The key objective of this working group is the implementation of the 'Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information'. The working group is led by UN Environment and the International Trade Centre.
Implemented in
- Africa
- Asia / Pacific
- Europe and Central Asia
- Latin America / Caribbean
- Middle East
- North America
Sector of activity
Consumer Goods
Type of initiative
Capacity Building & Implementation, Education & Awareness Raising, Policy Frameworks & Tools
Type of lead actor
United Nations / intergovernmental organizations
Start date
29/06/2015
End date
31/12/2020
Submitted on:
24/11/2016Objectives
Sustainable goods and services are a growing business opportunity and significant efforts are already underway in this area. Yet, a key challenge is the provision of clear and reliable sustainability product information to consumers. The importance of providing reliable information has been internationally recognized by the Sustainable Development Goals through target 12.8 and is also the focus of the One Planet Network’s Consumer Information Programme (CI-SCP). It has also been recently reinforced by member states during the fourth United Nations Environment Assembly (Sustainable Consumption and Production Resolution and Ministerial Declaration).
To strengthen good practices and build international understanding and consensus in this field, the working group developed the Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information (launched in 2017). After two years of research and collaboration, with inputs from over 125 organizations, the Guidelines aim to benefit both the consumer and the producer by outlining how companies can provide quality information to empower sustainable consumption decisions, and also serving as a reference for governments, standard and labelling bodies and NGOs. In 2018, the Guidelines were tested by 28 private sector organizations (companies and standard-setters), including both SMEs and multinational companies, representing 12 industry sectors, from all world regions. The report 'Ready to Drive the Market', as well as individual case studies have been published following this exercise. All materials, and links to other relevant initiatives of working group members and beyond, are available on the Product Sustainability Information Hub, linked below.
As of 2019, the working group is focusing on bringing the Guidelines forward as a practical tool that contributes to the implementation of SDG 12 in an effective way. This will involve three key objectives: encouraging more organizations to align their product sustainability communications with the Guidelines; building a permanent community of practice on product sustainability information by enhancing collaborations and creating synergies with local organizations for replication; and involving governments so that the Guidelines ultimately become a base for national legislation (especially around SDG 12.8).
Activities
As collected through the One Planet Reporting
Output level
Outreach and communication for SCP
-
Launch of the Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information
Launch of the Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information
Regions
Europe and Central Asia
Lead organization
UN Environment and the International Trade Centre (ITC)
Objective
After two years of research and collaboration, with inputs from over 125 organizations, UN Environment and the International Trade Centre (ITC) launched the Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information on 25 October, during the World Resources Forum 2017 in Geneva, Switzerland.
Achievements
The World Resources Forum 2017: on 'Accelerating the Resource Revolution' took place from 24 to 25 October 2017 in Geneva, Switzerland. More than 450 participants from 50 countries shared four days of discussions, networking and side events. As UN Environment's Steven Stone stated during the launch, "The search cost for product information can be overwhelming for consumers - many of us can well relate to the cover picture of the Guidelines." According to EU market research, 84% of EU citizens include environmental considerations in their purchasing decisions, however, only half of them currently trust manufacturer and retailer claims about the environmental performance of their products. But it is not only the consumers that are challenged. As Regina Taimasova from ITC pointed out, producers today, besides mandatory regulations, have to comply with a plethora of sustainability standards. Again, it is extremely important that these standards and labels convey the right and reliable message to consumers in order not to break their trust in products and producers. With an objective to generate global consensus for product sustainability information, the Guidelines aim to address exactly this. They were developed in response to calls for international agreement and guidance on how to convey information on products' sustainability attributes and performance to consumers and aim to inspire information providers to build upon the valuable efforts already underway, in line with SDG Target 12.8. The Guidelines aim to ultimately benefit both the consumer and the producer through outlining how companies can provide quality information to empower sustainable consumption decisions, and also serving as a reference for governments, standard and labelling bodies and NGOs. The Consumer Information Programme with its multi-stakeholder nature provided the ideal framework to develop such Guidelines in an inclusive process. In June 2015, UN Environment and the International Trade Centre formed a working group under the Programme, joined by stakeholders from government, private sector, standard and labelling bodies, and NGOs, who embarked on a two year journey to develop the Guidelines. The considerable support of all working group members in shaping the Guidelines was appreciated during the launch. Specifically the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB) was acknowledged in its role in co-initiating and financially supporting this process. Norma Tregurtha from ISEAL Alliance gave a testimony of a working group member that supported the development of the Guidelines. Norma appreciated that UN Environment and ITC did not reinvent the wheel, but built upon existing guidance, such as ISEAL's challenge the label website. In addition, Norma commended the timeliness of the process and it multi-stakeholder, consensus based nature. Going forward, Norma gave the 10YFP Consumer Information Programme the following recommendations: "Invest as much into promotion of the Guidelines as into their development, measure their impact, and make the link to behaviour change."
-
Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information: 2017 Webinars
Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information: 2017 Webinars
Regions
Global / All regions
Lead organization
UN Environment, International Trade Centre
Objective
Two webinars were organised on Thursday, 23rd November 2017 and Tuesday, 28th November 2017 aiming at providing an overview of the brand-new 'Guidelines for providing sustainability product information', sharing insights and lessons learned on the development of the Guidelines, and introducing the road testing exercise.
Achievements
Participants had the opportunity to raise questions on the content of the Guidelines and discuss how the road testing exercise applies to them. The Guidelines aim to be useful to developed and developing countries alike, and implementable for companies of all size. The target audience included providers of information, as well as those that regulate and analyze consumer information (e.g. governments, certification bodies, NGOs).
-
Regional Launch of the Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information in India
Regional Launch of the Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information in India
Regions
Asia / Pacific
Lead organization
Centre for Responsible Business (CRB)
Objective
The main objective was to launch the Guidelines at the India and Sustainability Standards: International Dialogue & Conference (ISS), which was held from 15-17 November, 2017 at India Habitat Centre (IHC), New Delhi.
Achievements
The Centre for Responsible Business (CRB) has been organising its flagship annual conference, India and Sustainability Standards: International Dialogue & Conference (ISS) since 2014. This event, conceived and organised by CRB in partnership with several partner organisations has now become a much awaited international sustainability conference based in India. On average over 600 delegates participate in the 20 thematic/sectoral dialogues over three days. The event offers an occasion for participants to discuss challenges and opportunities presented by international and Indian Sustainability Standards and Collaborative Sustainability Initiatives, in supporting business and policy contributions towards positive social, economic and environmental impacts in India and beyond. The theme of this 2017 conference was From Tragedies of the Commons to the Strategies for the Commons. It is imperative to appreciate the nature of the tragedies of the commons and the implications for sustainable and inclusive development. ISS 2017 attracted Indian and international policy actors, government agencies, standard setters, large and small businesses, civil society, academia, and media agencies, for participatory and inclusive dialogues on opportunities and challenges for promoting responsible business in India and beyond, with special reference to sustainability standards and collaborative sustainability initiatives, including a session on the Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information.
-
Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information: 2018 Webinars
Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information: 2018 Webinars
Regions
Global / All regions
Lead organization
UN Environment, International Trade Centre
Objective
Two webinars were organised on 23rd May 2018 and 30th November 2019 aiming at providing an overview of the developments since publication of the 'Guidelines for providing sustainability product information', sharing insights and lessons learned on the road testing exercise and discussing the Guidelines implementation concept note (work plan).
Achievements
WG1 members were informed that the Guidelines were applied and tested by 28 organizations from a broad range of geographical scope (Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, North America, and Oceania), including companies and standard-setting organizations. Ideas for future activities for implementing the Guidelines were presented and organised around three main objectives: Raise Attention, Build Capacity, and Apply and Guide. The proposed expected outputs of the implementation phase were presented and validated: Raise Attention • Collaborations for country level awareness raising and identification of sector priorities • Websites, newsletters, journals, LinkedIN, events (promotional measures) • One stop web source on SCP Clearinghouse Build Capacity • Learning webinars (online questionnaire) • In country workshops • University courses and e-learnings Apply and Guide • Good practices from various sectors and information tools • Identify issues & develop sector/ topic- specific supplements • Dialogue & learning, community of practice • Useful tool for governments and national marketing surveillance authorities • Link the Guidelines to other processes and instruments In terms of work plan for next year, the CI-SCP will still aim at achieving the following overarching aims, but the focus will be more on how we can implement the Guidelines in the field and in the different countries (bullet point 3 below): • More organisations become aware of the existence of the Guidelines, their objective and potential benefits. • Organisations and individuals learn about the Guidelines and are able to jointly raise and discuss controversial issues, which may result into feedback on the Guidelines, and higher usage. • The Guidelines are applied in the field by the end-user and a community of practice is established.
-
Chambery Brown Bag Lunch on Consumer Information
Chambery Brown Bag Lunch on Consumer Information
Regions
Europe and Central Asia
Lead organization
UN Environment
Objective
The Consumer Information and Ecolabelling team at UN Environment organized a Chambery Brown Bag Lunch on "Consumer information and ecolabelling as tools to support the behaviourchange of producers and consumers".
Achievements
Colleagues from UN Environment were briefed on the team's portfolio projects and initiatives, and discussed potential future collaborations on this topic.
Knowledge resource and technical tool
-
Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information
Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information
Regions
Global / All regions
Lead organization
UN Environment, International Trade Centre
Objective
The Guidelines aim to provide global guidance on making effective environmental, social and economic claims, to empower and enable consumer choice. The Guidelines offer value chain and public sector professionals clear guidance on making effective, trustworthy claims to consumers, on product-related sustainability information. They are applicable to all regions and companies of all sizes.
Achievements
Sustainable products are a growing business opportunity, especially for emerging and developing countries. Still, challenges impair the rapid growth of green markets. Besides the malpractice of greenwashing, key barriers to sustainable consumption include the uncoordinated proliferation of diverging and/or unchecked product sustainability information tools and the resulting mistrust and confusion among consumers, as well as information providers. A key challenge is the lack of international guidance and agreement on how to convey consumer information. The Guidelines aim to address this through a comprehensive set of high-level principles, ranging from fundamental to aspirational, and guidance on how to apply them. They were developed in response to calls for international agreement and guidance on how to convey information on products' sustainability attributes and performance to consumers and aim to inspire information providers to build upon the valuable efforts already underway, in line with SDG Target 12.8. The Guidelines aim to ultimately benefit both the consumer and the producer through outlining how companies can provide quality information to empower sustainable consumption decisions, and also serving as a reference for governments, standard and labelling bodies and NGOs. The Consumer Information Programme with its multi-stakeholder nature provided the ideal framework to develop such Guidelines in an inclusive process. In June 2015, UN Environment and the International Trade Centre formed a working group under the Programme, joined by stakeholders from government, private sector, standard and labelling bodies, and NGOs, who embarked on a two year journey to develop the Guidelines. The target audience includes providers of information, as well as those that regulate and analyze consumer information (e.g. governments, certification bodies, NGOs). The development of the Guidelines was supported by the German government through the International Climate Initiative. Feedback received so far to the Guidelines has been very positive - including consideration in a UNEA3 Resolution and participation of companies and standard-setting institutions in their road testing. The Guidelines have greatly benefitted from the multi-stakeholder approach of the 10YFP, with the working group showing strong ownership of this joint deliverable, and members actively promoting the Guidelines at events (e.g. Akatu Institute or IPEN), helping to mobilize companies for the road testing (e.g. CRB India helped mobilize two major Indian companies) and using them in their projects (e.g. adelphi in the Better by Design project in a retailer workshop).
-
Self-Assessment Tool - Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information
Self-Assessment Tool - Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information
Regions
Online activity
Lead organization
UNEP CI-SCP Coordination Desk.
Objective
The main objective of this online tool is to offer an opportunity for organizations to self-assess and improve the way they are communicating with consumers about product sustainability (through marketing claims, labels, voluntary standards, product declarations, etc.). This tool also serves as a benchmarking tool to organizations that are currently developing new product sustainability information. The objective of this tool is for companies and organizations to promote a reflection process within an organisation and teams, gaining insights and ideas on how to improve current work.
Achievements
With this self-assessment tool, the Consumer Information Programme aims to encourage organizations to align their product sustainability communications with the Guidelines, creating an international community of good practice.
-
'Guidelines in Practice' Train the Trainers Toolkit
'Guidelines in Practice' Train the Trainers Toolkit
Regions
Global / All regions
Lead organization
UNEP
Objective
This toolkit provides information and practical guidance on preparing the workshops around the Guidelines. It will help organizers/facilitators/moderators plan, deliver and evaluate their own trainings.
Achievements
The toolkit is intended to be a flexible resource. Sections of the toolkit can be used to support existing projects or activities that are currently delivered, or plan specific sections depending on local needs. The content is broken down into six units: 1. Planning the training 2. Effective group work 3. Workshop aim and learning outcomes 4. The 10 Principles 5. The Group Exercise 6. How to evaluate
Outcome level
SCP Commitments
-
Guidelines noted by member states in the Resolution on Environment and Health at the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA3)
Guidelines noted by member states in the Resolution on Environment and Health at the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA3)
Regions
Global / All regions
Lead organization
The United Nations Environment Assembly
Objective
The Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information received high level consideration at the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA3), where they were noted by member states in the Resolution on Environment and Health.
Achievements
The United Nations Environment Assembly is the world's highest-level decision-making body on the environment. It addresses the critical environmental challenges facing the world today. Understanding these challenges and preserving and rehabilitating our environment is at the heart of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The Environment Assembly meets biennially to set priorities for global environmental policies and develop international environmental law. Through its resolutions and calls to action, the Assembly provides leadership and catalyses intergovernmental action on the environment. Decision-making requires broad participation, which is why the Assembly provides an opportunity for all peoples to help design solutions for our planet's health. The UNEP/EA.3/L.8/REV.1 "... emphasizes the importance of education, lifelong learning and raising public awareness, notably through measures aimed at providing Product Sustainability Information in order to stress the shared responsibility of all stakeholders including industry and allow informed choices by consumers, notes in this regard the newly launched Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information; and calls upon Member States to strengthen efforts in the areas of education, and together with the private sector, as appropriate, in training, public awareness, public participation, public access to information and cooperation with regards to linkages between health and environment".
-
Innovative pathways to achieve sustainable consumption and production
Innovative pathways to achieve sustainable consumption and production
Regions
Global / All regions
Lead organization
UN Environment and all UN member states
Objective
• The Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information were directly mentioned on p3 part 6: "Invites Member States to use, as appropriate, the guidelines for consumer information and other instruments developed by the 10-Year Framework of Programmes on Sustainable Consumption and Production Patterns for supporting sustainable and informed consumer choices" • The One Planet network and 10 Year Framework of Programmes are together mentioned 15 times and therefore a true reflection of the value of collaborating in this network to achievement of Goal 12 of the Sustainable Development Goals. • Providing information to consumers is recognised as crucial for supporting SCP: o P2: "education and awareness raising, sustainable finance, economic tools, technical standards, product design, provision of systems and services and information as appropriate" o P2: "Member States must take the lead in developing domestic policy measures to empower consumers in making informed choices with regard to their purchasing decisions in favour of sustainable products, goods and services" o P3 part 4: "consumer information about the environmental aspects of products and services, awareness raising, consumer protection" o P3 part 5: "to enable consumers and public authorities to make informed choices, inter alia through the provision of reliable consumer information regarding resource efficiency and wider sustainability of products and services… information on approaches to increase the longevity and re-use of products as well as recycling of materials" o P4 part 16: "to promote the availability of appropriate information in the value chain to favour sound and safe recycling of waste"
Achievements
The Guidelines for Providing Product Sustainability Information have been mentioned in the resolutions of two UN Environment assemblies - UNEA3 and UNEA4. This is the acheiveiment that the CI-SCP is most proud of because it shows global dissemination of the Guidelines and that member states see it as important and relevant.
Impact and Results
The Guidelines were published in 2017 and have received international recognition by UN member states in resolutions of the third and fourth United Nations Environment Assembly. As of March 2019, they have been downloaded over 1,800 times, and are by far the most accessed resource on the One Planet network website. 10 workshops in various world regions were held to date, building capacity and raising awareness of policy makers, companies and NGOs on the 10 principles of the Guidelines, and they were featured in 8 conferences. A number of these were done in collaboration with other One Planet network programmes, for instance SLE and SFS. The Guidelines have been road tested by 28 organizations from all world regions, and case studies from this exercise are being published on the Product Sustainability Information Hub. The latter collects all relevant materials around the Guidelines and the topic, serving as a one stop web source. A training of trainers on how to conduct workshops around the Guidelines and an online self-assessment tool are also available. Various projects of working group members are helping countries and/or stakeholder groups to apply the Guidelines in their national context and/or sector.
Next steps and how to get involved
The working group is holding quarterly webinars and working group members are supporting the implementation of the activities mentioned and reviewing progress achieved. If you have an questions or would like to get involved please do not hesitate to contact ciscp@un.org.
