Case Study: Preserving Cultural Heritage

The best focus areas have a connection to a company's business, history, or tradition. The Texaco Foundation undertook a strategic review of its giving a few years ago and decided to narrow and reprioritize its grantmaking activities. One result was a commitment to bring music education back into U.S. schools. Why music education? Texaco has been sponsoring Saturday afternoon live broadcasts of the Metropolitan Opera for 60 years. Peter Bijur, Texaco's chief executive officer, always says that the opera is part of our corporate image.

In 1999, to reflect its worldwide presence, Texaco undertook a similar strategic review of its social responsibility programs outside the United States. Today, more than half of our workforce is employed, and close to half our revenues are generated, abroad. As a first step, Texaco surveyed country managers about the most pressing needs of their nations. Education was at the top of most lists and this will certainly be a key area for the new Texaco Global Fund.

The arts are also central to the success of Texaco's philanthropy program outside the United States. Since 1990, when the opera broadcasts first became international, the network has expanded to include radio stations in more than 30 countries across Europe, Latin America, Africa, and Southeast Asia. The company's support for the arts overseas can be traced back even further. The Texaco Children's Art Competition was first held in Ireland in 1955. Today, the competition attracts entries from more than 50,000 schoolchildren each year.

In the Caspian region, where music is an integral part of everyday life for many people, Texaco emphasized music-based programs. In Baku, Azerbaijan, the company helped preserve Azeri culture by funding the restoration of ancient musical instruments for the State Ancient Music Ensemble and also provided instruments for students at the renowned Bul-Bul Music School.

Besides education and the arts, preserving cultural heritage is also under consideration as a focus area. The elements that make up a people's culture--tradition, myth, identity, religion, art, language, and values--bring with them a sense of uniqueness while also belonging to a community. Planning research shows that in many countries outside the United States there is concern about the erosion of indigenous culture. Some see globalization as the "Americanization" of their cultural heritage.

The role and value of culture also has significant implications for development. Last fall, Florence hosted a conference entitled "Culture Counts: Financing, Resources, and the Economics of Culture in Sustainable Development." One of the speakers, World Bank president James Wolfensohn, said,

In this time of globalization, with all its advantages, the poor are the most vulnerable to having their traditions, relationships, and knowledge and skills ignored and denigrated ... Their culture ... can be among their most potent assets, and among the most ignored and devastated by development programs. If we take care, the poor can be proud of their identity and heritage and draw on these assets to enrich their lives.

A project in Kazakstan provides a perfect example of the programs that can help preserve cultural heritage and encourage development. Texaco helped restore an artisans' village where many of the region's finest saddle makers, metal smiths, wood carvers, and jewelry makers are once again practicing their crafts and selling their wares.

For global companies, preservation and advancement of a country's cultural heritage is a potent issue. Looking beyond the traditional approach--creating jobs, paying taxes, and improving living standards--corporations may find great benefits by recognizing and supporting what is different and authentic in the cultures of these countries.

Whether one considers support for cultural heritage, education, the arts, or other pressing social needs, partnering is key to social investments. Partnerships with host governments and communities, as well as with credible nongovernmental organizations, are vital to success. These partnerships can help a company achieve its goal of becoming the preferred business partner in countries where it is doing, or wishes to...