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Dr Martin Robinson, Head of Marine Science and Technology at the NAFC Marine Centre, has just returned from Poland where he was invited to speak at the extraordinary meeting of the Employers’ Group of the European Economic and Social Committee at the European Forum for New Ideas in Gdansk.
The invitation came on the back of a presentation Dr Robinson delivered earlier this year to EU officials and Members of the European Parliament who visited Shetland to discuss the innovative approach to local inshore shellfisheries management. The President of the Employers’ Group of EESC, Henri Malosse, was present and subsequently asked Dr Robinson to speak on the wider ‘societal’ responsibilities of business at the European Forum event.
Dr Robinson was one of a ten-strong panel of invited speakers, which included business leaders from across Europe, who answered questions from a large audience of business representatives. He was specifically asked if he felt that ‘environmental initiatives’ taken by companies were purely for marketing and publicity reasons. He responded that once companies complied with the minimum legal obligations in regards to the environment, that additional measures and actions taken could be judged by consumers; whether the motivation was for marketing, genuine care for the environment or perhaps both, was somewhat irrelevant as the company, environment and perhaps even the consumer in the sense of purchase satisfaction could benefit.
Dr Robinson commented: “The debate also focused on new ideas or changes that might help address the current outlook within Europe and to this I put forward the fact that much could be learned from Shetland, where community and stakeholder involvement in the resource management occurred. I expressed that the usual norm of centralised governmental management of resources did not necessarily allow those that knew the local area and conditions best to have a voice in how resources were exploited and that the EU should consider local data, knowledge and management as they review current policies.”
Professor David Gray, Director of the NAFC Marine Centre, added: “I would like to extend my thanks to the Employers’ Group of the European Economic and Social Committee for inviting Dr Robinson to attend and for covering the cost of his trip. It is true testament to the expertise of the staff here at the Centre to be recognised in this way.”
Further information from:
Dr Martin Robinson, NAFC Marine Centre, tel 01595 772000, email martin.robinson@nafc.uhi.ac.uk or visit www.nafc.ac.uk
Or, Louise Rosie, Shaw Marketing and Design Ltd, tel 01595 692465, email louise.rosie@shaw-online.com or visit www.shaw-online.com
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