The importance of sustainability brings with it a growth of certificates. Getting lost in this world of sustainability certificates is not so easy. In the blog post below, we try to simplify it. By taking logical steps, you can find the appropriate sustainability certificate for your organisation.
First, then, we need to establish what a sustainability certificate actually is. Briefly, a certificate is a written statement. This statement states that a product, process, person , management system or service meets certain requirements. A sustainability certificate then obviously revolves around sustainability requirements.
Besides "certificate", "hallmark" is often mentioned. For many people, it is not clear what the difference is between the two. The difference is that a certificate is the written declaration that you meet certain requirements and a hallmark is the visual mark that goes with it.
Example: suppose your company is ISO 14001 certified, the certificate is the "diploma" you hang on the wall, and the ISO logo on the website and other expressions is the seal of approval.
Besides certificate and hallmark, there is the term "label". A label can actually be anything. It is simply a card or image that gives more information about a product or service. So a label is a label, but a label does not always have to be a seal.
Now that we know what the terms mean, the question is: how do you know what a certificate means and whether it is valuable?
One way to add value to a certificate is to accreditation. It works like this: a certification body assesses whether a company meets the requirements of the certificate. But in principle, anyone can issue certificates and seals of approval. That is why an accreditation body checks whether the certification body is reliable. An example of an accreditation body is the Accreditation Council.
Incidentally, this does not mean that certificates without accreditation are unreliable. Basically, the market determines the reliability of a certificate. The more acceptance there is from the market, the more reliable the certificate is seen to be, and the more value it has for companies and customers.
But why would you want to get sustainability certification in the first place?
The first approach should be to make the world a more endurable place. And the certificate proves that its owner meets the sustainable standards and requirements set from the label. An additional advantage is that one can demonstrate to customers that the organisation operates sustainably. For customers and suppliers, this can be an incentive to cooperate. Purely for the fact that buying with a sustainable organisation is better than buying with an unsustainable one.
Now that we know what a sustainability certificate entails and what the incentive might be to get started with it, we can start looking at the different types of certificates available in the market.
What CSR or sustainability means specifically for your business now is the key to success. So it comes down to the question: what do you think is important? Is it about creating jobs for vulnerable groups, reducing your carbon footprint, sustainable procurement or is it your building that is still lagging behind with energy label G? For each vision regarding sustainability, there are various certificates to suit your sustainability objective. We list some sustainability certificates:
Milieu Centraal in its labels guide several important certificates for the hospitality industry again.
Two key general labels for the hospitality industry are EU Ecolabel and Green Key. Green Key focuses specifically on this sector. while the EU Ecolabel is used in numerous sectors.
Eu-Ecolabel
EU Ecolabel is the official European eco-label recognised by all European Union countries. The label sets sustainability requirements for the entire life cycle of products and services.
There is independent control by certified institutions which in turn are under the control of the Accreditation Council. As a result, Milieu Centraal considers it a reliable label.
Mandatory requirements for venues in the hospitality sector cover:
Green Key
Green Key is an international quality mark for sustainable businesses in the leisure and recreation sector and business market.
A Green Key venue tackles sustainability in the following areas:
There are 3 levels: Gold, Silver and Bronze. The inspection is done by the Stichting Keurmerk Milieu, Veiligheid en Kwaliteit (Quality, Safety and Environment Certification Foundation). This Foundation is a collaboration between RECRON, HISWA and the ANWB and is also the administrator of Green Key in the Netherlands. The inspections are carried out by external inspectors, but they are not accredited and do not work at an accredited institution.
Read more at keurmerkenwijzer.co.uk
Green Globe
Green Globe is an internationally recognised sustainability label represented in about 90 countries. Often, sustainability certificates pay particular attention to saving the environment. Green Globe also pays attention to economic as well as social measures. Consider good working conditions, supporting good causes, purchasing Fairtrade products, supporting the local environment, etc.).
Besides a relatively small number of mandatory standards, a company decides which standards it wants to meet provided that at least 50% per chapter is achieved. This is a strong advantage for businesses that want a lot of flexibility and freedom of choice because they want a good balance between sustainability and guest/customer requirements. (SOURCE: greenlabelservice.co.uk)
Planet Care
To receive Planet Care certification, your organisation must meet at least 50% of the criteria. You will make decide which criteria suit you best. This offers flexibility. As transparency and communication is an important part of sustainability, only 1 criteria is mandatory; communicating the sustainability policy on your website. By applying at least 50% of the criteria, you show that sustainability is an important part of your business. The certificate is valid for 1 year and there is an on-site audit every year. (Source: greenlabelservice.co.uk)
Other certificates
Corporate Social Responsibility
The CSR Performance Ladder is a certification standard that allows you to objectively demonstrate your performance on Corporate Social Responsibility. Among other things, it uses the principles in international guidelines for sustainability (ISO 26000), stakeholder management (AA1000) and indicators and reporting (GRI). This makes the CSR Performance Ladder internationally recognised and applicable.
Certificates for building and property
BREAAM NL distinguishes 4 target groups for certification: New Construction, In-Use, Demolition & Dismantling and Area. For the hospitality industry, we focus on the "In-Use" target group. BREEAM-NL is the certification method for a sustainable built environment. It allows projects to be assessed for integral sustainability.
For CO2 reduction
The CO2 performance ladder is a sustainability tool of the Netherlands that helps companies and governments reduce CO2 and costs. Within operations, in projects and in the chain. The ladder is used as a CO2 management system and as a procurement tool.
Organisations that get certified according to the ladder will experience this as an investment that pays off immediately in terms of lower energy costs, material savings and innovation gains.
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