Ottawa is not often seen as a big company town - rather, a big government town.

Well, next month some big business and public institutions will gather here to see if we can become a world leader in corporate social responsibility.

That is: running an organization for the good of the community, the environment, people and the bottom line.

In recent years there has been a growing movement towards CSR: corporate social responsibility.

Brenda Richardson is business development officer at Causeway for 30 years. She says the agency has been socially responsible as it helps those with disabilities to learn a skill.

Richardson says CSR is about "taking responsibility for everything a company or agency does and how it affects the economy, the environment, the people who work at the company and the shareholders and stakeholders and customers."

10 years ago, Causeway started up a catering business, and then a bike repair shop, and then a landscaping business.

Art made out of old bike parts may be their next business. They combine the social economy with government support.

Don Palmer has been executive director for 15 years.

"One of the best things business could do that would help us the most is give us their expertise. Not just a grant, or cash, but show us how to be more like a business and be profitable."

Eli Fathi works in high tech and is helping organize a conference about CSR at Algonquin College next month.

He says, "I've seen vast change in how people respond to this issue, and how they see it as important. No one I have asked to help about the conference has turned me down. "

The conference will showcase social responsibility as an issue and some 40 to 50 companies like Causeway will be there to talk to business people.

Leaders from Canada Post, IBM, Telus, plus academics from all colleges and universities will try to make Ottawa a global centre for CSR. Tech and government are the two key players.

Bob Gillett, president of Algonquin, has been leading this and says "there is no reason we can't be a world leader and I think we can act as a catalyst."

He adds that it's the next generation that will drive the change. "These young people we are teaching are concerned about ethics and morals and companies doing the right thing. They are going to be out working for these firms and will expect them to be responsible. I think that companies will be pushed on this issue. "

If you go on the web, there are millions of sites discussing the many ways companies can become more socially responsible.

For some, it's become a part of their public face on the web. For others, they build environmentally friendly buildings, or they support artistic events or food banks. They make an effort to do more than just make a dollar.

Kent MacDonald of Algonquin says, "The studies clearly show that being responsible can improve the bottom line. It is not just the right thing to do it's a profitable thing to do."

Palmer at Causeway says, "We are learning how to do what business people do, and we help to change people's lives, and that is pretty significant."