Moving Credible Standards Forward Annual Report 2013
CONTENTS Foreword by Rik Kutsch Lojenga
2
Welcome from Karin Kreider
4
Our Governance
6
A Roadmap for the Sustainability Standards Movement
12
Impacts 14 Effectiveness 18 The ISEAL Credibility Principles
22
Adoption 24
Credibility 28 Our Members
32
Financial Summary
39
The ISEAL Team
43
FOREWORD
Rik Kutsch Lojenga, Board Chair environment is the norm. As the head of ISEAL member Union for Ethical BioTrade, I know that we cannot accomplish this without credible and effective standards systems. Nor can we achieve this individually. Credibility, effectiveness and collaboration are some of the values that ISEAL brings to its members.
ISEAL is a special organisation, uniquely positioned to help sustainability standards improve. I am proud to serve as the Chair of ISEAL’s Board of Directors and experience first-hand how ISEAL sets the bar for credibility and brings sustainability standards systems together. We are working towards a world where we produce and consume more sustainably and where respect for human rights and the
2
Over my two years as Board Chair, the feeling that credible standards are all in this together has become more palpable. This culminated in the finalisation of the ISEAL Alliance’s Strategic Plan, the last step in an 18-month process to define our collective priorities moving forward. We benefited from tremendous support and commitment from ISEAL members for the goals that have been set out. Equipped with a clear mission – to strengthen sustainability standards systems for the benefit of people and the environment – and an understanding of the steps needed to get there, ISEAL is becoming a true force in the sustainability landscape.
Often when people think of ISEAL the first thing that comes to mind is our Standard-Setting Code. But the Alliance and ISEAL membership represent so much more: a belief in good practice, a willingness to communicate impacts and a spirit of cooperation with other standards systems. These are some of the characteristics of ISEAL’s members. And now we can add integration of the ISEAL Credibility Principles to the top of this list. The ISEAL Credibility Principles underpin everything that our Alliance stands for. With certification initiatives emerging in nearly every production sector, the Credibility Principles point sustainability standards systems and standards users in the right direction so that intent is met with real impact. Leaders in Europe, the US, emerging markets and elsewhere are making important decisions about how to encourage sustainability, and ISEAL is a strong voice for credible,
mission-oriented standards that deliver results. We have a solid base of progressive companies and governments that are using sustainability standards to source responsibly, but this needs to be urgently scaled up. Sustainability standards can be at the frontline of addressing our most serious global challenges – rural poverty, climate change, deforestation, gender equity, living wage. By coming together within ISEAL to advance and innovate, standards leaders are demonstrating their organisations’ contributions to a more sustainable world.
Rik Kutsch Lojenga, Board Chair help families, wildlife or our climate? On the whole,
3
WELCOME
Karin Kreider, Executive Director standards; developing and managing the very tools that show the way to sustainability for these producers, we at ISEAL have a responsibility to ensure that producers see the greatest benefits possible from their labour and commitment. And we know we still have much more to do in this regard.
The sustainability standards movement takes monumental effort, from stakeholder groups who set standards, to thousands of auditors on the ground, to hundreds of companies working to improve supply chains. Amongst all of this, and carrying perhaps the largest burden of this joint effort, is the producer - the farm owner, the fisheries owner, the forester, the miner. Producers frequently do the hardest job of all – implementing difficult and often costly changes to make production more sustainable. As an alliance of sustainability
4
So how do we do it? We have to ensure that ISEAL members’ standards are effective, efficient, inclusive, and drive impact. We have to embrace credible practices. Our standards have to be transparent and truthful, relevant and rigorous. We also have to make it easier for producers, especially small or marginalised ones, to be part of our programmes. Of course we have to also ensure that the positive changes for producers and communities are realised and made widely known. Increasingly, our partners across all sectors demand that we demonstrate the impacts of our standards systems on communities, on businesses, on landscapes, and on workers. Our
members are responding to this call by looking deeper at the effects of their work on people and the planet. Our community of practice around impacts and M&E is flourishing with activity and collaboration. As the evidence base grows (and it is growing and showing many positive results), I think we will confirm what many of us have known for a long time: that sustainability standards such as those represented in ISEAL are powerful vehicles for achieving social and environmental change. If improving impacts is our desired destination, then ISEAL’s Credibility Principles are our roadmap. In 2013 we brought together more than 400 stakeholders from five continents to articulate the values and concepts that should be incorporated by credible standards systems. You’ll read testimonials from our members throughout the following pages about how they are embracing ISEAL’s Credibility Principles to strengthen their work.
Finally, we would not be where we are today without the dedication of the organisations that make up our Alliance. The strength of ISEAL’s members is that they have sustainability objectives at their forefront. This makes them different from hundreds of standards and certification programmes operating today. We hope you will join us in our special partnership; our Alliance where sustainability standards embrace credibility and improve impact.
Karin Kreider, Executive Director
help families, wildlife or our climate? On the whole,
5
OUR GOVERNANCE ISEAL Board of Directors as of 31 December 2013 David Agnew Marine Stewardship Council
Kim Carstensen Forest Stewardship Council
Andre de Freitas Rainforest Alliance / Sustainable Agriculture Network
Andreas Kratz Fairtrade International
Guntars Laguns Accreditation Services International
Rik Kutsch Lojenga (Board Chair) Union for Ethical BioTrade
Melanie Rutten-Suelz 4C Association
Britta Wyss Bisang UTZ Certified
Rochelle Zaid (Vice-Chair) Social Accountability Accreditation Services
A special thanks to the ISEAL Board members whose service ended during 2013 David Crucefix, IOAS Ruediger Meyer, Fairtrade International Mauricio Voivodic, Rainforest Alliance / Sustainable Agriculture Network
6
7
OUR GOVERNANCE ISEAL’s Membership Committee
ISEAL’s Finance Committee
ISEAL’s Stakeholder Council
Lisa Bernstein Social Accountability Accreditation Services
Bertjan Bouman Union for Ethical BioTrade
Jan Bernhard Pronatur
Richard Cook Social Accountability International
Mireille Perrin Decorzent WWF International
Sönke Fischer Accreditation Services International Khoo Hock Aun Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials Rochelle Zaid Social Accountability Accreditation Services
Simon Hunt Independent Ron van Leeuwen UTZ Certified Thomas Müller-Bardey 4C Association
Carsten Schmitz-Hoffmann Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH Jan Kees Vis Unilever Tensie Whelan Rainforest Alliance
Britta Wyss Bisang (Chair) UTZ Certified
A special thanks to the ISEAL Membership Committee members whose service ended during 2013 Oliver Bach, Rainforest Alliance / Sustainable Agriculture Network
8
9
WHO WE ARE
OUR MISSION
ISEAL is the global membership association for sustainability standards
To strengthen sustainability standards systems for the benefit of people and the environment
A ROADMAP
OUR GOALS
for the Sustainability Standards Movement In 2013, ISEAL concluded its strategic planning process, which cemented Impacts, Effectiveness, Adoption and Credibility as the four goals that drive the ISEAL Alliance’s work. The strategic plan is strong because of the true ownership by all ISEAL members. It will not only steer what the ISEAL Secretariat does, but also be a roadmap for the collaborative movement of sustainability standards systems that come together in ISEAL. Through the development process, we reached a clear idea of what is needed for our members to deliver greater social and environmental impact. Our Theory of Change captures how ISEAL’s goals fit together to contribute to the ultimate aim of improving our impacts. We believe that credible practices are the foundation for making standards systems more effective as well as for increasing their adoption by companies, governments and other users of standards. This increased adoption leads to wider impacts, and by demonstrating those impacts, further uptake occurs, creating a mutually reinforcing cycle.
HEORY OF CHAN T R GE OU
DEMONSTRATE IMPACTS
2. Improve the effectiveness of sustainability standards systems
IMPROVE SUSTAINABILITY IMPACTS DEMONSTRATE IMPACTS
IMPROVE OVE EFFECTIVENESS DEFINE CREDIBLE PRACTICES
INC INCREASE UPTAKE
1. Demonstrate and improve the impact of sustainability standards systems
3. Increase the adoption of sustainability standards systems 4. Define credible practices for sustainability standards systems 5. Ensure organisational and financial resilience of the ISEAL Alliance
12
13
IMPACTS “When you look at what has been achieved in a relatively short period of time in the world of standards you have to believe that anything is possible.” Miguel Pestana, Vice President of Global Affairs, Unilever
IMPROVED LIVELIHOODS
14
CRITERIA
evaluation (M&E) system to track their effectiveness and use results to drive better performance. Through peer learning and support, ISEAL members are putting impacts at the centre of what they do and beginning to demonstrate the contribution that their organisations make to a more just and viable future.
Demonstrating impacts is a significant challenge, one that requires standard-setters to look deeply at the outcomes of their programmes and evaluate whether their standard is achieving its objectives. ISEAL is supporting organisations along their impacts journey, and encouraging transparency and improvement.
Credibility Principle in Focus:
Strengthening how impacts are evaluated
EVALUATING IMPACTS
MULTI STAKEHOLDER
Trust in sustainability standards is based, in large part, on results. The call to demonstrate impacts is one of the strongest expectations of sustainability standards today because companies, governments and other stakeholders need to know that the standards they support or endorse are making a measurable difference.
PRODUCER
Delivering long-term positive change is the mark of a good sustainability tool, but demonstrating conclusive impacts is a marathon, not a sprint. ISEAL is supporting its members to gather an evidence base and implement the steps needed to evaluate and improve social and environmental outcomes. ISEAL’s Code of Good Practice for Assessing the Impacts of Social and Environmental Standards (the Impacts Code) offers the foundation for organisations to build a robust monitoring and
IMPROVEMENT
“ Improvement was the driving force of RJC’s first revision of its Code of Practices. The review was a comprehensive process to improve our standards, enhance our guidance and training, and develop new and better tools to support capacity building, implementation and assessments. ” Fiona Solomon, Director, Standards Development, Responsible Jewellery Council
15
Helping producers out of poverty Through support from the Ford Foundation, a group of ISEAL members have undertaken one of the strongest examples of collaboration in the certification movement. Small producers and labourers can be empowered through certification, but certification leaders need a more complete picture of how their programmes contribute to sustainable rural livelihoods and pro-poor development practices. This is the aim of ISEAL’s Demonstrating and Improving Poverty Impacts project. In the first phase of the project, ISEAL members in agriculture and forestry have accomplished a great deal: coming to agreement on a set of common indicators, developing and testing member M&E systems, and creating an enabling environment by shaping and sharing a research agenda and by building awareness of the need to measure impacts. ISEAL’s Impacts Code, as well as ISEAL members’ commitment to the Code, both support the project objectives. ISEAL members in the project are now laying the groundwork for collective reporting on poverty impacts and preparing for a set of impact evaluation demonstration projects to assess the effects of certification on livelihoods.
16
All About Impact: ISEAL’s Annual Conference
Credibility Principle in Focus:
The collective push to deliver stronger impact and harness innovation was the focal point of the 2013 ISEAL Conference in London. A high-level panel closed the conference with a provocative debate on trends, urging standards to keep pace in a rapidly evolving sustainability landscape.
“The SAN Standards represent an evolving benchmark for sustainability in agriculture, and the work of our members in supporting farmers to implement best practices ensures that we are knowledgeable about their impacts on the ground.”
SUSTAINABILITY
Andre de Freitas, Executive Director, Sustainable Agriculture Network
17
EFFECTIVENESS “What’s really important for sustainability standards and certification is that consumers understand it, there is rigour behind it, the impacts are measurable and it creates traceability.” Wouter van Tol, Head of Sustainability Communications, Nestlé
Shared learning and innovation are cornerstones of the ISEAL Alliance. Members use ISEAL’s credibility tools and engage with like-minded organisations in the ISEAL Community to increase the effectiveness of their systems. With its strong convening power, ISEAL brings standard-setters together with emerging initiatives and users of standards, through working groups, consultation processes, conferences and collaborative projects. In some cases ISEAL acts as a facilitator for members to develop harmonised approaches on important standards’ content issues. Elsewhere ISEAL leads its members to strengthen their processes for standard-setting, auditing, traceability and other areas that influence the credibility and effectiveness of a standards system.
ISEAL members come together for Effectiveness Days In 2013 ISEAL hosted a week of members-only technical workshops, which showed the breadth of topics that ISEAL members are working on. Effectiveness Days reinforced the role that ISEAL plays as a neutral convening platform for credible standards systems to learn and innovate together. The meetings drove progress in ISEAL-led working groups, where members are improving efficiencies
18
and reaping the benefits of closer coordination. This was also an important opportunity for peer exchange on implementing ISEAL’s Codes of Good Practice.
Credibility Principle in Focus:
EFFICIENCY
“ For a better coffee world, from the farmers to the retailers, the 4C Association pre-competitively collaborates with other sustainability standards in establishing benchmarking agreements, supporting stepping up projects, defining joint impact measurement indicators and collecting best practices on critical sustainability issues. ” Melanie Rutten-Suelz, Executive Director, 4C Association
19
Catalysing movement towards a living wage Living wage is high on the agenda for many development actors as a critical area for promoting sustainable livelihoods and worker rights. Sustainability standards are uniquely positioned to work with brands, buyers, and retailers to make wage growth at the primary production level possible. In a tremendous show of solidarity, six different standards systems came together in 2013 through ISEAL and announced a commitment to a collaborative framework that will make credible standards systems more effective at supporting wage growth and will catalyse broader support for movement towards a living wage in the countries and supply chains where standards operate.
ISEAL-led Working Groups ISEAL Working Groups
Innovations in assurance ISEAL’s Assurance Working Group is one of the vibrant communities of practice at ISEAL where standards leaders come together to focus on specific challenges. Accessibility and cost are two of the major barriers to certification, and ISEAL members have prioritised action on these fronts in order to expand the benefits of sustainable practices to more producers, workers and smallholders. In 2013 and through support from GIZ, ISEAL commissioned specialised research into how sustainability standards can integrate producer capacity building into the certification process as well as better assess risk so that audits are more efficient and less burdensome. Findings will be fed into the Assurance Working Group to promote innovation and increased effectiveness.
Credibility Principle in Focus:
Credibility Principle in Focus:
“GoodWeave systems are transparent and our decision to certify a company’s product as child-labor-free (or not) is free from any outside influence and in the best interest of children and workers. This impartiality is what sets us apart.”
“In our Code of Conduct, we speak the language of the farmer and we also work with e-learning tools to train agronomists and extension workers. Already more than half a million farmers and 400,000 workers benefit from the UTZ program.”
Nina Smith, Executive Director, GoodWeave International
Britta Wyss Bisang, Standards Director, UTZ Certified
IMPARTIALITY
ACCESSIBILITY
Technical Issue-based Technical Assurance Joint Auditing Assurance Gender Monitoring Joint Auditing and Evaluation Living Wage Monitoring and Pesticides Issue-based Evaluation Gender Living Wage Pesticides
20
21
ISEAL’S CREDIBILITY PRINCIPLES At the heart of what we do are ten principles… From 2012-2013 ISEAL led a consultation on five continents with more than 400 stakeholders from governments, businesses, NGOs, consumer and producer groups and certification systems. The process was overseen by an expert Steering Committee and the objective was to answer this question: What makes a sustainability standards system credible? The result is the first global agreement on the core actions that all standards systems that focus on sustainability performance should actively seek to integrate. With hundreds of different certification and labelling programmes in the market and impacts difficult to measure, stakeholders need clarity on which standards to trust. ISEAL’s Credibility Principles are the strongest and clearest articulation of what good practice looks like for sustainability standards.
“ISEAL is one of the top ten most important organisations in the world working on sustainability. It ensures that business has a credible, sustainable endpoint to aim for in seeking to ensure that its products and supply chains are sustainable. Whilst we should celebrate all that certification has achieved to date we need to be clear that we’ve only completed 10% of the global journey to use resources sustainably. The ISEAL Credibility Principles provide a framework to help everyone scale up and have a bigger impact; better for the planet, communities and business.”
thfulness Tru Rigour
nsparency Tra
provement Im
stainability Su
ISEAL
CREDIBILITY PRINCIPLES
arti ality Imp
agemen t Eng
Relevance
essibility Acc f i ciency Ef
Mike Barry, Director Plan A, Marks & Spencer (at the launch of the ISEAL Credibility Principles in June 2013)
22
23
ADOPTION “We see sustainability standards as an important instrument for managing social and environmental risks and an opportunity to invest in the growing markets for sustainably produced goods.” Ekaterina Grigoryeva, Environmental and Social Policy Specialist, International Finance Corporation
ISEAL’s work to scale up the adoption of standards and develop the Credibility Principles made possible through support from:
24
Sustainability standards are one of the few proven approaches for reducing negative impacts and improving positive impacts of production sectors. Progressive businesses and governments have made serious commitments to sustainability standards and certification, but there is an urgent need to move from progress to transformation. ISEAL is the global voice for credible standards and their potential for making sustainable trade the Buying for Tomorrow norm. Our work to drive the Sustainable public procurement and adoption of sustainability the use of standards as a mechanism to scale-up implementation standards is anchored in the ISEAL Credibility Principles. We engage with key actors and sectors to communicate how credible practices are essential for a standards system to meet sustainability objectives.
Getting governments to buy better What governments choose to buy can transform markets, and the growing public sector concern for sustainability offers an enormous opportunity. With rigorous systems and proven results, credible standards can provide what governments need to meet their social and environmental goals. In 2013, ISEAL published a major report that underlined the barriers government buyers face in using sustainability standards, such as poor information and legal uncertainty.
Through partnership with the Swiss government, ISEAL is developing resources to help governments apply credible standards in their purchasing decisions, including a working group convened with UNEP and participation in a multi-stakeholder initiative for sustainable food procurement at the 2016 Olympics.
Credibility Principle in Focus:
RELEVANCE
“Bonsucro operates on the principle of ‘what gets measured gets managed’ through a transparent and robust standard that promotes measurable improvements in the key environmental and social impacts of sugarcane, whilst recognising the need for economic viability.” Natasha Schwarzbach, Head of Engagement, Bonsucro
25
New frontiers in emerging markets
Spotlight on China
With their influence in nearly every sector in which ISEAL members work, emerging economies such as Brazil, China and India are essential for improving the impacts of sustainability standards. These countries are seeking ways to ensure their economic development is socially and environmentally responsible and showing greater interest in international tools. With the support of SECO, ISEAL is leading a landmark project to increase understanding of how credible standards can support clear pathways to sustainable development in emerging economies. We are working with local partners and ISEAL members to build strong networks dedicated to scaling up the use of standards.
Our activities in Brazil, China and India are adapted to the important issues or sectors in each country, but building understanding is a consistent feature. In China, our Sustainability Standards Salons have provided a valuable space for local stakeholders to discuss the role of international standards in international trade, Chinese business and the country’s overall development. Through these workshops we are stimulating dialogue about the whole picture of what makes a sustainability standard credible and effective.
Credibility Principle in Focus:
TRUTHFULNESS
“Backed by rigorous and credible standards focused on development, the FAIRTRADE Mark inspires high trust in consumers that their considered purchase can help improve the lives of people and communities in developing countries.” Harriet Lamb, CEO, Fairtrade International
Credibility Principle in Focus:
TRANSPARENCY
Our objectives in emerging economies Strengthen the participation of emerging economies in global discussions about standards
Support international standards to be locally appropriate and applicable
Increase awareness of credible standards among emerging economy leaders
Empower stakeholders to use and have ownership of sustainability standards
Build sustainable value chains and markets at the domestic level
“Transparency underpins the UEBT standard system. Clear and available information is critical to the credibility of our standard, as well as to ensuring its sound and inclusive governance. Transparency also drives change and has allowed the UEBT standard to serve as inspiration for many companies in our sector.” Rik Kutsch Lojenga, Executive Director, Union for Ethical BioTrade
26
27
CREDIBILITY “ISEAL serves to avoid a ‘race to the bottom’ in the standards and certification arena by establishing system requirements for credible practices in the social and environmental standards space.” WWF
Since its inception, ISEAL has defined what credible practice looks like for sustainability standards systems. With hundreds of standards and certification programmes in existence today, it is more important than ever for ISEAL to be a platform for defining and communicating what makes multi-stakeholder based sustainability standards credible and trustworthy. ISEAL is most recognised for its Codes of Good Practice in standard-setting, impacts and assurance. Compliance with these Codes is a positive signal to governments, companies and other stakeholders of the legitimacy and credibility of a standards system. Underpinning ISEAL’s Codes of Good Practice and all of ISEAL’s work are the ISEAL Credibility Principles, which capture the core concepts and actions that should be integrated in all sustainability standards systems. The Credibility Principles are intended to shape discussions and decisions globally.
Ensuring meaningful comparisons A signal of the positive influence that sustainability standards are having is the movement of public and private sector actors to understand the standards landscape and evaluate certification programmes according to their own priorities. ISEAL’s work
28
with the UN’s International Trade Centre and GIZ to develop a Sustainability Standards Comparison Tool, and our engagement with influential industry platforms in Europe and the US, are focused on communicating the essential elements needed to accurately compare standards.
Credibility Principle in Focus:
RIGOUR
“The RSB is recognized as a global leader for integrity and thoroughness in ensuring the sustainability of biomaterials production and processing. Because of its rigour, the RSB logo is a guarantee of respect for human rights, food security and the environment” Rolf Hogan, Executive Secretary, Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials
29
ISEAL’s Codes Standard-Setting Code Defines the steps needed for setting and designing a robust sustainability standard Impacts Code Provides the building blocks for developing a monitoring and evaluation system that drives continuous improvement Assurance Code Outlines key measures for certification and verification systems to be rigorous and efficient
30
Setting the bar for good practice
Pathway to ISEAL membership
Credibility Principle in Focus:
Credibility Principle in Focus:
ISEAL’s Codes of Good Practice represent the practical and technical application of the ISEAL Credibility Principles. The Codes are developed and revised through rigorous public consultations, with oversight from an independent expert Technical Committee that approves their content.
Membership in the ISEAL Alliance is open to any international sustainability standards system that has a multi-stakeholder approach and supports the ISEAL Credibility Principles. International accreditation bodies linked to sustainability standards can also become ISEAL members.
ISEAL’s Codes have been referenced widely in government programmes, industry initiatives and NGO reports. While they are used to determine ISEAL membership, their importance is mostly as a learning tool for organisations inside and outside the ISEAL Community to improve and innovate. To complement and strengthen our existing Codes, ISEAL is at the early stages of developing guidance for standards systems on how to make credible sustainability claims.
Achieving ISEAL membership is a considerable accomplishment for a standards system and consists of a learning pathway and checks of compliance with ISEAL’s Codes of Good Practice. By committing to the membership process, organisations dedicate themselves to continuous improvement and to developing wellfunctioning systems that embrace credibility and effectiveness.
“FSC was established as an organisation in which decisionmaking powers were given equally to members representing social, environmental and economic interests in forest management. Thanks to this unique structure, FSC is supported by leading environmental and social actors all over the world.”
“It’s our responsibility as a standard-setter to make it clear to everyone who is invested in us as the Marine Stewardship Council that we are delivering on their vision for where our oceans should be.”
ENGAGEMENT
SUSTAINABILITY
David Agnew, Standards Director, Marine Stewardship Council
Kim Carstensen, Director General, Forest Stewardship Council
31
OUR MEMBERS
Full Members
4C Association
Forest Stewardship Council
The 4C Association is the platform that brings together stakeholders in the coffee sector to address sustainability issues in a pre-competitive manner. It aims to unite all relevant coffee stakeholders in working towards the improvement of the economic, social and environmental conditions of coffee production and processing to build a thriving, sustainable sector for generations to come.
Forest Stewardship Council is a global, not-for-profit organisation that promotes environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial, and economically viable management of the world’s forests. It facilitates the development of standards and ensures monitoring of certified operations, and the FSC trademarks ensure consumers that the products they choose come from well managed forests.
Accreditation Services International
GoodWeave International
Accreditation Services International is one of the world’s leading accreditation bodies, assessing organisations that issue certificates for a range of standards to ensure that audits are conducted with competence and global consistency. ASI is the sole accreditation body for the Forest Stewardship Council, the Marine Stewardship Council, the Aquaculture Stewardship Council and the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil.
GoodWeave International aims to stop child labor in the carpet industry and to replicate its market-driven model in other manufacturing sectors. GoodWeave fulfills its mission by creating market demand for rugs bearing its best-in-class certification label; monitoring supply chains; rescuing and educating child laborers; and providing critical services for weaving families.
Bonsucro
IOAS is a non-profit organisation dedicated to the integrity of ecolabel claims in the field of organic and sustainable agriculture, environmental management, social justice and fair trade. It works internationally to assess the competence of organisations providing certification to sustainability standards. IOAS is the accreditation body for the IFOAM Family of Standards as well as SAN standards.
Bonsucro fosters the sustainability of the sugarcane sector through a metric-based certification scheme that is independently verified as sustainable. Bonsucro works with its members to support the continuous improvement of the industry.
Fairtrade International Fairtrade International represents 25 organisations working to secure a better deal for farmers and workers by setting international Fairtrade Standards and developing the global Fairtrade strategy. Its mission is to connect disadvantaged producers and consumers, promote fairer trading conditions and empower producers to combat poverty, strengthen their position and take more control over their lives.
32
IOAS
Marine Stewardship Council Marine Stewardship Council sets standards for sustainable fishing and seafood traceability. It aims to use its ecolabel and fishery certification programme to contribute to the health of the world’s oceans by recognising and rewarding sustainable fishing practices, influencing the choices people make when buying seafood and working with partners to transform the seafood market to a sustainable basis.
33
OUR MEMBERS Full Members
AB
ACCR
E
COUNT AC
V
L
ATION SER
IC
ES
SOC
IA
Rainforest Alliance
ITY
IT
The Sustainable Agriculture Network is a coalition of independent non-profit conservation and rural development organizations that promote the sustainability of agricultural activities by developing standards and supporting farmers around the world to implement best practices on the ground. Farmers that achieve the SAN Standards can use the Rainforest Alliance Certified™ seal for products grown on their certified farms.
IL
D
Sustainable Agriculture Network
Social Accountability Accreditation Services Social Accountability Accreditation Services supports social responsibility and accountability by ensuring the implementation of credible systems designed to protect people and their communities. As recognition that audit programs must be of high quality, SAAS evaluates and accredits auditing organisations to assure they are qualified to hold their clients accountable to social standards.
Union for Ethical BioTrade
The Rainforest Alliance works to conserve biodiversity and ensure sustainable livelihoods by transforming land-use practices, business practices and consumer behaviour. Working in sustainable agriculture, forestry, climate and tourism, it links businesses meeting certain environmental and social standards with the global marketplace, where demand for sustainable goods and services is on the rise.
The Union for Ethical BioTrade is a member-based non-profit association that promotes the ‘Sourcing with Respect’ of ingredients that come from biodiversity. Members adopt sourcing practices that advance sustainable business growth, local development and biodiversity conservation. UEBT was created in 2007 as a spin off from the United Nations to promote business engagement in BioTrade.
Responsible Jewellery Council
UTZ Certified
The Responsible Jewellery Council is an international not-for-profit standards and certification organisation with member companies that span the jewellery supply chain from mine to retail. RJC Members commit to and are independently audited against the RJC Code of Practices – an international standard on responsible business practices for diamonds, gold and platinum group metals.
UTZ Certified is one of the largest sustainability certification programs for coffee, cocoa and tea in the world. The UTZ program enables farmers to learn better farming methods, to improve working conditions and to take better care of people and the environment. By working together with major manufacturers and retailers, UTZ aims to make sustainable farming the norm.
Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials aims to provide and promote the global standard for socially, environmentally and economically sustainable production and conversion of biomass by bringing together farmers, companies, non-governmental organisations, experts, governments and inter-governmental agencies concerned with ensuring the sustainability of biomaterials production and processing.
34
35
OUR MEMBERS
Associate Members
Aquaculture Stewardship Council
Global Sustainable Tourism Council
Aquaculture Stewardship Council’s mission is to transform aquaculture towards environmental sustainability and social responsibility using efficient market mechanisms that create value across the chain. It aims to be the world’s leading certification and labelling programme for responsibly farmed seafood.
Global Sustainable Tourism Council serves as the international body for fostering increased knowledge and understanding of sustainable tourism practices, promoting the adoption of universal sustainable tourism principles and building demand for sustainable travel.
Alliance for Water Stewardship
LEAF
The Alliance for Water Stewardship is a partnership of global leaders in sustainable water management who are dedicated to promoting responsible use of freshwater that is socially, economically and environmentally beneficial. AWS drives collective responses to shared water challenges through its stakeholder-endorsed International Water Stewardship Standard.
LEAF (Linking Environment And Farming) promotes sustainable food and farming by helping farmers produce good food, with care and to high environmental standards, identified in-store by the LEAF Marque logo. LEAF’s vision sees farmers flourishing in their roles as food producers and stewards of the countryside, with consumers enjoying nutritious food.
Equitable Origin
Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil
Equitable Origin runs a stakeholder-based voluntary certification system designed to promote higher social and environmental standards, greater transparency and more accountability in oil and gas exploration and production.
Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil aims to transform markets to make sustainable palm oil the norm, advancing the palm oil sector through the use of credible standards, the monitoring and evaluation of impacts, and the engagement of all stakeholders throughout the supply chain.
Golf Environment Organisation Golf Environment Organisation aims to inspire the sport of golf to fully embrace sustainability and promote a shared understanding of sustainability issues and solutions, working with and through industry associations and businesses. It provides practical, straightforward online guidance programmes and administers golf’s ecolabel, GEO Certified™ - the symbol of great golf environments worldwide.
36
37
FINANCIAL SUMMARY As of 31 December 2013 - unaudited with comparative audited totals for financial year 2012
Income (in Euros)
2012
2013
Membership
212,000
214,000
Government
1,100,000
762,000
867,000
901,000
40,000
64,000
2,219,000
1,941,000
Credibility Programme
350,000
275,000
Impacts and Effectiveness Programmes
565,000
666,000
Adoption Programme
436,000
433,000
Communications Project
265,000
Foundation Other Income
Expenses
Organisation ›› Communications
39,000
64,000
63,000 128,000
83,000
85,000
2,009,000
1,689,000
240,000
209,000
2,249,000
1,898,000
Surplus or deficit
-30,000
43,000
Reserves at Start of Year
294,000
264,000
Reserves at End of Year
264,000
307,000
›› Finance, Operations and Governance ›› Strategic Planning
Indirect Costs
38
54,000 192,000
›› Development and Fundraising
39
FINANCIAL SUMMARY 6%
16%
13% 3%
39% 26%
47%
39%
11%
Expenses
• Credibility Programme oto. We’ve decided to only use Full Member photos for the AR (so no RSPO, ASC). • Impacts and Effectiveness Programmes
• Foundation Grants • Membership Fees
• Adoption Programme
• Government Grants
• Finance, Operations and Strategic Planning
• Other Income
• Communications and Development •
40
Income
•
Funding Partners In addition to our members’ financial and in-kind contributions, ISEAL also received generous support in 2013 from the following institutions:
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH Ford Foundation Humanist Institute for Development Cooperation (Hivos) The David and Lucile Packard Foundation State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, Switzerland (SECO) The Walton Family Foundation
41
THE ISEAL TEAM As of 31 December 2013 Paddy Doherty Code Development Manager
Karin Kreider Executive Director
Rosie Forsyth Senior Community and Learning Coordinator
Jason LaChappelle Communications Coordinator
Natalie Gawor Community and Learning Coordinator
Marta Maireles González Monitoring & Evaluation Coordinator
Karen Halvey Senior Finance Coordinator
Patrick Mallet Credibility Director
Amy Jackson Senior Credibility Manager
Marcus Nyman Policy & Outreach Coordinator
Kristin Komives Senior Monitoring & Evaluation Manager
Norma Tregurtha Senior Policy Manager
Lara Koritzke Director of Development & Communications
Philip Wilson Finance & Operations Director
Photography We would like to thank all members that provided photography for this report. Inside cover and page 38 © Bonsucro. Page 3 and 17 © Sustainable Agriculture Network. Page 5 and 21 © Robin Romano | GoodWeave. Page 7 © David Brazier | Union for Ethical BioTrade. Page 8 © David Dudenhoefer | Rainforest Alliance. Page 11 © Danner Friedman | Rainforest Alliance. Page 13 © David Bonilla | 4C Association. Page 27 © Nathalie Bertrams | Fairtrade International. Page 31 © Forest Stewardship Council. Page 41 © Responsible Jewellery Council. Page 42 and 44 © UTZ Certified.
42
43
Our Cover Cocoa pods being processed in Ivory Coast. The outer husk of the pod is usually split with a stick, after which the white pulp with the cocoa beans becomes visible. Š UTZ Certified. Editor Jason LaChappelle Design Kelly Gregory, mail@kellygregory. co.uk
44
45
ISEAL Alliance The Wenlock Centre 50-52 Wharf Road London N1 7EU United Kingdom Tel: +44 (0)20 3246 0066 Fax: +44 (0)20 3176 0950 info@isealalliance.org twitter.com/isealalliance www.iseal.org