The ChamberPost

In Search of the Next Big Plan

by Ted Deutsch

It was 100 years ago that Daniel Burnham, Edward Bennett and the Commercial Club of Chicago established the now world renowned "Burnham Plan" for the future growth of Chicago. With that historical backdrop, it was fitting that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce gathered CSR leaders in the windy city to talk about 21st century plans for corporate community investment.

Five Chicago corporate leaders led the day's first panel discussion, addressing the significance of the Burnham Plan's Centennial and contemporary efforts to create public-private partnerships that build on its legacy.

"Make no little plans," was Burnham's original mantra. Paul O'Connor's organization, the Burnham Plan Centennial, echoes that call with its own tagline: "Bold Plans, Big Dreams."  Just as the original plan involved partnership across businesses and government entities, recent projects advancing Chicago have featured similar alliances. Jerry Roper of the Chicagoland Chamber talked about the recent completion of Millennium Park, and the ongoing bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics -- both high profile examples of how companies can mobilize together for the public good. With the leadership of a powerful Mayor Daley (one panelist called him "our benevolent dictator"), the city offers numerous examples of how partnerships can get big things done.

Project HOPE - Helping Victims of 2008 China Earthquake

by John P. Howe, III, M.D.

May 12, 2008 will never be forgotten by the Chinese people. The massive earthquake in China’s Sichuan Province that claimed nearly 70,000 lives and injured hundreds of thousands more has also not been forgotten by Project HOPE and our generous corporate donors.  On the one year anniversary of this tragic event, Project HOPE continues to help with recovery efforts and today we are launching the China Rehabilitation Medicine Program. The comprehensive three-year program, a collaboration between Project HOPE, China’s Ministry of Health and our generous corporate donors, will increase the accessibility and quality of rehabilitation services so desperately needed by those recovering from earthquake-related injuries in the Sichuan Province. But the program, like many of Project HOPE’s sustainable health care programs, will do much more. The China Rehabilitation Medicine Program will also serve as a platform to improve overall rehabilitative care throughout China to help those in need now and into the future.

It's the "Systems" Stupid!

by Ted Deutsch

When companies participate in community investment, are they interested in bringing about marginal change, or systematic change? That was the provocative question which keynoter Michael Gallis posed to attendees during the first morning of the BCLC National Conference on Corporate Community Investment in Chicago.  In Gallis' comments and focus on how to think about change, this audience member couldn't help but hear a version the Bill Clinton presidential campaign catch-phrase of 17 years ago: "It's the systems stupid!"

Gallis, the founder of Gallis & Associates, is widely considered the country's leading expert in developing global strategies for large-scale metropolitan regions. A former professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Gallis recently consulted to the National Surface Transportation Policy Revenue and Study Commission and his firm has completed strategic development programs for a number of regions, states and nations.

Gallis had a clear message for the conference goers: if we want our initiatives to be effective, there are three critical points to keep in mind: 1) we have to act strategically versus tactically, 2) we must seek radical change versus incremental change (incremental modifies the status quo, radical replaces or displaces it), and 3) there is a difference between how we affect "parts" of a problem versus addressing the "systems" which underlie the problem.

Mile High Green

by Michele Weingarden

With a long and proud history of environmental innovation that includes the nation’s 9th most nationally recognized municipal “Green Fleet” and one of the country’s first ISO 14001-certified Environmental Management Systems that covers each municipal agency, Denver’s commitment to becoming one of the greenest cities in the country is well underway.  Mayor John Hickenlooper institutionalized the city’s green commitment with the creation of Greenprint Denver in 2006. 

Greenprint Denver is a community-wide sustainability plan demonstrating that local government can be an effective force for innovation and leadership to improve the environment. The Greenprint Denver plan, currently in its second year of implementation, covers programs in energy and water conservation, waste reduction, alternative transit development, renewable energy installations, green building and green economic development opportunities for the municipal government’s operations and the broader community.  Mayor Hickenlooper further formalized the City’s green vision by adopting Denver’s first Climate Action Plan in 2007. This ambitious plan commits Denver to a 25% reduction in carbon emissions by 2020. 

Strategic Frameworks and Community Systems

by Taryn Bird

As BCLC kicked off our 2009 Corporate Community Investment Conference in Chicago, Michael Gallis, Founder, Gallis and Associates spoke to the crowd of over 300 businesses, nonprofits and governments about the future of strategic development domestically and globally.

BCLC has placed its three programmatic focuses on the following: Global Development, Community Investment and Disaster Assistance and Recovery. One might think these three areas of have divergent priorities and unaligned focus. As Michael Gallis presented to the conference this is not the case. The strategic planning that is necessary inside disaster prevention, community and global development are more aligned than one might think.

Questions he posed to the crowd were: How do we develop community infrastructure systems that we will help to lessen the amount of post disaster reconstruction and rebuilding?  Would it not make sense to spend a little more on the front end of economic planning projects in the gulf coast to avoid the billions spent on rebuilding them once they have been disseminated by natural disasters?

The importance of systems thinking through strategic frameworks will help communities domestically and globally to think about prevention verses quick tactic reactions. Going from reactive to proactive system approaches inside these areas of development will lead us to change our traditional thinking and move towards a framework that complies with the changes that has been brought on by the 21st century.  

Michael Gallis is a senior advisor for BCLC and will be working on addressing these exact questions. If you are interested in more information please visit our website for more information. 

Rally for Recovery

By Kitty Taylor
 
This morning in Chicago, BCLC Executive Director Stephen Jordan and Director Katie Loovis unveiled Together for Recovery -- a national initiative to connect Americans with business resources and services that help fight the recession and accelerate long-term recovery.
 
Many business officials participated in the launch, telling the audience what their companies are doing to help individuals and communities during this tough time in our nation. "In times of distress," said U.S. Chamber president and CEO Tom Donohue, "businesses play the role of problem solvers."
 
We invite you to participate in this initiative -- visit the website to learn about the resources that are available -- now, at no charge -- to help Americans recover from the recession. If your company has an initiative that is helping but not yet listed, please email us to let us know.

H1N1 Update - 1 May 2009

by Ann Beauchesne

As Americans we are resilient, unless ill with the H1N1 flu virus we will go about our normal lives despite what Joe Biden says -- I kid, Mr. Vice-President, thank the President for the shout out -- and continue to fly on planes, take public transportation and eat our BLTs!  Below is some recent news about the H1N1 virus.

The situation continues to evolve rapidly. As of today, 11 countries have officially reported 331 cases of H1N1 infection. The United States has reported 109 laboratory confirmed cases, including one death. Mexico has reported 156 confirmed cases of infection, including nine deaths. The following countries have reported laboratory confirmed cases with no deaths - Austria (1), Canada (34), Germany (3), Israel (2), Netherlands (1), New Zealand (3), Spain (13), Switzerland (1) and the United Kingdom (8). [WHO Update]

Most Ridiculous Reaction to Date
Egypt has announced and begun carrying out the culling of all the nations' 300,000 pigs. This is occurring despite the fact that Egypt has no known cases of swine flu, and the H1N1 virus we are concerned about is not spread by pigs…..it is a respiratory virus spread from person-to-person.

News from Mexico

For 5 days starting today, the Mexican government is suspending nonessential services, advising non-critical businesses to close, and urging people to stay home, the Associated Press (AP) reported. Below is a fact sheet prepared by the Embassy of Mexico in the US on Mexico’s response to the influenza outbreak.

Mexico was prepared:

Mexico, the US and Canada have been preparing for five years, working in close cooperation knowing that a situation like this might emerge. During that time Mexico collaborated with the U.S. on emergency planning, including pandemic scenario exercises and worked with U.S. and Canadian labs to set up protocols and plans to quickly identify possible pandemic outbreaks. The results of that collaboration are that Mexico has systems in place to manage this situation, including the possibility that it evolves into a pandemic, and has begun to implement those plans.

Mexico has taken responsible actions:

From the moment the first case of this new H1N1 influenza was detected, the Mexican Government quickly recognized the seriousness of the situation and took immediate and responsible steps to protect its citizens and those traveling to Mexico from exposure to the flu virus, to contain its spread and to treat those who have become ill.

Mexico’s strategy to deal with this matter has two main elements: 1) To detect and treat all cases; 2) To stop its transmission through preventive measures. The Government has undertaken a massive media campaign to advise its citizens – and the world – of the health situation as it evolves and ordered emergency measures to limit exposure to the virus.

Company Donations Already at Work Against Flu Scare

by Gerald McSwiggan

Even in the midst of implementing their own continuity of operations to prepare for the H1N1 flu, companies are finding opportunities to help those affected.  Take the following three examples:

1. Abbott has sent more than $860,000 in antibiotics, pain medication and pediatric and adult nutritionals to Mexico through its partners AmeriCares and Mexican Order of Malta.

2. Merck's Mexico office made a donation of 80,000 doses of PULMOVAX (local brand of Pneumovax to treat secondary lung infections following swine flu infection) to the Mexican government.

3. Roche donated 5 million packs of Tamiflu to the WHO, including 3 million packs in a "rapid response" stockpile that can be deployed at the request of the WHO.

There are other reports of soap companies donating hand sanitizer to airports in Mexico.

These examples of corporate citizenship in times of crisis are not isolated cases.  During every major disaster, businesses step up with cash and in-kind donations to help victims of disasters and to help communities get back on their feet. 

For more information about businesses responding to disasters, including pandemic flu, click here. 

Rally for Recovery: Businesses Step Up Across America

by Stephen Jordan

BCLC has identified more than 200 corporate programs to help Americans respond to the economic crisis and accelerate recovery.  These programs are offered free of charge to targeted beneficiaries, but we estimate their dollar value to exceed $3 billion. And these programs don't even include operational decisions, such as those by Intel and ExxonMobil, to proceed with multi-billion dollar investments and hiring programs.

It's obvious that no single government agency, nonprofit organization, or company will be able to identify a "silver bullet" to immediately turn around the economic crisis. However, BCLC has identified a number of core focus areas that can help ease the burden of the recession, including:

• foreclosure prevention and housing counseling
• bankruptcy prevention and financial counseling
• job training, career pathing, and skills training
• business start-ups, stay-ups, grow-ups, and bankruptcy prevention
• basic individual and community needs

H1N1 Update - 30 April 2009

by Ann Beauchesne

//All H1N1 update posts

Encourage your Employees to Plan

Now is the time to remind employees to take care of their household's needs: extra food, water, prescription medications, a full tank of gas in the car, and, if possible, cash in their wallets. For both logistical and psychological reasons, everybody should be asked to take action.  An excellent checklist for individuals and families can be found at www.pandemicflu.gov/plan/individual/checklist.html

Communities Should Plan Ahead for School Closures

Officials Say:

Antivirals to Be Distributed to the States by May 3rd; Seasonal Flu Vaccine Production Could Precede H1N1 Vaccine, CDC Suggests

Today, Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, and Acting Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Dr. Rich Besser, took part in webcast regarding the H1N1 flu.

The three officials tamped down suggestions to close the borders, stating that mitigation is key.  (Last evening, during his press conference, President Obama downplayed the possibility of closing the border with Mexico as a way to control the virus.  "It would be akin to closing the barn door after the horses are out," he said.)  Besser noted that closing the borders would do more to harm trade and people's jobs than the move would help.  All three continued to discourage non-essential travel to Mexico.

Antivirals. Napolitano said the U.S. has sufficient antivirals should the outbreak worsen.  All the states will have a certain number of antivirals by Sunday, May 3rd, she said.  Twenty-five percent of the Strategic National Stockpile of antivirals – roughly 11 million courses out of 50 million courses – is being distributed to the states, with priority going to states with the greatest need, and to the Southern border.

Community/household/business preparedness.  Reportedly, schools have been closed in about 100 systems across the U.S.  Besser urged households to think about preparedness in general terms, and not just because of the flu.  Particularly, parents need to make plans for the care of their school-aged children (the CDC is recommending closing schools for up to a week if confirmed cases are discovered).  By implication, employers need to plan ahead, too, for the absence of employees and to gauge their ability to possibly work from home.

U.S. (confirmed) infections. As of this morning, the CDC reported 109 confirmed cases of H1N1 in the U.S., with the bulk of the infections in California (14), New York (50), and Texas (26; 1 death).

Vaccines. The CDC is working on a vaccine tailored to this virus, which is composed of genetic materials from pigs, birds and humans.  The earliest predicted date for release is in the fall.  Besser suggested that officials are considering producing vaccines to battle the upcoming seasonal flu before shifting shared resources toward producing an anti-H1N1 vaccine.