Open days & Conferences

17th CSR Conference

The 17th Corporate Sustainability & Responsibility Conference was successfully held on Thursday, 25 September, bringing together businesses, institutional representatives, and the academic community to exchange views on the prospects of responsible entrepreneurship.

The event was co-organised by IMH and CSR Cyprus, within the framework of the Inspire Festival at Zena Palace in Nicosia, contributing to the activation of the city center through a celebration of Cypriot entrepreneurship.

The conference was opened by the Mayor of Nicosia, Mr. Charalambos Prountzos, who addressed the challenges faced by the capital and underlined the importance of building partnerships. Dr. Theodoulos Mesimeris, Director of the Department of Environment, presented the institutional framework and financial tools available to businesses. Dr. Marinos Voukis, Chairman of CSR Cyprus, examined the connection between competitiveness and sustainability within the Cypriot business ecosystem. Dr. Ioannis Ioannou, Associate Professor at the London Business School, raised critical questions concerning the future of ESG criteria. Ms. Irene Loukaides, Founding Director of Grow Sustainability Consulting, analyzed the Omnibus Simplification Package, while Dr. Phoebe Koundouri presented tools available to organizations through the AE4RIA platform.

The conference also featured three roundtable discussions on key themes:

• Sustainable profitability – ESG as a driver of long-term growth, with contributions from George Paschalis (CFO, Hermes Airports), Efi Chrysochou (Executive Director, Cyfield Group of Companies), and Andreas Petrou (Market Operations Director, Bioland Promithia Ltd).
• Sustainability from scratch – integrating sustainability from the earliest stages of a business, with insights from Vahid Basset (Strategic Operations Junior Director, ECOMMBX), Dimitris Ioannides (Founder/CEO, Purpose Communications), and Dr. Anthoula Madden (Managing Director, Digital Acceleration).
• ESG in SMEs, with perspectives from Maria Antoniou Latouros (Executive Committee Member, M.S.C. Latouros Investments Ltd), Yiannis Papatheodorou (Health, Safety & ESG Project Manager, Photos Photiades Breweries Ltd), and Mikaella Raspa (Senior Advisor, KPMG Management Consulting).

The proceedings concluded with the 4th Corporate Sustainability & Responsibility Awards, organized jointly by CSR Cyprus and the Authority for Cooperative Societies.

Awards and distinctions were presented in three categories. Awards and commendations were presented in three categories. In the Large Enterprise category, Charalambides Christis Ltd received the award for its program “Uniting Our Voices for the Children of Cyprus,” while Columbia Group received a commendation/distinction for the “Female Cadet Mentorship Programme.” In the Medium Enterprise category, UMAR Shipping Services was awarded for its initiative “UW Galaxy,” and UCLan Cyprus received a commendation/distinction for its action “I Cycle for My Homeland.” In the Small Enterprise category, Paidikorama Kindergarten received the award for the children’s art exhibition “Painting with Love,” while RESET received the second position for its program “Youth-Led Enviro-Hackathon,” which engaged young people with disabilities.