8:30 AM – Registration and Breakfast

8:45 AM – Opening Remarks

9:00 AM - 10:00 AM – Scaling Ethical Certification; Opportunities and Challenges 

The hot topic in ethical certification right now is the perceived shift of ethical labeling movements from producer-led to corporate-led. Some argue that the interests of large corporations have led to mission creep within labeling organizations, undermining the reasons many of these certifications came into being. Others point to an increase in the reach and profitability that corporations bring to ethically certified brands to the benefit of both brands and their producer partners. This panel will debate the so-called corporatization of ethical labeling including the challenges and opportunities it may present. How can initiatives maintain a balance between scale and depth of purpose?

Speakers:

Rodney North, Equal Exchange
Michael Conroy, Chairman Emeritus of the Board, Fair Trade USA
Steve Baer, PE Five Winds

Moderated by:

Lindsey Moore, Economist, USAID

10:00AM - 11:00 AM –Trial, Error and Success

Over the past decade, sales of ethically labeled products have increased exponentially, approaching a “tipping point” in some countries where certain certified commodities outnumber uncertified products in the marketplace. This panel will explore the strategies of some of the leading companies that have pushed the frontier of ethical certification. What are the key lessons learned by these companies? How was success defined and how was it measured? What enforcement mechanisms were used to ensure compliance? What were some of the blunders companies faced? How can exposure to the risks of engagement with certification be minimized? How can sustainability add to the bottom line? Panelists will discuss the successes and trials of certifying a product line as well as the implications for future/emerging certifications.

Speakers:

Dan Vogel, CEO, Enablon
Kerry Cesareo, Managing Director, Forests, WWF
Al Iannuzzi, Sr. Director Worldwide Environmental Health and Safety, Johnson & Johnson

Moderated by:

Matt Furman, Vice President of Corporate Affairs, Mars Chocolate

11:00AM - 11:20AM- Networking and Refreshment Break

11:20AM - 12:20PM – Great Expectations and the Need for Risk Management

Exposés on the challenges inhibiting ethical certifications from achieving stated goals of improved sustainability or human rights have been a staple of media stories on ethical certification in the past couple years. This critical coverage has raised questions concerning whether the public has false expectations of what labeling initiatives are capable of achieving. Is the marketing of these labels creating a false perception that purchasing ethically-labeled commodities is the silver bullet to international development and sustainability? How can companies and labels minimize exposure to the risks of engaging with stakeholders through ethical labeling initiatives? This panel will debate the disconnect between public perception of ethical labels and the reality with a view towards how ethical certifications can use these critiques to improve.

Speakers:

Scott McDougall, President, TerraChoice
Robert Rice, Director Bird Friendly Certification, Smithsonian Institute
Mark Bradley, Asst. to Deputy Administrator, Former Dir. of Compliance Enforcement Division, USDA National Organic Program

Moderated by:

Matthew Fischer-Daly, Senior Manager, Social Accountability International

12:20PM - 1:30PM – Lunch and Networking, featuring presentation by Kathy Abusow, President and CEO, Sustainable Forestry Initiative

1:30PM - 2:30PM - The Vast Ecosystem of Eco-labels

At the same time that the demand for products with eco-labels is growing, the field is becoming increasingly crowded with a plethora of different eco-labels. These two trends result in a fragmented and confusing marketplace. Currently, over 350 eco-labels compete worldwide with varied claims about which companies, products and services are truly environmentally responsible. This panel will explore who gets to decide what makes a product green. How can consumers, companies and other stakeholders differentiate between competing claims? How will the eco-label field reconcile these two trends and evolve into the next decade?

Speakers:

Corey Brinkema, President, Forest Stewardship Council
Dr. Arthur B. Weissman, CEO, Green Seal
Sujeesh Krishnan, Head of Carbon Footprinting, Carbon Trust

Moderated by:

Anastasia O’Rourke, Co-Founder, BigRoom

2:30PM - 3:30PM – Proving Impact: The Fly in the Certification Ointment

The proliferation of ethical certification labels has brought questions of impact and credibility to the forefront of the sustainability discourse. Consumers, distributors and manufactures want clear evidence of impact in order to determine which certifications they can trust. However, demonstrating impact is currently the biggest stumbling block for ethical certifications due to the multiple factors that overlay within these systems making it difficult to disaggregate cause and effect. Why has impact been so difficult to prove? What are instances of success? How is technology improving this field? This panel will focus on the lack of quantitative data regarding impact within the ethical certification vertical as well as methods for improvement.

Speakers:

Elizabeth Kennedy, Director of Evaluation & Research, Rainforest Alliance
Mike Van Patten, CEO, Mission Markets
Dr. Stanley Rhodes, President and CEO, Scientific Certification Systems

Moderated by:

Leonardo Bonanni, Founder and CEO, Sourcemap

3:30PM - 3:50PM Networking

3:50PM - 4:50PM: The Competitive Landscape: Should Certifications Compete or Collaborate to Raise the Standard?

Currently, there are a wide array of certifications for companies and consumers to choose from. However, organizations, companies and consumers alike are questioning the differences between the various standards as well as adoption issues. To what extent has collaboration between sustainability standards thus far been beneficial and where has competition been appropriate? Are we moving towards a smaller number of stronger global standards or towards continued fragmentation and emergence of new sustainability standards? Finally, what strategies can be used to preserve the integrity of the standards and ensure there is no confusion between a specific standard brand and others in the market?

Speakers:

Han de Groot, Executive Director UTZ
Kerry Coughlin, Regional Director, Americas, Marine Stewardship Council
Jennifer Martin, Executive Director, Center for Resource Solutions (Green-e)

Moderated by:

Robert Simmons, Director, Organic Services

4:50PM - 5:00PM – Closing Remarks