Policy of Association

Policy of Association

Our mission is to support better land management and business practices that benefit people, nature, and the climate. We do not discriminate between clients and partners. We offer our services to all interested parties who operate within the scope of our competence and accreditation - regardless of size, geographical location, or membership of associations. 

However, being a mission-driven organisation, we aim to align all our activities with our mission and reserve the right not to work with or be associated with organisations whose activities are in direct and serious violation of certain critical sustainability related requirements.  
 
What we ask for  
We have identified and summarised critical areas of minimum performance based on the Preferred by Nature Sustainability Framework that we expect all our partners and clients to commit to. 

In relation to responsible business practices 

• To have basic legal right to operate and conduct its activities without gross violation of applicable legal requirements. 
• To have the legal land tenure and land rights to conduct the activities. 
• Not to engage in, or benefit from, any forms of bribery and corruption. 

In relations to wellbeing of people 

• Does not engage in, or benefit from child labour. 
• Does not engage in, or benefit from any forms of forced or compulsory labour, including any forms of human trafficking. 
• Respects the fundamental rights for freedom of association at workplace. 
• Does not exercise or support activities that are discriminatory in nature or constitute harassment to staff and contractors, including towards migrant workers. 
• Offers its staff and workers a safe working environment, where life is valued and basic access to personal protective equipment, first aid and fire suppression equipment is provided. 
• Respect the rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities as recognised by the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). 

 In relation to nature and environment 

• Does not engage in activities causing or related to conversion of natural forest areas or other natural ecosystems. 
• Does not engage directly or indirectly in destruction of High Conservation Values (HCVs) including, but not limited to, knowingly participating in harvesting, extracting, trade or manufacturing of material or products originating from areas with destroyed High Conservation Values 
• Does not cause significant environmental damage through other means such as severe pollution or destruction of natural ecosystems. 

We have defined the indicators from our Sustainability Framework, which are used to evaluate compliance with the topics. These are provided in Annex to this policy. However, we will analyse each case individually and reserve the right to make our own conclusion about the level of alignment with the policy considering the full context and circumstances. 

What we may do 
Preferred by Nature reserves the right to:

1. refuse from collaborating with or servicing organisations who are in serious violation of the above requirements;
2. set limitations to or refuse to allow such organisations from using our name or making any claims relating to us; or
3. dissociate from and stop collaboration with organisations in violation of the above requirements. 

To prevent engagement with companies in violation of above, we reserve the right to implement a due diligence process, to gather information about risks of violation of any of the areas above.  

In case of ongoing relationships, we warn organisations of violations that we have identified and give reasonable time for corrective actions. We continue cooperating with organisations that commit to correct and demonstrate corrective actions when notified. If the organisation does not or cannot correct, we reserve the right to take a decision to disassociate from such organisations. This may include the termination of contracts or any engagements with the organisation within 30 days of the disassociation decision. In the case of certificate holders, this also means the termination of the certificates. 

Disassociation decisions are taken by the Preferred by Nature´s Executive Director and can be appealed by organisations following our Dispute Resolution Policy. 

Reassociation decisions can be taken when the organisation demonstrates that they have addressed issues that had earlier led to disassociation and have developed preventive actions to avoid the recurrence of violations. 
 

Approved by, 
Peter Feilberg 
Executive Director 
19 May 2023