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Good Practice Toolkit

Commitment 3.2: We promote environmental stewardship, sustainability and climate action.

Compliance Indicators

Compliance with the Commitments will be assessed against the following Compliance Indicators. All of the applicable Compliance Indicators must be met by every ACFID Member to be considered compliant with the Code. Each of the Compliance Indicators has one or more compliance Verifiers. Verifiers are the description of evidence that is required to substantiate compliance with each Compliance Indicator. Guidance is also provided.

3.2.1 Members demonstrate an organisational commitment to environmental sustainability, climate action and improved environmental outcomes in their development and humanitarian initiatives.

Policy, statement or guidance document committing the member to promoting environmental sustainability, climate action and improved environmental outcomes in development and humanitarian initiatives. 

Design or planning framework, tools, templates which require or approaches which consistently show evidence of the analysis of environmental risk and management, including risks associated with climate change. 

Guidance

A Member’s policy, st​​atement or guidance document could include: an outline of the principles underpinning your organisation’s approaches to mitigating negative impacts on the environment and promoting positive impacts in your partnerships and programs; and an outline of the procedures or practices required such as doing analysis of the environmental risks and opportunities, environmental impact assessments or mainstreaming climate change adaption approaches as a cross cutting theme. ​​The scope of this would likely be more comprehensive for organisations working in agriculture, water and sanitation or infrastructure construction and perhaps less comprehensive for organisation with a sole focus on education for example. 

Members’ design or planning framework, tools and templates could include: explicit sub sections or prompts requiring analysis of environmental risk and ​opportunities; a design appraisal tool or set of criteria requiring an assessment of environmental ​risk and also identification of opportunities to promote positive environmental outcomes. 

3.2.2 Members demonstrate an organisational commitment to environmental sustainability, climate action and improved environmental outcomes in their organisation’s internal operations.

Policy, statement or guidance document committing the member to minimising the environmental impact, including the carbon footprint, of their organisation’s internal operations. 

Guidance

A Member’s policy, statement or guidance document could include: an outline of the principles underpinning your organisation’s approaches to mitigating negative impacts on the environment within your domestic and international operations; and an outline of the procedures or practices required such as: paper recycling or limiting its use, switching off idle equipment and lights, avoiding paper products from native forests, avoiding bottled water, ​​carefully planning transportation for field trips with consideration of CO2 emissions and using communication technologies and local capacity instead. 

Good Practice Indicators

The following Good Practice Indicators describe a higher standard of practice than that set out in the Compliance Indicators. While Members do not need to meet the Good Practice Indicators to be considered compliant with the Code, they will self-assess against these indicators once every three years. This provides a clear pathway for Members to strengthen and improve practice over time.

  • A focal person with responsibility for environmental sustainability is in place. 
  • Climate change mitigation, adaptation, and impact, and disaster risk reduction are incorporated into program strategies wherever possible. 
  • Program designs, implementation and monitoring and evaluation processes include consideration of potential and realised impacts on the environment. 
  • Environmental sustainability and impact training is provided to key personnel and partners. 
  • Periodic reports are provided internally and to relevant external stakeholders on environmental sustainability and impact achievements. 
  • Information about the impacts of climate change and environmental sustainability issues are promoted in public communications. 
  • Climate action policy, programs and advocacy reflect climate justice and equity principles. 
  • Organisational targets are in place to measure progress in minimising the environmental impact of our operations. 

Good Practice Guidance

Here are some practical suggestions for your organisation to further deepen and improve practice over time.

ORGANISATIONAL AND POLICY

  • Create and document a policy on environmental sustainability and environment management which commits your organisations to minimise impact which relates specifically to the nature of your organisations work and partnerships. For example, organisations engaging in water and sanitation or natural resource management will require a more comprehensive policy than those only engaging solely in education. As an important policy, it should be ratified by the governing body and senior management.  Your organisation may also consider certifying this policy with ISO 14001. 
  • ​​Set performance targets at a strategic or organisational level related to minimising environmental impact in your domestic operations and in your aid and development activities. Ensure progress against these targets is tracked overtime. This could be through the development of an Environmental Action Plan that is reviewed on an annual basis.​​​​ 
  • Set emission reduction targets for your organisation which are tracked overtime and publicly available. These could be included in an Environmental Action Plan or other documentation. 
  • Appoint a focal person within your organisation with accountability for monitoring the environmental impact of your aid and development activities. 
  • Include an overview of the organisation’s commitments to evaluating and minimising environmental impact in the induction of all new staff 
  • Document a toolkit and guidelines to support staff in implementing the organisation’s commitments to minimising environmental impact. Actions could include: 
    • Paper recycling 
    • Switching off idle equipment and lights 
    • Avoiding paper products from native forests 
    • Switching thermostats to more season-appropriate lower energy settings 
    • Avoiding bottled water 
    • Procurement policies that recognise sustainability objectives 
    • Using energy management software for smart buildings 
    • Using renewable power 
    • Increasing awareness through posters, emails and internal staff newsletters 
  • Provide formal training for relevant staff on environmental sustainability 
  • Set performance targets to minimise environmental impact in your domestic operations and publicise them throughout your organisation. Targets could relate to: 
    • ​​The usage of material, energy and water 
    • The energy saved due to conservation and efficiency improvements 
    • Achievements in reducing greenhouse gas emissions 
    • Progress in mitigating the environmental impacts of products and services 
    • Transport 
    • Biodiversity 
    • Waste reduction 
  • Ensure emissions offsetting is not used to avoid making real reductions in emissions and is only used where there are presently no viable alternative options to reduce emissions. 
  • Ensure any emissions offsets safeguard biodiversity, human rights and local community knowledge and rights. 
  • Include an overview of the organisation’s commitments to minimising and evaluating environmental impact during induction of new staff 
  • Provide training and other awareness-raising initiatives for staff on environmental sustainability. 
  • Publicise your commitment and your actions in your office and to your stakeholders on your website and in newsletters or similar 
  • Monitor, review and report internally and externally on your environmental impact; this includes regular external reporting of performance against key environmental performance indicators 
  • Appoint a focal person within your organisation responsible for monitoring and reporting environmental impact 
  • Reward and incentivise relevant staff to monitor and reduce the organisation’s impact on the environment; include related targets in job descriptions and appraise staff against these annually. 

PARTNERS AND EXTERNAL STAKEHOLDERS

  • Collaborate with organisations that focus on and have expertise in environmental issues 
  • Conduct screening of potential partner organisations to ensure they are committed to environmental performance and are not causing a negative environmental impact through their core business. (or incorporate environmental screening questions into an organisations corporate screening procedures to support the selection of partners committed to environmental sustainability) 
  • Support the active participation of partners and community members in environmental governance and decision-making on natural resource management activities 
  • Build awareness of the risks to the environment and environment management with partners and community members through training and discussion 
  • Assist your partners to develop their own environment policies 
  • Where relevant to aid and development activities, include explicit reference in partner agreements to expectations regarding the assessment of environment risk and impact, and ongoing monitoring of impact and mitigation strategies. 

PROGRAMS

  • Undertake situational analyses including the assessment of risks to the environment. Use this to raise awareness with community members and project participants. 
  • Include in project planning and design templates specific questions regarding the environmental impact of aid and development activities 
  • Where there is a risk of environmental impact due to the nature of the aid and development activity, or where the location of the program has environment vulnerabilities, undertake an environment impact assessment and create mitigation strategies to inform project design 
  • Assess new projects or concepts against criteria that includes risks to the environment and environmental impact 
  • Include environmental impact indicators in project monitoring and evaluation 
  • Using meetings, events and evaluations, reflect on how aid and development activities, partners and communities are supporting or impacting on the environment 
  • Share reporting of performance against key environmental performance indicators with external stakeholders. 
  • Plan transportation for field trips with consideration of CO2 emissions. Transport is an energy-intensive sector, accounting for approximately 23% of total global energy-related emissions. 
  • Consider whether travel is necessary, and whether communication technologies and local capacity can be used instead. 

ACFID Resources

ACFID Guidance: Developing a Climate Action Policy

This document provides guidance to ACFID members on how to integrate climate action into organisational policies. Content is drawn from a series of Policy ‘Writeshops’ held in May-June 2024, co-facilitated by ACFID and the University of Technology Sydney, Institute for Sustainable Futures (UTS-ISF), with 31 ACFID Members participating.

Caritas Australia: Environmental Stewardship Tool (EST)

This resource is the Environmental Stewardship Tool. It is used by Caritas Australia and designed for Catholic Relief Services (CRS) staff and partners assess their environmental stewardship practices and identify areas for improvement. This self-assessment, users can gain insights into their organisation's environmental performance and develop action plans to enhance their environmental stewardship efforts. This resource is available as a video tutorial, Excel tool, and powerpoint presentation.

Climate Action Resource Hub

This resource is the ACFID Climate Change Learning Hub. It is a one-stop shop for interactive resources and training modules for ACFID members to effectively integrate climate action into their development and humanitarian initiatives. The Hub provides practical guidance, case studies, and tools to support organisations on how to incorporate climate considerations into policy development, program design, and implementation.

Climate Change | ACFID Code of Conduct Topic Guide

This ACFID resource outlines all the requirements in the ACFID Code of Conduct related to Climate Action and Environmental Sustainability. It is suitable for all organisations to strengthen their compliance with the Code.

Climate Change: Questions for your Governing Body

This resource is about assisting governing bodies in assessing their responsibilities regarding climate change and identifying areas for further action. This is suitable for all organisations that are struggling to bring their leadership teams 'along the journey' on climate action and improved environmental outcomes internally. It is also relevant to organisations seeking guidance on integrating climate considerations into their governance practices.

Combatting Climate Change

One of ACFID's focus areas is on combating climate - this involves advocating for policy changes on climate, supporting sustainable development, and promoting resilience-building initiatives. ACFID emphasises the need for urgent action to address climate-related challenges. This page dives in depth into ACFID's position and collates a wealth of ACFID-developed resources for member organisations to incorporate environmental sustainability and climate change action into their operations.

Environmental Sustainability Policy

This resource is Engineers Without Border's Environmental Sustainability Policy. This is suitable for all organisations as a reference document in developing their own environmental policies. ​The policy includes statements on; ​bench-marking and monitoring greenhouse gas emissions​; partnering with organisations that have an environmental focus and prioritise environmental sustainability in their operations; reporting on progress toward carbon neutrality in Annual Report​s.    

Integrating climate change action across the Australian international development sector: Enablers of best practice

This resource developed by ACFID is about integrating climate action into development and humanitarian initiatives. This is suitable for ACFID member organisations looking to update their policies with an organisational commitment to environmental sustainability and climate action. This is practical guidance on environmental and climate considerations within any development and humanitarian activities.

WWF’s Environmental and Social Safeguards Framework

This resource is WWF's Environmental and Social Safeguards Framework. It is an excellent example for all organisations developing a climate action checklist. The policy includes considerations on respecting indigenous peoples’ rights, informed consent and to tenure over traditional territories​; culturally appropriate and equitable benefits (including from traditional ecological knowledge)​; and nominating a landscape lead.
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Other Resources

Climate Change and Development

This resource is DFAT's Diplomatic Academy course on climate change and development. This training module focuses on the intersection of climate issues with international development efforts. It is relevant to the Code in developing shared language, knowledge, and skills needed to address climate challenges as an organisation and as a sector together.

Creating communication that works: humanitarians and the climate crisis

This resource is about enhancing communication strategies on climate change within the development and humanitarian sector, aiming to promote wider engagement and action among the general public. This is relevant to the Code because it addresses the importance of effective communication in promoting environmental sustainability and climate action. It is also relevant to stakeholders interested in improving public understanding and response to climate change impacts.

Energy Savings at Work- what can we do?

This resource is about energy-saving practices in the workplace, providing guidance for individuals and organisations on reducing energy consumption and costs. This is suitable for businesses and workplaces of all sizes. This is relevant to the Code because it supports the promotion of environmental sustainability and energy efficiency internally.

Framework for greening humanitarian action in the pacific

This resource is a framework of climate change initiatives in the Pacific region to minimise negative impacts on communities and maximise nature-positive outcomes. This is suitable for those operating in the Pacific. This is relevant to the Code because it promotes environmentally sustainable and culturally sensitive approaches development, as well as committing to promote environmental sustainability and improved environmental outcomes. This is also available as a podcast.

Leadership of women in disaster and climate resilience: self-assessment tool to measure organisational progress

This resource is a structured tool designed to self-assess their organisation's support for women's leadership and meaningful participation in disaster and climate resilience efforts. Evaluate the progress of your environmental initiatives across six key assessment areas; transformative leadership; safe and meaningful participation; collective influence and advocacy; enabling partnerships; capacity building for leadership; and funding.

Policy Statement in Advocacy

Outlines the Australian Red Cross commitment to advocacy as a tool in advancing our mission to prevent and reduce vulnerability and to achieve our humanitarian goals.
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