The International Aluminium Institute (IAI), the global association of aluminium producers, and the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI), a multi-stakeholder organisation with the mission to foster responsible production, sourcing and stewardship of aluminium, today signed a memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate in their respective efforts to support continuous improvement in the performance of the global aluminium industry and the sustainable use and recycling of its products.
The five-year MoU, signed by ASI Chief Executive Officer, Fiona Solomon, and IAI Secretary General, Ron Knapp, brings the two organisations together to share measurement, reporting and verification frameworks and selected industry data on greenhouse gas emissions, water and energy use, waste and risk management, among other issues.
The collaboration is expected to enhance efficiencies for both organisations and their respective members by supporting common approaches where relevant, and pooling collective experience and knowledge. To realise these aims, the ASI and IAI executive teams agree to meet periodically and to report annually to their respective Boards on the status of cooperation.
The Chair of the IAI Board of Directors, Hilde Aasheim (Executive Vice President – Norsk Hydro) underlined the importance of the MoU to the Institute’s membership, saying: “As demand continues to grow for lightweight, strong, safe and energy efficient aluminium products, customers in a number of markets are increasingly demanding certified assurances of those products’ sustainability claims, in addition to sector-wide performance data.
Today’s MoU between IAI and ASI will enable the development of globally applicable standards for measuring and verifying sustainability performance, including greenhouse gas emissions, along the supply chain, by drawing on the four decades of industry experience and data that the IAI and its members have amassed.”
ASI Board Chair, Daniel Weston (General Counsel & CSV Global Head, Nestlé Nespresso) said:”ASI aims to engage and work with all key stakeholders in this sector as it works to develop an independent third party certification program for the aluminium value chain. IAI has a strong history of data collection, research and publications on key industry issues, and this MOU will benefit both organisations through a collaborative approach to the challenges of sustainability metrics. We are delighted to be working together.“