Annual report now online

[JasonMckerra]

The 2009 Annual Report is now online.

http://bit.ly/cIeHsU

[Omneix Micrasius]

The link doesn't work.

[JasonMckerra]

Now it does.

[Omneix Micrasius]

It does work now, and after reading it it does look like Lavalon is trying to make a difference in society, especially through its donations. 

The very next person to make a donation to Lavalon of over 10 dollars, with the express intent of it helping impoverished or otherwise disadvantaged group of people, should send me a PM.  I will send them a small gift if they do.

[JasonMckerra]

The United Nations Milennium Development Goals call on all developed countries to commit 0.7% of Gross Domestic Income to development assistance.

Few countries achieve this goal.

Even though Lavalon is not a member of the UN and is not bound to this commitment, I do think that action towards global development is one of the traditional responsibilities of a state that even our small nation can live up to.

[Omneix Micrasius]

Just a comment, albeit a slightly lengthy one:

Whenever a large corporation makes a decision that people feel is not in their best interest, they are really doing it in the interest of the majority shareholders.  Some shareholders are absentee rich people who really just want to make sure that their retirement fund or inheritance is safe.  So a little oil spill here or a little acid rain there isn't overly burdensome to them.  However if Lavalon or some other environmentally minded organization were to buy a few--maybe later a lot--stocks of a company, then perhaps they could have a voice.  Now generally the majority or large stakeholders are the folks who have not just a voice but also wield power (think Gordon Gecko from the movie Wall Street), but also sometimes shareholders--even the smaller ones--at least have a voice, such as at shareholder meetings (think of the shareholder meeting scene in the movie Mr. Deeds starring Adam Sandler).  Perhaps Lavalon might seek to gain such a voice by purchasing some stock in various companies around the globe.  And because of Asia's economic growth and McKerra's location in Australia, perhaps Lavalon could be a force in promoting economic growth that is also socially and environmentally sustainable.  What the Chinese or Australian governments, for example, might not ask a company to do, its shareholders might.

And suppose Lavalon got rich.  Suppose it became a civic minded investment trust.  Then it could buy out companies and remake them to be environmentally friendly.  It might not even take a costly change, just a change in culture.

There is democracy at the ballot box and then there is the polite oligarchy of individuals or organizations who "own" an enterprise.  If one works, then perhaps the other may be tried.

[Omneix Micrasius]

Sorry, I meant to say, in the previous post "There is democracy at the ballot box and then there is the polite oligarchy of individuals or organizations who "own" an enterprise.  If one does not work, then perhaps the other may be tried.