ARTICLE 9 Adopt Common Metrics and Standards

ARTICLE 9

Adopt Common Metrics and Standards

Article 9 - Adopt Common Metrics and Standards calls on the private sector to work towards alignment of sustainability-related standards and the development of unified metrics.

Global Picture

The increasing expectations of businesses to understand and report on their impact and sustainability credentials has been highlighted in recent studies with CEOs, who identify the need for common, comprehensive standards and frameworks, as have shareholders, customers, employees, and other stakeholders.

By using the Stakeholder Capitalism Metrics, we can spend less time worrying about what to measure and what measurement system, and more time measuring progress.

Brian Moynihan, Bank of America President and CEO and SMI Co-Chair

Projects

The Global Farm Metric is working to create a framework to support farmers and the agribusiness sector with understanding their sustainability impacts

The Global Farm Metric has established a consistent set of indicators for data collection on key areas of impact.

When adopted, the Global Farm Metric will have established a baseline of data for sustainability. This will provide a starting point to monitor progress towards sustainability goals and to identify unintended consequences in the framework’s 11 key areas including Plant & Crop Health, Energy & Resource Use, Air & Climate, Social and Biodiversity.

The framework has been trialled on 100 farms across the UK and 20 farms in Kentucky, US, with additional testing currently underway in Malawi.

To learn more about the Global Farm Metric, click here.

The SMI is supporting the development of Common Metrics and Standards through standing up a new-cross industry Task Force focused on measurement and transparency

In 2022, the SMI developed the Measurement & Transparency Task Force, which is chaired by AECOM, which aims to develop a globally consistent measurement system and tools for enabling more effective and standardised measurement and management of the sustainability impact of key infrastructure projects.

The SMI Energy Transition Task Force published a framework to help financial institutions better drive decarbonisation efforts

The SMI Energy Transition Task Force has published a Greening and Decarbonising Framework to help investors, finance providers and insurers identify transitioning businesses and track progress towards net zero. The framework will be delivered with Sustainable Fitch, who will utilise the framework to develop a transition assessment to illuminate the spectrum of businesses in the undefined space between carbon intensive and net zero.

To read the full framework, click here.

Spotlight on: Johnsons Controls International

Johnson Controls International is helping to drive the adoption of common metrics and standards, through requiring that all their suppliers provide transparent ESG reporting. Recognising how suppliers are critical to their overall success, Johnson Controls has performed a sustainability assessment of preferred suppliers. The survey then translates into a scoring reported on suppliers’ scorecards. This is a textbook example of how a business could integrate ESG considerations within their general business decision-making processes and influence the other businesses in their supply chain to put an increased emphasis on ESG issues.

Spotlight on: The Sustainable Healthcare Coalition

SMI Health Systems Task Force member Sustainable Healthcare Coalition (SHC) has drawn on its practical expertise to produce tools to appraise healthcare products to reduce environmental impact. SHC’s internationally recognised Greenhouse Gas Healthcare Product Guidance, the first in the healthcare sector and only the second in any sector, is an important development in understanding the GHG emissions of healthcare products through manufacture, use and disposal. Going forwards, the Task Force hopes to apply the SHC’s guidance to healthcare markets across the globe.