest. Although a National CSR Strategy for Enterprises has been created, it only performs an advisory role, and CSR initiatives have not been supported by the public authorities. Therefore, we can argue that in many companies and especially among public officials, CSR is still perceived as corporate philanthropy, sponsorship and/or marketing activities rather than a consideration of and responsibility to stakeholders. However, this view has recently started to change in several business organisations; moreover, a new generation of civil society is taking the lead, willing to enter into dialogue and contribute to a more developed and better balanced society where CSR has a central role. Although CSR has been left mainly as an initiative of companies, there are some non-profit and academic institutions which have taken leading roles and are fostering CSR related initiatives in Estonia. They are increasing awareness about CSR and related issues, conducting research, providing training and consultation whilst supporting those organisations that want to know more and develop further in this field. Among these activities there is also a CSR Index, which helps companies to define, evaluate and monitor their economic, social and environmental impacts and to highlight areas that require further development.