British standards organisation, BSI has pledged its commitment to ensuring global standards support climate action

The so-called London Declaration commits the group to embedding key climate considerations into every new standard that is created. It will also retrospectively add these requirements to all existing standards as they are revised.

Susan Taylor-Martin, chief executive of BSI, said: “There are an increasing number of corporate commitments and government targets around reaching net zero, but a lack of direction as to how these targets can be met. Governments and industry need clear, practical guidance to achieve net zero. Standards are a trusted, global methodology and framework which can be used by both governments and industry to deliver real change. BSI was the originator of the London Declaration. We are very pleased that this will be taken forward by ISO, its members and other standards bodies so that we can work together with other countries to ensure that standards become an enabler for organisations of all sizes to accelerate our transition to a more sustainable world.”

Scott Steedman, director-general of standards at BSI, added: “Consensus-based standards are in a unique position to enable positive climate action. The sheer scale that standards operate at and the vital role they play for government and industry alike means they can accelerate the achievement of the goals in the Paris Agreement, the UN SDGs and the UN Call for Action on Adaptation and Resilience. BSI is proud to lead the development of the London Declaration and is fully committed to seeing it implemented across the 40,000 standards in our national portfolio. The Declaration will help ensure that climate-friendly standards become the norm across all industries.”

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