Glossary

Climate change mitigation: There is broad scientific consensus that increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases (GHG) in the earth’s atmosphere are changing the climate. Climate change mitigation efforts seek to reduce the impacts from a changing climate by reducing emissions of and removing GHGs from the atmosphere on a global scale.

Community impact: Business strategies that have an impact on the communities in which they operate.

Corporate social responsibility (CSR): The commitment of firms to incorporate environmental, social, and governance responsibilities into their businesses and supply chains.

CSR/sustainability report: A periodic report published by companies in order to portray the relationships between a company and society and to communicate efforts the company is making to be sustainable.

Covid-19: The official name given by the World Health Organization to the disease caused by the novel coronavirus that first emerged in late 2019.

Disclosure: A company’s sharing of information that informs its stakeholders about its activities to provide equal access to facts about the company. This may come in the form of press releases, sustainability reports, or other formats.

Employee welfare and safety: Services, facilities, and benefits provided by employers to create better and safer conditions for workers.

Engagement: An organization’s efforts to understand and involve stakeholders in its activities and decisions.

Environmental sustainability: The collective practices that reduce the negative impact or increase the positive impact of firms on the environment, which may include natural resource and biodiversity conservation, climate change mitigation, water conservation, and others.

Fair trade: Practices that support greater equity in international trade.

Human rights protections: Protections against situations where persons are coerced to work through the use of violence or intimidation or by more subtle means, such as accumulated debt, retention of identity papers, or threats of denunciation to immigration authorities.

Greenwashing: When a firm releases unsubstantiated claims that aim to deceive consumers into believing that a company’s products are more sustainable than those of its peers.

Investment in sustainability: Committing financial or human resources to achieving progress toward sustainability goals.

Natural resource/biodiversity conservation: The sustainable management of all resources in the environment which may include natural and animal resources.

NGO or third-party collaboration: Collaboration with a nongovernmental organization or third party to support sustainability efforts on a specific issue.

Regulatory due diligence: A comprehensive assessment of compliance with existing regulation related to social and environmental concerns.

Reporting: The collection and presentation of information about practices to a reporting organization which ensures compliance and tracks progress year over year.

Social sustainability: Ensuring positive social conditions for all individuals involved in the supply chain. This effort may include fair trade/fair pay programs, employee health and safety regulations, human rights protection, and other measures.

Stakeholders: People, groups, or organizations that have a direct or indirect stake in an enterprise because it can affect or be affected by the organization’s actions, objectives, and policies.

Supplier audit: An annual, or more frequent, on-site examination to identify and assess social and environmental issues at suppliers’ sites.

Supplier benchmarking: Evaluating and comparing suppliers based on their compliance with established sustainability standards.

Supplier code of conduct: A code of conduct for ensuring that a company’s suppliers support environmentally responsible practices as well as safe and equitable labor conditions.

Supplier collaboration: Working with a supplier to scale its practices and determine improvements that can be made to increase sustainability.

Supplier diversity, equity, and inclusion: An organization’s effort to support traditionally underrepresented or underserved groups in its supply chain.

Supplier training: Programs that teach suppliers’ workforces and management teams practices that help improve their social and/or environmental compliance.

Supply chain management: All activities associated with managing the flow of goods and services from raw material to end of life.

Supply chain mapping: The process of collecting information from suppliers and other supply chain entities to document the sources of materials, processes, and flows involved in bringing products to the customer.

Supply chain sustainability: The management of environmental and social impacts within and across networks consisting of suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, and customers in line with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

Supply chain transparency: Cross-supply chain information sharing and public disclosure of activities and practices within a company’s supply chain to parties outside of the company.

Sustainability goals: Objectives or commitments set by businesses related to their sustainability.

Sustainability standards and certifications: Voluntary, independently assessed production standards and certifications adopted by companies to demonstrate sustainable progress.

Third-party verification: The employment of an external party to verify internal claims about sustainability progress for public disclosure.

Traceability of materials: The ability to follow the movement of a material or good through the supply chain from raw material to final product.

Water conservation: The sustainable management of water resources.