New! Guidelines booklet on how to Adopt a Multinational! Email for a copy to get you started.

As part of our trade justice campaign we don’t just want to see economic changes for the sake of it, we want to see change come because of God’s touch bringing new understanding to those inside the economic structures. If each SPEAK groups were to adopt a multinational, praying for the decision makers, congratulating them on ethical policy and
challenging them on unethical policy – think how much of an impact it could have!

There are thousands upon thousands of people like us across the world, but who are stuck in jobs without a living wage, often breathing in toxic fumes, not allowed to go to the toilet, taking forced pregnancy tests, never secure in their job. Equally there are
housands of people like us who will work for the same companies with nice peaceful lives, material wealth and career progression. And then there are companies who are trying to improve their impact on people and the environment but are constrained by shareholders, their competitors who couldn’t care less and most of all consumers wanting cheap products.

So what do we do? The people making decisions in these companies are also humans created in God’s image. We need to ask God to open hearts and minds to injustice that breaks his heart and the effect that the way many companies operate impacts his creation. The idea is not to get angry and write antagonistic letters to directors but to find out what is going on inside the company, who the decision makers are and how we can best engage with them for change.

Standing in the Gap

“history belongs to the intercessors” (Walter Wink)

As children of God we are called to intercede for our fellow human beings bound up by biased and unjust international trade rules. We pray and campaign for a change to the rules through our trade campaign but let’s also pray for a change to the structure and practices of multinational corporations (MNCs). To pray for those in the company trying to make a difference – for Christians and those who aren’t. To pray that current policy changes will be implemented. To pray for the obstacles to justice to be removed at the highest levels. To talk to people in the company and explain why and what we are doing, offering to pray for them. We can expect change when God acts through our prayers.

HOW TO GO ABOUT IT

choose a company ----

---- Is there anyone you know who works for an MNC who would appreciate your prayers and is trying to bring ethical changes?

---- Do you live near the headquarters or other important offices of a company?

---- Is there a company which your SPEAK/other group uses regularly or own products from that you are concerned about e.g. Levis, Nokia, Gap, Nike, Asda Wal-Mart, Coca-Cola, Cadbury Schweppes etc

begin researching ----

---- You can start by looking on the company’s web site for any ethical programmes, the directors, shareholder meeting dates, managers, sustainability directors, locations/factories, annual reports etc. This will give you a picture of the company – the size, its ethics etc.

---- Pray through this whole process that God will lead you to the changes he is seeking. (Look on the back page for more help on researching)

contacting the company ----

----If there is sustainability director or anyone working on ethics or green policy get in touch with them.

---- Offer to pray for them, ask them what is going on with ethical initiatives. You may want to contact the directors too to let them know how positive you feel about these initiatives. It’s possible that they might not have heard of all the ethical initiatives if it’s a large company.

---- You can begin praying for the company before you contact them but please try and start a dialogue since you never know what might come of the relationships you start or who you might talk to.

PRACTICAL IDEAS

How your adoption process works out will depend on how friendly the people in the company you contact are. Here are some practical ideas on how to “adopt a multinational”!

--- Keep praying regularly for this company and each of the Directors by name. Make a prayer sheet with prayer points for them for everyone in your group to stick up on their bedroom wall and to give to others.

--- Write specifically to each director letting them know that you recognise they are in an influential position and ask them if they would like prayer and ask them for which specific points. Don’t be surprised if they write back even if they are not Christians. Many of them will appreciate your concern for them and their company.

--- You can take this idea as far as you like. Don’t be scared with interacting with the company itself and the people you are praying for. They may like to be prayed for and you never know what may come of the relationship.

--- If you build up a relationship with the directors offer to meet with them in person and take some of your findings along with you and communicate them in a sensitive graceful way.

--- Visit the company headquarters or one of the offices near by and do a prayer vigil outside (but please be sensitive to any relationship you have with them).

--- Buy some shares in the company (or find someone to sponsor you to do this!) and go to the shareholders meetings to tell them your concerns, the aims of the Trade Justice Campaign and to pray for them. Don’t be afraid about speaking to directors and big shareholders afterwards. This will help you when you make contact in the future and also with praying for them.

--- Find out what the best companies in their sector are doing (i.e. Co-op supermarkets making all their own brand chocolate fairtrade, or DIY companies selling ‘FSC’ marked timber), ask them what stops them doing these things as well.

--- Turn up to careers fairs at university and offer positive comment on what the companies are doing right, as well as making your point on issues that you disagree on. Challenge everyone in the room to work for the company to make a difference on these issues.

--- Be open to working for a multinational yourself. What difference might you be able to make inside – who could you influence? Could you develop new products and services to meet the needs of the poor? Could you promote fair trade products in their range? Could you convince customers to purchase from supermarkets that care about people who grow and make their products?

--- Communicate with the Network Support Team and put information on the SPEAK web site about what your group is doing, which company you are praying for and the results of the action. It would be good to e-mail us a list of your prayer points so we can put it on the SPEAK site and more people can join you in prayer for that company.

--- Hold an adoption ceremony! Get everyone in your group together to pray through your hopes and plans and for the company. You could mark it as the official start with some creative prayer.

RESEARCH TIPS

Once you know what you want to look for you can divide it into easy-to-swallow chunks! List all the possible information sources you can think of, and then prioritise which ones you will follow up first. If you are working as a group, make sure you divide up the sources so you’re not all covering the same ground! Here are some ideas for sources to get you started.

Company websites will tell you a company’s directors, addresses, history, ethical policy. This will help you find out who to contact and also what to hold them accountable for.
Annual reports of large companies can usually be found in the business section of your local or university library.

Trade journals will give you more of an idea how market sectors work, giving a better overall picture of the industry your company is part of and its place in that industry. You should be able to find trade journals, e.g. Farmers Weekly, Chemistry in Britain, in good libraries. Remember to keep a note of your references!

Market research sites will also help you to understand the sector and the issues facing it. For UK companies check out www.keynote.co.uk or www.mintel.co.uk and for outside the UK check out www.marketresearch.com
Ask around, see what other campaign groups and researchers can help you with

The best website for how to research on companies is
www.corporatewatch.org.uk
But please also use websites that offer positive information on what companies are doing such as:
www.wbcsd.org
www.ethicalperformance.com
www.ethicalgroup.com
www.greenfutures.org.uk
www.forumforthefuture.org.uk
www.sustainability.com