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Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a key mechanism through which businesses can contribute towards sustainable development. CSR is essentially value driven, yet currently, there is minimal understanding of how social values are introduced and impact upon CSR. The study examines the underlying social values driving CSR practice across a hierarchy of influence involving individuals, groups, communities, and broader society. The research follows an interpretive research paradigm, whereby social values are identified through in-depth interviews with employees and external stakeholders of 25 Australian resource companies. The interviews focus on exploring the values being expressed through CSR and how these impact upon approaches to CSR. The research identifies a diversity of social values found within CSR including both transcendental and contextual values. Each level of value generation (individual, group, and community, societal) is found to play an important role in linking CSR to sustainability. For example, individuals embed ethical values into CSR and introduce new practices and approaches that challenge institutional behaviour. The transfer of values between levels is also vital for establishing new CSR approaches and linkages to sustainability. The study also examines factors influencing the degree to which social values are translated into behaviours, including not only the importance of procedural justice principles but also the formation of collective responsibility by groups or through external stakeholders who confer ‘responsibility’ onto corporations and government. The implications of the study for CSR and social values of sustainability are considered. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

In this article, grounded theory was used to develop models of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) that can generate benefits for communities impacted by the Australian resource sector. Interviews were conducted with community representatives who interacted with a range of resource companies located in three Australian jurisdictions. Separate conceptual models were developed for Indigenous communities with legislated land rights as opposed to local communities nearby resource development. This was because they had different priorities in terms of model elements. Indigenous people sought to maintain cultural and environmental values through CSR whilst accepting a need for some social change. These values were expressed in cases where legislative frameworks enabled their protection and sufficient resources were available, such as financial capital, policy commitments and stakeholder support. Local communities were seeking to maintain their viability and to ensure companies were accountable for their impacts. CSR in this context relied on company policy and the formation of voluntary partnerships which differed according to the organisation's culture. In this paper, it is argued that participatory CSR provided a mechanism to express community values linking it to perceptions of empowerment and capacity to provide long-term value to communities. The study also helps identify where improvements can be made to the Australian resource sector. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Thesis (PhD(Environmental Science))--University of South Australia, 2019. Includes bibliographical references (pages 172-173) The study investigated the capacity for resource companies in Australia to provide long term value to local communities. The study combined stakeholder interviews with reported information on CSR to examine the practices of twenty-five resource companies across three Australian jurisdictions. Structuration theory was applied to understand the social dynamics of CSR with a key finding being that there was high reliance on human agency to shape CSR programs towards long term outcomes. Further, it was found that sustainability perspectives had not been built in adequately to institutional frameworks. As a result, the capacity for CSR to contribute to and build community based assets was found to be limited. Recommendations are provided on how to improve institutional settings for CSR. The research drew broader insights into how corporations can contribute to regional development.

Many rural communities in Australia are looking to arrest population decline and secure their future viability. This article examines how resource companies contribute towards building sustainable community livelihoods through corporate social responsibility(CSR) programmes. The study uses structuration theory to explore how human agency combines with key structural processes to create CSR with long-term benefits. Data collection includes semistructured interviews with employees from 25 Australian resource companies and relevant stakeholders. The study identifies three main CSR approaches reflecting how companies support community livelihoods: minimalist-financial, shared-value, and corporate citizenship models. These approaches are shaped by company values and culture, effectiveness of CSR policies and human capacity. The study highlights the importance of resource companies developing links with local organisations to facilitate livelihood approaches. Overall, the capacity for rural communities to access long-term opportunities from resource development is highly variable, symptomatic of a broader lack of strategic direction for rural development. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

The study sought to draw new perspectives on how corporate social responsibility (CSR) is shaped and created within the resource sector. The study focused on examining the role of external stakeholders in influencing the CSR strategies implemented by Australian resource companies. Data were gathered by semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders involved with 25 resource companies located in South Australia, Western Australia, and the Northern Territory. Consistent with sociological theories of CSR, stakeholders such as business and community leaders, non-government organizations (NGOs), and government employees were able to influence CSR by empowering communities to participate in CSR, bridging cultural divides between companies and communities, and linking companies to key society standards. This was facilitated by the expression of personal ethical values and knowledge sets by stakeholders and where relevant those of their organization. A range of stakeholders were active agents of change, bringing in new ideology, skills, and expertise, and, at times, challenging existing corporate practice. This process was underlined by relationship building and trust. Stakeholders effectively introduced higher ethical values to concepts of public accountability, environmental sustainability, and social justice in line with personal and organizational ethics. The study also identified factors which promoted stakeholder influence and gave stakeholders power within CSR. This included a range of institutional-level factors such as regulatory and legal frameworks, company policy, and cultures, but also interpersonal skills and abilities of the individuals involved. The study highlights the strategic benefits of stakeholder involvement in CSR within the Australian resource sector and discusses implications for the broader resource industry. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Multiple capital or asset-based frameworks are a tool to help understand corporate contributions to sustainability. This study applied a six-capitals framework (financial, human, social, natural, built and cultural) to evaluate the local impacts and benefits of resource extraction within rural Australia. Data were captured from 25 resource companies located across three jurisdictions (two states and one territory). The study drew upon the concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR), including incorporating critical perspectives from both companies and stakeholders regarding the capacity of CSR programs to build capitals. This furthered understanding of the linkages between company practice and sustainability, including the capability of high-level strategic CSR to build multiple capitals simultaneously. The study showed that building capitals required strategic, grass-roots and collaborative approaches to CSR either through company programs or resources being divested to external stakeholders. Critical to enabling the building of capitals were well designed and flexible policy instruments at the company, local, regional and broader jurisdictional scales. The study also highlighted the importance of building community and stakeholder social and cultural capitals to underpin CSR programs and linkages to meet local aspirations. Overall, to address regional sustainability concerns, the study emphasized the need to consider CSR at a wider institutional perspective rather than the individual company level. The Australian cases highlighted significant gaps in capacity and therefore limited ability to achieve a net gain in capitals. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

A key aspiration for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in the resource sector is to leave behind a lasting and positive legacy for local and regional communities, which is referred to here as Enduring Community Value (ECV). This paper examines the capacity of resource companies to create ECV for local communities within three jurisdictions in Australia drawing on perspectives from resource company employees and key stakeholders including individuals and groups in local communities. The capacity to implement ECV was tracked through the planning, governance, implementation and evaluation phases of CSR for companies of different sizes, stage of mining life-cycle and degree of remoteness of mining operations. ECV was found to be a critical value of CSR for resource company employees and stakeholders, providing a common ground for engagement and cooperation. Company employees, also saw ECV as a necessary tool to help navigate the complexities of CSR within a local community context. Personal moral and ethical values of resource employees and stakeholders, including motivations to improve local community outcomes and to achieve sustainability drove the adoption of ECV. This was supported to varying degrees by resource companies’ culture and goals, organisational values of stakeholder organisations, regulatory and legislative frameworks, guidelines and standards. Through the application of Giddens’ structuration theory it was identified that there was a high reliance on human agency to drive outcomes, with a lack of consistent institutional structures and relevant processes being in place. This meant that planning for ECV often occurred late in the mine life-cycle, reducing the potential benefits. Further institutional support, such as through robust planning tools, guidelines and standards and resourced stakeholder forums where lessons, experiences and assessments are shared, could help drive outcomes more clearly toward ECV. The implications of models for CSR and sustainable development perspectives are also presented. Refereed/Peer-reviewed