ISEAL Credibility Principles
ISEAL is the global membership organisation for credible sustainability standards. 2013, ISEAL published the Credibility Principles following a global consultation with contributions from more than 400 stakeholders. The Credibility Principles are ten core principles that represent a common understanding of what is essential for a standard system to deliver impact and are a reference point for companies, governments and NGOs when assessing or benchmarking standards systems and related tools.
The Credibility Principles define and communicate the core values of credible and effective sustainability systems and thus improve the achievement of sustainability impacts. They fulfil a number of complementary functions including:
- Aid users of standards systems (such as producers, procurement officials, companies, NGOs, and financiers) in determining the relative credibility and effectiveness of the standards systems with which they are engaging.
- Provide a powerful communications tool that will build greater stakeholder understanding of what makes a credible and effective standard.
- Provide an aspirational framework for standards systems to improve their knowledge and, thus, their ability to deliver sustainability improvements.
- Inform sourcing decisions that favour entities that comply with credible and effective sustainability standards.
- Distinguish good practice from good marketing – ensure standards systems and users are accountable for the claims they make, and that claims are backed up by substance.
In 2019, ISEAL carried out a review of the Credibility Principles, and in 2020 ISEAL is updating the principles through a global online consultation. The updated principles will be finalised and published by early 2021. This revision of the principles is intended to update the principles so that they reflect current and future trends affecting standards; this includes expanding their scope beyond sustainability standards to encompass a wider range of systems, such as data-driven and landscape-based approaches. The ISEAL Credibility Principles apply to all standards systems that focus on sustainability performance and that incorporate a standard and a mechanism for assuring compliance with that standard. The principles are applied to the entire standard system, including standard setting, capacity building, assurance, labelling and monitoring. The integration of these principles increases the likelihood that a standard system will achieve its intended positive social, environmental and economic impacts. The second round of stakeholder consultations on the ISEAL Credibility Principles is now closed and we will share an update on the final version when this is approved later in 2021.
- Aid users of standards systems (such as producers, procurement officials, companies, NGOs, and financiers) in determining the relative credibility and effectiveness of the standards systems with which they are engaging.
- Provide a powerful communications tool that will build greater stakeholder understanding of what makes a credible and effective standard.
- Provide an aspirational framework for standards systems to improve their knowledge and, thus, their ability to deliver sustainability improvements.
- Inform sourcing decisions that favour entities that comply with credible and effective sustainability standards.
- Distinguish good practice from good marketing – ensure standards systems and users are accountable for the claims they make, and that claims are backed up by substance.
In 2019, ISEAL carried out a review of the Credibility Principles, and in 2020 ISEAL is updating the principles through a global online consultation. The updated principles will be finalised and published by early 2021. This revision of the principles is intended to update the principles so that they reflect current and future trends affecting standards; this includes expanding their scope beyond sustainability standards to encompass a wider range of systems, such as data-driven and landscape-based approaches. The ISEAL Credibility Principles apply to all standards systems that focus on sustainability performance and that incorporate a standard and a mechanism for assuring compliance with that standard. The principles are applied to the entire standard system, including standard setting, capacity building, assurance, labelling and monitoring. The integration of these principles increases the likelihood that a standard system will achieve its intended positive social, environmental and economic impacts. The second round of stakeholder consultations on the ISEAL Credibility Principles is now closed and we will share an update on the final version when this is approved later in 2021.
External source(s)
Image
© Forest Stewardship Council, Milan Reíka
Project start date
01/07/2020
Project end date
01/07/2020
