At steelecht, we believe CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) is something that should come naturally to any company – seeing the big picture beyond mere commercial endeavors. While we are a small agency, we take CSR to heart and apply it three main ways: cash donations, donations in kind and our day-to-day actions as individuals and a business. Learn about who we donate to, what we mean by “writing for good” as well as our commitment to sustainability, diversity and social justice.
Cash donations
We consider ourselves privileged at steelecht, so sharing is a basic tenet of how we interpret CSR, e.g. giving back to society by donating to good causes. In the above slider, you can learn about some of the organizations we have contributed to in the past or donate to on a regular basis. We have chosen them as they are causes that are close to our heart which deliver aid in a targeted and non-bureaucratic way.
Donations in kind
At steelecht, our expertise in many languages – particularly English and German – is a talent we can use for the good of society: helping people communicate, build bridges and improve intercultural understanding. So besides the classic form of donations in kind, e.g. donating old yet still functioning computers to social causes, we also provide content creation for free or at a reduced rate in selected situations. We call this “writing for good”.
When we apply our talents for non-business purposes, we always seek projects where our skills can make a difference, e.g. projects with a focus on social justice, sustainability or with a cultural impact.
In this spirit of CSR, steelecht has provided content creation or related services to the following projects:
Ubuntu Haus Welcome Portal
Ubuntu stands for humanity, charity and a sense of community. It’s a fitting name for a place created to help newcomers fleeing from crisis, now settling in the Rhine-Main region of Germany. To expand their offer, Ubuntu Haus launched the Newcomer Portal, a website to help refugees and other newcomers get practical tips on everything from language learning to legal services. steelecht supported the project by translating the texts into English as well as editing some of the German texts. For free.
On the same page
In 2018, it was 70 years since the United Nations published its Declaration of Human Rights. Frankfurter Buchmesse decided to commemorate this important milestone with an initiative in support of human rights, particularly with regards to freedom of expression and freedom of the press, both very vital for the publishing industry. steelecht supported the promotion of this campaign with our transcreation services at a reduced rate.
Innoklusio exhibit texts
Dialogue Social Enterprise® is well-known in German-speaking Europe for their museums run by people with visual impairments, inviting visitors into complete darkness to experience life in their shoes for a few moments. Building on this success, the Innoklusio exhibition brings the experience of different disabilities into corporate settings. What are the barriers to full inclusion at the work place? steelecht provided texts in English and German at a reduced rate for the exhibits of this important project.
Does your project have a social justice or sustainability focus? We want to apply our writing for good, e.g. as a donation in kind. So let’s see if we’re a good match and discuss ways to collaborate.
Our day-to-day commitment
steelecht is based in the Rhine-Main region of Germany – an area full of diversity, with many people from all over the world coming and going. In fact, as international citizens ourselves, we are very much a part of this diversity. That’s why we feel personally compelled to promote tolerance in our region and support the protection of human rights. For us, the big picture of CSR is all about the details we have control over.
While our world is far from perfect, there is so much that each of us can do. Here are some of the little things we do at steelecht to help make a difference:
Sustainability
Since the founding of steelecht in 2005, we have used 100% green electricity, the main resource we consume as an agency. To lower our carbon footprint even further, we separate our trash, use recycled paper and have no plastic bottles or cups for beverages in the office. We use exclusively organic cleaning materials. Most of us walk to work, do home office or take public transport. In any case, no one drives to work and customer visits requiring car use have been reduced to a minimum. We have been using Zoom as a meeting platform since 2016, setting a standard for virtual meetings long before they became the norm.
Read about our participation in a Friday’s for Future demonstration in Frankfurt in 2019.
Social justice
We make a point to ensure our team of employed staff and pool of freelancers are diverse, from different backgrounds and roughly balanced between women and men. A few of us identify as queer. There is no gender pay gap between us, remuneration based solely on seniority, skillset and experience. For our own communications, we use inclusive language, especially important and tricky in German. When we moved office in 2021, we used the local organization Fleckenbühler, which employs former drug addicts, helping them get a new start in life in a strictly monitored working and living environment.
Read our blog article about how to apply gender inclusive language in German.
Diversity
Everyone at steelecht is unique, but we do share one thing: respect for our fellow humans. Our intercultural team believes in social diversity and the full integration of everyone – regardless of gender, cultural background, mental or physical well-being, skin color or sexual orientation.
Different perspectives and experiences enrich us, help us to learn from one another and make life more fulfilling. As an agency, we stand firmly against racism, LGBTQ+ discrimination, misogyny, as well as all types of discrimination and hate. Language is our tool of choice for content creation, which we use for building bridges, exchanging knowledge and bringing people of different backgrounds together.