Читать книгу Practical Sustainability Strategies - George P. Nassos - Страница 27

Although the term CSR is used today, concepts analogous to social responsibility have existed for centuries. The idea that those in an advantageous position, either in terms of money or power, should conduct in a socially responsible way can be traced back to classical Athens of 500 BC.

This view supports that from the early days of civilization it was understood, in some cases by the state or in others by wealthy individuals of the time, that it would only be fairer for the rest of society if such individuals shared a portion of their amassed wealth with their fellow citizens. This reality came into being from the realization of the fact that has it not been for the rest of society, wealth making would probably be an impossibility. Thus, bearing this realization in mind, certain laws were voted by the state which at the time reflected precisely and directly the opinion of the people. Namely, these were the liturgies, “a wide range of public service paid for out of the pockets of the people owning substantial property” [6]. There were two different kinds of liturgies, the regular liturgies which had a religious character and the extraordinary liturgies which had a military character.

Aristotle's “magnificent man,” who bestows collective benefits upon his community out of his own wealth, is depicting the exact definition of “euergetism” in ancient Greece. The nobles, who because of their birth and wealth controlled access to all essential services, were expected to provide various services to their cities in exchange for the public bestowal of honor from the inhabitants. In the Art of Rhetoric, Aristotle states that true wealth consists in doing good; that is, in monetary handouts, giving of scarce and costly gifts, and helping others to maintain an existence [7].

A last notion connecting CSR and ancient Greece is that of heroism. Nowadays, the term “hero” has many different meanings. It addresses to people whose work is extremely risky like firemen, or to people whose work is challenging like teachers. “Hero” originates from the Greek word hêrôs. Although in ancient Greece this word was referring only to warriors, later on it was introduced for the people who have offered in favor to the local community but they are now dead. In order for someone to obtain the heroic status, he should deal with local sponsorship. There were no exact rules that someone had to follow in order to attain a heroic status. Someone who was involved in the matters of public interest and his goal was the welfare of his community could be characterized as a hero.