Responsible Care - A Case Study is the first book of its kind to provide insight into the development and evolution of Responsible Care and its influence of societal outcomes on the basis of case studies. It provides readers in industry, government, and academia with the principles and innovative thinking associated with the Responsible Care ethic as a means to promote and implement such advanced concepts in their own institution.

Peter Topalovic,McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada; Gail Krantzberg, McMaster University, Hamilton Canada

1;Preface;5 2;List of contributing authors;11 3;1 Responsible Care: History and development;13 3.1;1.1 Responsible Care project;13 3.2;1.2 Key principles underpinning Responsible Care;14 3.2.1;1.2.1 Doing the right thing;14 3.2.2;1.2.2 Being open and responsive to public concerns;15 3.2.3;1.2.3 Caring about products from cradle-to-grave-to-cradle again;16 3.3;1.3 History of Responsible Care;16 3.4;1.4 Basic philosophy;18 3.4.1;1.4.1 Building trust in Canada: An on-going mission;18 3.4.2;1.4.2 Integrating the social dimension;20 3.4.3;1.4.3 Transition at the international level: Global expansion;21 3.5;1.5 Implementation challenges in gaining company support;22 3.5.1;1.5.1 Reflection on drivers;22 3.5.2;1.5.2 Securing initial commitment;23 3.5.2.1;1.5.2.1 The need for risk communication;24 3.5.2.2;1.5.2.2 The business case for Responsible Care;24 3.5.2.3;1.5.2.3 Corporate social responsibility;24 3.5.3;1.5.3 Operational challenges;25 3.5.3.1;1.5.3.1 Overcoming a legal mentality;25 3.5.3.2;1.5.3.2 Ethical behavior has a societal context, upon which trust will be built through external acceptance;25 3.5.3.3;1.5.3.3 Seeking and acquiring full Chief Executive Officer ommitment;26 3.5.3.4;1.5.3.4 Acceptance of the need for comprehensiveness;26 3.5.3.5;1.5.3.5 Recognizing that the weakest link could defeat the initiative;26 3.5.3.6;1.5.3.6 Overcoming fears of Responsible Care as undue competitive burden;27 3.6;1.6 Maintaining commitment to Responsible Care;27 3.6.1;1.6.1 Guiding principles;27 3.6.2;1.6.2 Codes of management practices;28 3.6.3;1.6.3 Advisory process;28 3.6.4;1.6.4 Chief Executive Officer forum;28 3.6.5;1.6.5 Results confirmation process;29 3.6.6;1.6.6 Name protection;29 3.7;1.7 Role of government;29 3.8;1.8 The future of Responsible Care in Canada;30 3.9;1.9 Conclusion;31 3.10;Acknowledgements;32 3.11;References;32 4;2 Responsible Care in global supply chains: A case study;35 4.1;2.1 Introduction;35 4.2;2.2 Industrial chemical supply chains and product stewardship;36 4.3;2.3 Overview of the case study;38 4.3.1;2.3.1 Accountability for poor management of the supply chain and a lack of quality control;38 4.3.2;2.3.2 Economic and social effects of the incident and the ensuing litigation;40 4.4;2.4 Case study investigation: methods and analysis;41 4.4.1;2.4.1 Theory 1: The companies involved did not internalize the concepts of product stewardship and the cradle-to-cradle philosophy that Responsible Care advocates;42 4.4.1.1;2.4.1.1 The Source: Sinochem in China;42 4.4.1.2;2.4.1.2 The intermediary: VOS B.V. (now Helm Chemicals B.V.) in the Netherlands;42 4.4.1.3;2.4.1.3 The multinational firm: Helm AG, Germany;44 4.4.1.4;2.4.1.4 The destination: Pharval in Haiti;44 4.4.2;2.4.2 Theory 2: The loss of business, reputation and profits through erosion of trust was not a major consideration in the decision-making process of the companies involved;45 4.4.2.1;2.4.2.1 The business case for transparency and accountability in Responsible Care;46 4.4.2.2;2.4.2.2 Evidence of transparent and accountable business case success;47 4.4.2.3;2.4.2.3 Transparency, accountability as drivers for compliance and voluntary management;48 4.4.2.4;2.4.2.4 Risk assessment and management as drivers for compliance;48 4.4.2.5;2.4.2.5 Challenges for Responsible Care and sustainable supply-chain management;49 4.4.3;2.4.3 Theory 3: The companies involved in the case study did not embed the philosophies of Responsible Care ethic or create a corporate culture of stakeholder protection;50 4.4.3.1;2.4.3.1 Embeddedness: Responsible Care as ethic;51 4.4.3.2;2.4.3.2 Ethics and incentives for over-compliance: Going beyond environmental management;51 4.4.3.3;2.4.3.3 Responsible Care as a compliment to legislation;52 4.4.3.4;2.4.3.4 Corporate culture and international supply chains;53 4.5;2.5 Conclusion and discussion;54 4.6;References;55 5;3 Responsible Care ' s effectiveness in promoting sustainable industrial performance: A case study in sustainable chemical produc