Public and private sector stakeholders are increasingly looking to voluntary standards as one of the key tools to deliver their sustainability goals. While voluntary standards are clearly demonstrating their contribution to livelihoods, decent work and preservation of the environment, there is renewed focus on the extent to which these tools can protect and promote core human rights in sectors where they operate.
Giving workers a decent standard of living through a coalition of seven standards systems
Ensuring resilient livelihoods and sustained employment for vulnerable communities was already a stretch pre-Covid-19. For those communities lacking a stable income, the impact has been inconceivable.
Bonsucro and Responsible Jewellery Council engaged Business & Human Rights consultancy twentyfifty to conduct a research project into Grievance Mechanisms within Voluntary Sustainability Standards (VSS). The research investigated how grievance mechanisms have been set up and how grievances are managed and remediated within their memberships.
A brief guidance note for academics, consultants, students and others researching sustainability standards.
This guidance document provides guidance for sustainability systems looking to collect or improve the collection of polygon location data. It was developed with the support of experts and ISEAL members with advanced experience, and includes a variety of different options and technologies.
The COVID-19 pandemic severely impacted the ability of many sustainability systems to perform on-site audits. Many have had to implement new policies and adapt to new ways of working. In many ways, this forced many sustainability systems to rapidly innovate during the pandemic, by embracing novel technologies and piloting new approaches to assess sites remotely.