ISEAL and SECO have been working together since 2015 to support the scaling of sustainability impacts. As well as being a long-term valued supporter and collaborator in ISEAL’s broader work in engaging and aligning members on critical sustainability issues, SECO is a co-founder of the Innovations Fund and continues to support sustainability systems unlock new innovative partnerships, approaches and solutions that can operate at scale to deliver impact.
Current Programme: Transparency and Innovation of Sustainability Standards (TISS), Phase II
Programme information
Programme Duration: 2022 – 2026
Programme Amount: 10,000,000 CHF (Swiss Francs)
Programme summary
The aim of this programme is to build understanding and catalyse innovation in the use of sustainability systems so as to support governments and companies to find effective, collaborative solutions to global sustainability challenges.
The programme has three primary areas of work:
- Sustainability System Innovations – ISEAL supports sustainability systems to innovate in order to be able to meet the evolving needs and expectations of producers, government and supply chain actors. This includes supporting ISEAL members to pilot Innovations through the Innovations Fund.
- Public Sector Engagement – ISEAL works to assist policymakers, business leaders, and multi-lateral organisations in understanding how sustainability systems can support public policy goals (and new public policies), including on trade and due diligence.
- Evidensia – Through the Evidensia open access library, we are compiling evidence on what works and sharing learnings with researchers and practitioners, while filling key research and knowledge gaps on the impacts of sustainability systems.
Programme priority countries
Policy engagement will initially focus on the EU and Switzerland. There are Innovations Fund pilots in 40+ countries including SECO priority countries Indonesia, Vietnam, Colombia, Peru, Ghana, and South Africa.
Target audiences
- Credible sustainability systems
- Governments, in Switzerland and beyond
- Multilateral agencies
- Companies
- NGOs and local government agencies in place-based collaborations
- Producing enterprises and the workers, producers and communities associated with those enterprises
Programme outcomes
- Innovations Fund project portfolio.
- Work on data management and managing risk in assurance with ISEAL community members.
- Research studies that fill knowledge gaps, including driving decent work in supply chains: insights from a new systematic evidence review.
- Tailored policy resources for public audiences, including enhancing the role of credible sustainability standards in the EU Green Claims Directive.
Previous programmes and grants with SECO
The Future of Sustainability Standards, 2016 – 2022.
About SECO
You can find out more about SECO’s work on their website.