Sustainable Leather Foundation

Dashboard

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), set by United Nations in 2015, are composed of 17 universal goals. They aim to acknowledge the challenges we face, such as poverty, inequality, climate and environmental change, sustainable production and consumption, and peace and justice.

Aside from governmental organisations and governance, the private sector is expected to support the achievement of these goals and to translate them into their routine performance as an opportunity to build upon their capacity to contribute to the world in every possible way.

Sustainable Leather Foundation and the SDGs

SLF is committed to supporting organisations to achieve the objectives of the SDGs and to enhance accountability and transparency with partners. Throughout training and the audit certification process, brands, tanneries, and consumers can demonstrate good practice against the following SDGs:

No Poverty

The social and governance modules of the audit help us to evaluate and improve the conditions of our partners’ workers. Setting an ethical environment for all workers fosters a quality standard for local livelihoods within the leather industry. This supports an end to poverty through guaranteeing access to better fair labour opportunities.
Goal 1

Good Health and Well-Being

The auditing process allows us to evaluate and create the appropriate conditions for all the actors involved in the leather industry. Within the environmental, governance and social modules, good health and well-being are pursued by focusing on factors such as the use of water and chemical products, as well as proper maintenance of farms and slaughterhouses. Occupational health and safety for workers is also a key objective.
Goal 3

Water use, and Climate action

Assessing the use of water in the whole value chain plays an important part of the audit process. Through the environmental module, all resource management is assessed. SLF audits water use, water treatment and water recycling, therefore supporting responsible use of finite resources and responding to environmental protection.
Goal 6

Clean Energy

The SLF audit allows partners to report the total energy consumption, as well as the type of energy used. This leads to a better understanding of the use of energy and supports the switch to renewable sources. Measurement of the impact generated by the use of energy of the partner, allows for improvement in efficiency and improvement of responsible practices within the leather industry for the use of clean energy.
Goal 7

Decent Work & Economic Growth

Social responsibility is a crucial step in achieving sustainable practices. The SLF audit assesses the age of workers, compulsory labour, discrimination, corporate and social responsibility, staff development, wages and benefits, workers health and safety, and working hours. This reinforces the role of integrity and responsibility around decent work and economic growth as a key contributor to social sustainability.
Goal 8

Industry Innovation & Infrastructure

The leather industry is responsible for a value chain composed of brands, retailers, product and leather manufacturers, traders, chemical companies, machinery and suppliers, farmers and meatpackers. SLF works across the value chain to help partners adopt innovative technology and best available techniques to support more sustainable production.
Goal 9

Sustainable cities and communities

SLF supports the development of a more sustainable community by working in collaboration with stakeholders across the leather industry. The work done with partners all over the world contributes to the social, economic, and environmental well-being of local and trans-local livelihoods. This means that not only do partners benefit, but also local actors in setting the standard for work conditions and environmental improvements.
Goal 11

Responsible Consumption & Production

As an industry led, but consumer focused organisation, the certification translates a message that serves to educate consumers about responsible consumption and production, as well as the industry actors. Through our Transparency Dashboard, information and data is accessible about the responsible production of the products that are purchased.
Goal 12

Climate action

The SLF audit assessess a partner’s management of all resources and the Environmental, Social and Governmental impacts of all processes across the leather industry, aiming to support climate action at every step. The SLF Transparency Dashboard serves as a continuous improvement mechanism which is vital for Climate Action.
Goal 13

Life Below Water

The environmental performance of the leather industry affects life under water directly and indirectly. Therefore, the SLF audit certification process assesses the use of chemicals, water treatment at discharge to the environment and minimisation of water use. SLF goes beyond the impact of direct production to involve every level of the value chain.
Goal 14

Life on Land

Understanding the impact of production and waste on our land is a vital component of SLF's audit certification process. Assessing land use, solid waste disposal and land contamination risks, alongside use of chemicals in production is included within the audit. Livestock farming is also within the scope, working towards no deforestation or land conversion and ensuring exemplary animal welfare.
Goal 15

Partnerships for the goals

SLF has it's A.I.M. Approach to sustainability - it must be accessible, inclusive and modular. This ensures that the support is available to all organisations irrespective of size, location or current standard of operation. We encourage the partnership philosophy and believe that we can accelerate sustainable improvement through collective work between actors positioned at different parts of the value chain.
Goal 17

Within these key areas, SLF works together with its partners to reduce negative impacts and increase positive impacts for people, plant and profit, in order to support a sustainable future.  

Conference of The Parties (COP)

The Conference of the Parties refers to the signatories of the United Nations Framework Convention of Climate Change (UNFCC) which entered into force on 21 March 1994.

Each year the COP, who are the decision making body, meet in a different country, to review the implementation of the Convention and to reinforce the commitments made during the Paris Agreement, in order to urgently respond to the climate emergency.

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