|
 |
NEPCon Conflict of Interest Policy
The purpose of this policy is to describe how NEPCon ensures transparency and independence in all NEPCon’s activities. All NEPCon staff shall avoid situations where a potential conflict of interest could exist, or be seen to exist.
A conflict of interest (CoI) occurs when an individual or organization is involved in multiple interests, one of which could possibly corrupt the motivation for an act in the other.
General provisions
1. Impartiality and independence of NEPCon’s activities are assured at the organizational and personal level.
2. At the organizational level, impartiality and independence in making certification decisions are safeguarded by NEPCon’s board and management.
3. NEPCon’s board meets several times a year at board meetings and at least annually at an annual general assembly called 4 weeks in advance. The board members are elected by the members of NEPCon directly and have no personal interest in the performance or profit of the organization. They represent independent experts in their field of business administration or environmental sciences, based on experience gained in the private and public sector.
4. At the personal level the independence and impartiality is safeguarded by the contractual and “case by case” obligation for all NEPCon staff (permanent employees, consultants, subcontractors) to disclose in writing all possible and actual conflicts of interest, at the time when the conflict or possibility of conflict becomes evident. The top management ensures that none of NEPCon’s activities affect the confidentiality, objectivity or impartiality of the provided services.
5. When selecting the audit team to be appointed for a specific assessment, the task manager ensures that each team member is free from any interest that might cause them to act in other than an impartial and non-discriminatory manner. The audit team members are obliged to inform the task manager, prior to the assessment, about any existing, former or envisaged link between themselves and the organization to be assessed.
6. In order to avoid conflict of interest, no certification-related consultancy will be given to an organization, which will be the subject of auditing. Certification-related consultancy is considered as participation in an active creative manner, giving specific advice towards the development and implementation of management systems covered by the scope of the audit (e.g. forest management system, CoC system) to the company or institution being subject to the certification audit.
7. Considering the fact that NEPCon is a non-profit organization, which since 1994 has been working with nature conservation, sustainable development and the relationship between Nature, Ecology and People - with a mission to promote sustainable forest and nature management and use, in cooperation with local stakeholders such as individuals, business enterprises, NGO’s and governmental institutions, - the following activities are not considered as certification-related consultancy:
- Planning and organizing generic information meetings, workshops, courses, conferences regarding certification, nature resource management, and other issues within the scope of NEPCon’s activities;
- Providing generic tools and guidance for certified organizations and organizations preparing for certification;
- Arranging and participating as lecturer in the above-mentioned event with presentations that are confined to the provision of generic information and advice which is freely available in the public domain, and not providing company-specific advice;
- Making available or publishing on request information relating to the interpretation of the requirements of the assessment standards;
- Running activities prior to audit aimed solely at determining readiness for assessment, which do not result in the provision of recommendations or advice;
- Adding value during assessments and surveillance visits, e.g. by identifying opportunities for improvement, as they become evident, during the audit without recommending specific solutions;
- Applying for and running projects related to any topic within NEPCon’s scope of activities, that are confined to tasks which do not have direct relation to the organization audited or to be audited;
- Any other activities which are not considered as participation in an active creative manner in giving specific advice for the company or institution being subject for eventual certification within the scope of the certification activities.
8. The activities mentioned above may be implemented as projects financed by clients. NEPCon may be involved as part of a consortium with a task to implement activities as part of such projects. In such cases, the projects and specific responsibilities of NEPCon will be clearly described and made public on NEPCon´s homepage. This is to promote transparency and provide the possibility for interested parties to assess the correct implementation of NEPCon´s policy on CoI avoidance.
|
 |
|
|
|
