Stocktake of Sustainability Standards and Initiatives for Minerals and Metals: Leveraging Synergies between Sustainability Standards and Initiatives and Public Instruments to enhance Environmental Governance

Amid the global rising demand for minerals and metals, a new report from the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals and Sustainable Development (IGF) maps over 100 Sustainability Standards and Initiatives operating across value chains to clarify how these interact with laws, regulations and policy commitments, and how they might enhance environmental governance rather than undermine it. The study finds that while these standards and initiatives are increasingly used to promote environmental and social performance, their rapid proliferation has created a fragmented and often confusing landscape for governments, companies and communities. To address these challenges, the report identifies 15 hallmarks of effective sustainability standards across governance, scope, performance assurance, review mechanisms, and viability. The report further recommends these serve as a practical reference tool for policymakers, that independent assessments of impacts be prioritized, and that greater cooperation and interoperability become a primary focus moving forward.