In a business context, this is about how our offering of products and services impacts the environment and the societies where we operate. How we manage risk in our operations to reduce negative impact and comply with laws and regulations, while at the same time creating financially sustainable growth. The Brav ESG model illustrates the main aspects of how we work with responsibility in Brav.

To understand the major improvement areas we conducted a Materiality analysis in 2021. This creates the fundamental basis for our goals and Sustainability Roadmap.

Brav also conducted a Carbon Footprint Accounting/LCA for 2021 and 2022.

This work is the output for the starting point of measurable reductions/Science Based Targets.

One of our short-term aims is to produce a Responsibility Roadmap for measurable reductions of GHG emissions and water consumption.

Responsible Business Conduct (RBC)

The OECD has defined RBC as “making a positive contribution to economic, environmental and social progress with a view to achieving sustainable development and avoiding and addressing adverse impacts related to an enterprise’s direct and indirect operations, products or services”.

Introduction

BRAV strives towards responsible business conduct that respects people, society and the environment. Our Code of Conduct forms the foundation of our sustainability work.

BRAV considers responsible business conduct to be a prerequisite for sustainable development, meaning that today’s generation get their needs covered without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. As a supplier of sporting goods and equipment for outdoor use, we are committed to taking good care of our customers, securing a safe and healthy working environment for the people developing and producing our products, as well as having minimal impact on the natural environment. The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is the world’s joint action plan for sustainable development. BRAV works actively with the Sustainable Development Goals. 

Nature and work environment 

• We provide our customers with products that are safe to use. Our brands and products are to ensure a good reputation when it comes to taking good care of nature.

• We operate in accordance with all current and any future laws and regulations relating to the environment, and we contribute actively to the reduction of unwanted substances in the natural environment.

• Our products are produced in a secure manner and with little or no impact on the surroundings.

• Our products are produced in a manner that ensures good animal welfare.

Ethical trade and Anti-Corruption 

• We work actively to ensure that our products are produced in compliance with acknowledged standards for ethical trade.

• Especially, we contribute to the extinction of forced labor, child labor, discrimination, unsafe and unhealthy working environments, and wages below the poverty line.

• As a member of Ethical Trade, we ensure to follow the highest standard of requirements set at all times in our own Employee and Supplier Code of Conduct, legislation, or Ethical Trade Norway’s Principles for Sustainable Business Conduct.

• We have zero tolerance for corruption. Brav, including all employees, shall never offer or receive illegal or inappropriate monetary gifts or other remuneration to achieve private or business benefits in their own interest or in the interest of customers, agents or suppliers. More on Anti-corruption in Employee Code of Conduct and Brav Supplier Code of Conduct https://www.brav.com/responsibility/social/. 

Our main external partners are Ethical Trade Norway and RISE/Chemical Check for chemical issues.
As a member of Ethical Trade Norway BRAV commits to working actively with due diligence for responsible business conduct. Due diligence is a risk-based approach to respect and safeguard people, society and the environment in our own business and throughout the supply chain. We expect our suppliers and partners to follow the same approach. 

Requirements – own business 

BRAV acknowledges that our business conduct can potentially have negative impact on people, society and the environment. At the same time, we see the potential to contribute to positive development in the supply chain. With this in mind, we have compiled the following principles and criteria guiding our own business:

Due diligence

BRAV shall conduct due diligence for responsible business conduct. This involves; conducting risk assessments to identify potential negative impact on people, society and the environment and to stop, prevent and reduce such impact. The measures put in place are monitored and their effect evaluated. The measures are communicated to those affected by our actions. If our activities are found to cause or contribute to negative impact on people, society or the environment, we will stop the activities and seek to provide remedy. If our supplier is responsible for the negative impact, the supplier is responsible for providing remedy. 

Responsible purchasing practices

BRAV considers responsible purchasing practices to be one of our most important tools for responsible business conduct. BRAV shall adapt our purchasing practices in order to strengthen, and not undermine, our suppliers’ ability to deliver on our requirements related to people, society and the environment. We strive towards lasting supplier relationships with suppliers who show a particular willingness and ability to create positive developments in the supply chain. 

Freedom of association and worker representation 

BRAV supports the right to freedom of association and other forms of democratically elected worker representation. We shall involve worker representatives and other relevant stakeholders in our work with responsible business conduct. 

Supplier development and partnership

In dialogue with suppliers we will consider, if needed, to contribute with capacity building or resources that enable our suppliers to comply with BRAV’s requirements related to responsible business conduct.
This way we lay the foundation for collaboration with suppliers that show the willingness and ability to work on positive development for people, society and the environment in the supply chain. 

Anti-Corruption

BRAV, including all employees, shall never offer or receive illegal or inappropriate monetary gifts or other remuneration to achieve private or business benefits in their own interest or in the interest of customers, agents or suppliers. More on Anti-corruption in  Employee Code of Conduct and Brav Supplier Code of Conduct https://www.brav.com/responsibility/social/. 

Countries affected by trade boycott

BRAV, including all our suppliers and partners, shall avoid trading with partners that have activities in countries where a trade boycott is imposed by the UN and/or Norwegian Government authorities.

Requirements – conditions in the supply chain 

We expect our suppliers and partners to work focused and systematically to comply with our guidelines for suppliers, hereunder our code of conduct, that covers fundamental requirements on human rights, labor rights, anti-corruption, animal welfare and the environment.
Our suppliers shall:

• Follow our guidelines for suppliers, thereunder the code of conduct.

• Conduct due diligence for responsible business conduct. This involves; conducting risk assessments to identify potential negative impact on people, society and the environment and to stop, prevent and reduce such impact. The measures put in place must be monitored and their effect evaluated. The measures taken must be communicated to those affected by your actions. If the supplier is responsible for the negative impact/damage, they are responsible for providing remedy.

• Show willingness and ability to continuous improvement for people, society and the environment through collaboration.

• At the request of BRAV be able to document how they, and potential subcontractors, work to comply with the guidelines.

If the supplier, after several requests by BRAV, does not show the willingness or ability to comply with the guidelines for suppliers, the contract may be cancelled.

More info in Brav Employee Code of Conduct and Brav Supplier Code of Conduct: https://www.brav.com/responsibility/social/

The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)  are the blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.
They address the global challenges we face, including poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, peace and justice.
The UNSDGs consist of 17 main goals and 169 sub-goals and are the United Nations’ joint work plan to eradicate poverty, combat inequality and stop climate change by 2030.

To further strengthen and promote Brav’s responsibility practices we have chosen to integrate UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) #8, #12 and #17 as guiding principles in all our business processes:

#8 Decent work and economic growth:
Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all. For Brav this means we focus on decent and safe working conditions in our supply chain.

#12 Responsible consumption and production:
Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns. For Brav this means focusing on sustainable material choices, not overproducing, continue to focus on making high quality long lasting functional products, increasing our repair services, and working towards measurable reduction of Greenhouse Gases and water consumption.

#13 Climate Action:
Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts. For Brav this means to analyse and strive to measurably and considerably reduce our climate footprint through innovation and science. Climate change is now affecting every country on every continent. It is disrupting national economies and affecting lives, costing people, communities and countries dearly today and even more tomorrow.

 #17 Partnerships for the goals:
Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development. For Brav this means further strenghtening the current good partnerships which have the same goals and journey, and to cooperate and join partnerships with other strong partners which we together can reach our responsibility targets

Social, environmental and animal welfare responsibility are key factors in what we do. Therefore, to ensure compliance with global chemical regulations, promote higher welfare in our supply chain and increase sustainable sourcing practices, we choose to use a range of internationally known certifications when sourcing our materials.

WOOL

We support the use of the Responsible Wool Standard (RWS). When it comes to our locally sourced Norwegian wool it is unfortunately not possible to support the standard, since RWS is not available. However, we work closely with our Norwegian suppliers and Norilia to ensure the highest level of welfare.

Responsible Wool Standard (RWS)

RWS is a voluntary standard that addresses the welfare of sheep and the land they graze on. The goals of the RWS are to provide the industry with a tool to recognize the best practices of farmers; ensure that wool comes from farms that have a progressive approach to the management of their land, practice greater respect for the animal welfare of the sheep and respecting the Five Freedoms of animal welfare.

ZQRX Regenerative Wool

For Ulvang, we have partnered with ZQrx to promote more sustainable and responsible practices within our supply chain, ensuring the well-being of animals, ecosystems, and communities while delivering high-quality wool products to our consumers. ZQrx ensures that the wool is sourced from sheep that are raised on farms practicing regenerative agriculture principles. This means that the wool production process aligns with regenerative practices, such as rotational grazing, soil regeneration, and biodiversity conservation. The aim is to produce wool in a manner that is not only high-quality but also contributes to the overall health and sustainability of the surrounding ecosystem.

Read more about ZQrx wool here. 

DOWN

Our down products are split into two categories, down that we newly sourced and down that is recycled. We are committed to only sourcing Responsible Down Standard (RDS) certified down for our newly sourced down, or Global Recycled Standard (GRS) certified recycled down. 

Responsible Down Standard (RDS)

RDS aims to ensure that down and feathers originate from animals that have not been subjected to any unnecessary harm and that the goose and duck breeders respect and follow the Five Freedoms of animal welfare.

We hope that the standard can be used to reward and influence the down and feather industry to incentivize practices that respect the humane treatment of ducks and geese. The standard also provides companies and consumers with a tool to know what is in their products and to make accurate claims.

Global Recycled Standard (GRS)

For the products in our ranges that use recycled down materials, we use the Global Recycled Standard (GRS) which is an international, voluntary standard that sets requirements for third-party certification of recycled input and chain of custody. The goal of the standard is to increase the use of recycled materials. The GRS includes stringent criteria for social and environmental requirements and chemical restrictions throughout the supply chain which must be strictly adhered to.

LEATHER

All of the leather we use in our Lundhags boots comes from Europe and supports the Leather Working Group (LWG) Gold standard. The material we source is always a by-product of meat production.

COTTON

We support the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) in our use of cotton. 

Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS)

GOTS is one of the most recognized organic standards in textile certification. As well as ensuring the origin of organic raw materials, the certification also contains additional criteria for social and environmental processing requirements and chemical restrictions.

SYNTHETICS 

We strive towards using only traceable recycled materials, such as Repreve® Our Ocean or Econyl®, or support the GRS standard.

ECONYL®

ECONYL® is a branded recycled nylon yarn that is produced by the company Aquafil. The fiber is made primarily of post-consumer waste such as discarded fishing nets, fabric scraps, and industrial plastic waste. 

Repreve® Our Ocean 

Repreve® Our Ocean is a specific variant of Repreve®, a brand of recycled performance fibers produced by Unifi, Inc. Repreve® Our Ocean is specifically focused on utilizing recycled materials sourced near the coast, such as plastic bottles and marine debris, to create textiles with a lower carbon footprint, also reusing plastic waste in close to ocean areas where recycling systems are not available or in place.

Global Recycled Standard (GRS)

For the products in our ranges that use recycled synthetic materials, we use the Global Recycled Standard (GRS) which is an international, voluntary standard that sets requirements for third-party certification of recycled input and chain of custody. The goal of the standard is to increase the use of recycled materials. The GRS includes stringent criteria for social and environmental requirements and chemical restrictions throughout the supply chain which must be strictly adhered to.

CHEMICAL MANAGEMENT

Our production partners have signed and are committed to our Restricted Substances List (RSL).

BLUESIGN

BLUESIGN is a chemical compliance standard that promotes exemplary chemical practice throughout the supply chain, with specific attention to resource productivity, air emissions, occupational health and safety, water emissions and consumer safety. It allows the consumer an increased level of confidence that the product they are buying has been created with as low a chemical environmental impact as possible.

Oeko-Tex Standard 100® and Oeko-Tex® Eco Passport

OEKO-TEX® Standard 100 and OEKO-TEX® Eco passport means the products have been tested for harmful substances and that the articles, therefore, are harmless for human health. The testing is conducted by independent third-party testing institutes and the criteria are regularly updated to comply with international chemical restrictions and increases in scientific knowledge of harmful substances.

PACKAGING

Our packaging production partners – Nilorn and Trimco – ensure that all our paper packaging is Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified. 

Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) certification

Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) certification ensures that products come from responsibly managed forests that provide environmental, social and economic benefits. The FSC® principles and criteria provide a foundation for all forest management standards globally, including the FSC® US National Standard that guides forest management certification in the U.S.

Animal rights and animal welfare are of great importance to our BRAV brands. We use wool, down and leather in a number of our products and we are mindful to make sure we are sourcing these materials from responsible and ethical sources.

You can find all the important and relevant certifications in the above chapter “Responsibility Certifications and Partnerships”.

Brav’s hardware department has been science, research, and innovation based since the very beginning – originally to achieve ultimate speed, performance, and function in every product.
Since 2013, with the same science for speed and performance, Brav (Swix/Toko) has been an industry driver to phase out PFAS. Brav has been part of several research projects (SDG #17) sharing knowledge and driving the industry forward through research and innovation.

• Nano2Glide – NTNU

• Jakter på grønn glid – SINTEF

• Fra nanoteknologi til bedre glid – Prosjektbanken (forskningsradet.no)

• POPFREE – Promotion of PFAS-free alternatives | RISE

• The industry invests in phasing out PFAS | RISE

The purpose of a Materiality Assessment is to help a company analyze, identify and understand the importance of specific Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) and sustainability topics, and the potential impact and importance to stakeholders. 
It is a formal exercise and for Brav 2021/22 it was conducted by a third party in cooperation with Brav.

The Materiality Assessment empowers us to easily report on our current state and current sustainability maturity and outline future initiatives while taking into consideration our business goals and risks, focusing on which topics are most material to Brav and where we should focus our ESG work.

The Materiality Assessment is an important part of preparing our upcoming Responsibility roadmap, and a required step in the preparation towards Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), a more thorough and holistic internationally recognized responsibility reporting in Brav.

Download:

Brav Materiality Assessment

Responsibility is a fundamental part of how we work in Brav.
We have established the Brav Responsibility Group as a tool to make sure it is integrated throughout the organization.
The Brav Responsibility Group serves as a forum for

• Building and sharing knowledge within Brav

• Discussing ideas related to sustainability initiatives

• Aligning initiatives between departments

• Creativity, Inspiration and Collaboration

• Bringing knowledge back to and continuing the discussions in the departments

In this way Brav benefits from the creativity and different perspectives from various areas and functions in Brav, while building ownership to the solutions and initiatives for sustainable development and growth.
The Responsibility Group consists of one participant from every department and market. The membership is not fixed but can vary from meeting to meeting, depending on the agenda. The Responsibility Group meets on a quarterly basis.

The United Nations Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) can only be realized with strong global partnerships and cooperation between governments, the private sector, academics, and citizens.
Goal #17 is arguably the most important of all the UN SDGs because achieving the other goals depends on it.
That is why Brav has chosen SDG# 17 as one of our guiding principles.

Brav or its brands are members of and cooperating with the following organizations:

• Ethical Trade Norway (ETN)

• Scandinavian Outdoor Group (SOG)

• European Outdoor Group (EOG)

• Norwegian Textile & Fashion Agenda (NF&TA)

• Scandinavian Textile Initiative for Climate Action (STICA)

• Snowsports Industries America – Climate United Pact (SIA)

• Swedish Shoe Environmental Initiative (SSEI)

• Chemical Check GmbH

• Grønt Punkt – Plastløftet

• Sedex