FROM CSR TO CORPORATE TERRITORIAL RESPONSIBILITY: AN ANTHROPOLOGICAL EXPLORATION IN FRENCH POLYNESIA

Abstract

In French Polynesia, Corporate Sozial Responsibility (CSR) remains in its infancy but is generating growing interest among local organizations. This research explores their contribution to improving eco-responsible practices within an insular context. Based on ethnographic fieldwork conducted in 2023, including sixty-three interviews and participant observations carried out in three companies, the findings highlight grassroots initiatives such as waste management, environmental awareness, and community partnerships. However, these sometimes give rise to cultural tensions between organizational strategies and individual behaviors. By moving beyond the application of global norms, CSR can be locally embedded within governance systems tailored to territorial realities, paving the way for a conceptualization of corporate territorial responsibility (CTR) linking local and transnational organizations.