Purpose
Sustainability policies and regulations…
Policy types
There are three main types of policy and regulations that might create opportunities for you or require you to change in the future. Depending on your industry/market there might be mandatory and voluntary policies being used.
Here is a summary of the main types, with examples.
LEGAL
Mandatory: Bans, standards (health, safety, environment), quotas, licences, consumer rights, advertising rules, privacy, warranties, liabilities, trade restrictions, reporting
Voluntary: Targets, standards, agreements between government and industry
ECONOMIC
Mandatory: Taxes, fees, tariffs, charges, penalties, fines
Voluntary / Incentives: Green public procurement, loan guarantees, charges, reward schemes, incentives and subsidies
INFORMATIVE
Mandatory: Reporting requirements, labelling, education
Voluntary: Certification schemes, awareness raising campaigns, Environmental Management Systems
Environmental and social policies and regulations in Australia guide the management of many sustainability issues.
There are national frameworks for reporting aspects of modern slavery, carbon emissions and energy consumption.
Each country may have individual policy instruments and requirements, which you can research via country government websites and trade promotion websites (such as Australia’s Austrade). For examples of voluntary and mandatory certifications used by some of our key trading partners, see Certification standards in other countries and Certification standards in Europe.
Sustainability strategy & practice
