The Asia Responsible Enterprise Awards (AREA) 2023 is pleased to honor 78 outstanding business leaders and enterprises for championing sustainable and responsible business practices. Presented by leading regional NGO Enterprise Asia, the AREA is the most reputable award recognition program recognizing organizational efforts in creating a culture of compassion, integrity, and in being socially responsible corporate citizens. The AREA serves as a badge of excellence to spur further innovation and best-practice for sharing about the organization and the world at large.
Shin Kong Life Insurance Co., Ltd. (Shin Kong Life) was among the recipients who were conferred with the Social Empowerment Award. With the goal of becoming a benchmark for sustainable operations and a reliable financial partner, Shin Kong Life continue to pursue business strategies that take into account carbon reduction, innovation, and mutual benefits.
Shin Kong Life set up an environmentally-friendly Farmers Market in 2017. The company hopes that with the power of collaboration, it will shorten the kilometers that the food will have to travel, thus reducing carbon footprint, stabilizing farmers’ incomes, and promoting the sustainable development of Taiwanese agriculture.
In 2022, the company promoted the education of sustainable agriculture to employees via work experience programs and organized a meal surplus project with various public well-being groups. At the same time, Shin Kong Life developed a new product, the “Shin Kong Shih-Zai-Ann-Shin Permanent Health Ins. Rider”, and promised to donate NTD100 to public welfare organizations for every sustainable policy that was developed.
Shin Kong Life also leans on its core as an expert in risk management in the insurance industry. By taking a sustainable diet as the base idea, the company advocates shifting from reactive actions to prevention planning. On this basis, it is hoped that Taiwan’s society and environment will benefit and become a green incentive for Taiwan’s sustainable development in the future.
The Social Return on Investment (SROI) of this program created NTD9.85 for every NTD1 spent. It has earned nearly NTD5 million through both the public welfare procurement and Shin Kong’s Farmers Market. The media outreach of this program included 2 press conferences, 2 lectures, and 20 media posts, creating a media value of 500 yuan and reaching nearly 3 million page views.
The company has managed to cooperate with Shin Kong Life farmers to purchase 3,000 kilograms of fruits and vegetables and donate them to welfare organizations. In relation to this, there were food-related insurance policies developed and NTD30,000 was donated to the Alliance of Taiwan Foodbanks. Shin Kong Life also handled three agriculture education initiatives wherein a total of 113 corporate volunteers and their families participated.
Since 2017, Shin Kong Life has expanded the Farmers Market year by year into the “Shin Kong Sustainable Lifestyle – From Farm to Blissful Dining Table Project”, hoping to find more farmers who support sustainable agriculture, so as to influence more and more people.
For short-term goals, Shin Kong Life intends to increase the number of people on the Shin Kong Farmer’s social networking site and strengthen the link between corporate volunteers and the project. There will also be more effort put into finding and recruiting more farmers who support sustainable agriculture. For long-term goals, Shin Kong Life will push the company to respond to the Taiwan government’s Net Zero carbon emission policy. The company will also be introducing a contractual farming system and using its brand influence to influence more companies to follow in the pursuit of social empowerment and sustainability.
About Enterprise Asia
Enterprise Asia is a non-governmental organization in pursuit of creating an Asia that is rich in entrepreneurship as an engine toward sustainable and progressive economic and social development within a world of economic equality. Its two pillars of existence are investment in people and responsible entrepreneurship. Enterprise Asia works with governments, NGOs and other organizations to promote competitiveness and entrepreneurial development, in uplifting the economic status of people across Asia and in ensuring a legacy of hope, innovation and courage for the future generation. Please visit https://www.enterpriseasia.org/ for more information.
About Asia Responsible Enterprise Awards (AREA)
The Asia Responsible Enterprise Awards program recognizes and honors Asian businesses for championing sustainable and responsible entrepreneurship in the categories of Green Leadership, Investment in People, Health Promotion, Social Empowerment, Corporate Governance, Circular Economy Leadership, Corporate Sustainability Reporting, and Responsible Business Leadership. For more information, visit: https://enterpriseasia.org/area/.