This week the European Commission will release the Guidance for the Information and Communication Technologies ("ICT") Sector on Implementing The UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. This is a paramount step in advancing Human Rights practices throughout the ICT industry. This Communication is the last of a series of initiatives and regulations launched in Europe and North America to tackle environmental, human rights and ethical issues in the supply chain.

GeSI recognized that sustainability in the ICT industry supply Chain has become a strategic issue for its members in Europe, in the Americas and Asia, and therefore, decided to launch a new initiative in this area, the Electronic Tool for Accountable Supply Chains (E-TASC). This tool facilitates support and drives accountability in the area of human rights and other sustainability standards throughout the supply chain. This will lead to a more effective and transparent management of ICT Supply chains and will allow companies to better report to their different stakeholders. Furthermore, E-TASC will illustrate results on real social and environmental improvements across the Supply Chain and consequently on increasing value for the companies.

EcoVadis will administer E-TASC by combining a cloud based platform and data validation services. This will allow the ICT industry to effectively implement a common approach in monitoring suppliers Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) practices. Suppliers to the ICT industry will be able to use E-TASC to avoid duplication of questionnaires and audits, and share easy to understand scorecards and reliable ratings with their customers.

The ICT industry relies on a pool of common suppliers. By establishing E-TASC powered by EcoVadis as the industry standard, the approach to assessing sustainability practices will drive maturity of CSR practices throughout the ICT value chain.

"Since the 1st version of E-TASC in 2007, GeSI fosters collaborative and innovative approaches to sustainability," declared Luis Neves, Chairman of GeSI. "The EcoVadis platform will allow us to provide an easier to use collaboration platform, but also reliable ratings to ensure that Sustainability performance can be integrated into procurement decisions."

EcoVadis Managing Director and co-founder Pierre-François Thaler adds: "GeSI has been one of the pioneers of industry collaborative sustainability initiatives and we are very proud to collaborate with GeSI as a leading Industry Association to improve the environmental and social conditions of their complex supply chains."

E-TASC is now being implemented amongst GeSI member companies and other ICT companies. Leading ICT companies such as Alcatel-Lucent, Atos, Belgacom, Bouygues, Telecom Deutsche Telekom, O2, SFR, Swisscom, Telefonica, and Vodafone along with thousands of their suppliers are already deploying the EcoVadis platform.

E-TASC powered by EcoVadis will allow the ICT industry to access reliable data and easy to use scorecards, covering 21 environmental and social criteria, adapted to the specific regulations and CSR challenges of over 150 purchasing categories, which will cover suppliers in in more than a 95 countries. www.e-tasc.com

About Global e-Sustainability Initiative (GeSI): GeSI is a strategic partnership of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector and organizations committed to creating and promoting technologies and practices that foster economic, environmental and social sustainability. GeSI has 36 members representing leading companies and associations from the ICT sector. GeSI also partners with two UN organizations – the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) – as well as a range of international stakeholders committed to ICT sustainability objectives. www.gesi.org

About EcoVadis: EcoVadis aims at improving environmental and social practices of companies by leveraging the influence of global supply chains. EcoVadis operates the 1st online collaborative network enabling companies to manage the Sustainability performance of their suppliers, across 150 sectors and 95 countries. EcoVadis reliable ratings and easy to use monitoring tools allow companies to manage risks and drive eco-innovations in their global supply chains. www.ecovadis.com

Global Enabling Sustainability Initiative

Global Enabling Sustainability Initiative

The Global Enabling Sustainability Initiative (GeSI) is a strategic partnership of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector committed to creating and promoting digital technologies and practices that foster economic, environmental and social sustainability. Formed in 2001, GeSI’s vision is a sustainable world through responsible, ICT-enabled transformation. GeSI fosters global and open cooperation, informs the public of its members’ voluntary actions to improve their sustainability performance, and promotes technologies that foster sustainable development. GeSI enjoys a diverse and global membership, representing around 30 of the world’s leading ICT companies and partners with over 30 global business and international organizations such as the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), the World Resources Forum Association (WRFA), the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), the Responsible Business Alliance (RBA), the Centre for Sustainable Consumption and Production (CSCP), The Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations (IDDRI), the Global Climate Forum (GCF), the World Green Building Council (WGBC), the Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO), and the International Energy Agency (IEA) - as well as a range of international stakeholders committed to ICT sustainability objectives to share and develop ideas, launch joint initiatives, and collaborate on a broad range of sustainability projects. These partnerships help shape GeSI’s global vision regarding the evolution of the ICT sector, and how it can best meet the challenges of sustainable development.

For more information, see www.gesi.org.

More from Global Enabling Sustainability Initiative