Our approach
Substrata maps the laws, standards, and expectations on human rights, labor, and the environment that apply to an organization, examines how the organization currently handles them, and sets priorities that fit its size, resources, and risks.
Considering what’s beneath the surface
Responsible business conduct can be understood as five layers of responsibility. Like the strata of the ground, they form at different times and shift at different speeds. Binding law, international standards, market expectations, reporting frameworks, and stakeholder expectations apply to every organization. However, what each requires, and how much weight it carries, depends on the organization’s sector, size, locations, and business relationships.
How Substrata can help
Keeping track of all five layers takes dedicated attention and expertise that not all organizations can afford to have in-house.
Substrata helps organizations identify what each layer requires of them, clarify where their priorities lie, and keep watch on how requirements evolve so that internal teams can focus their time and budget where they matter most.
Our principles
Tailored to each organization
Recommendations fit the organization’s means, its operating context, the expectations it faces, and the level of ambition it sets for itself.
Informed by practice
Recommendations start from the organization’s context and real-life needs, and draw on experience of what works on the ground.
Grounded in research
Every mandate applies the methods of applied research, from a careful review of sources to sound analysis and conclusions supported by evidence.
Built collaboratively
The work is shaped jointly with the organization and, where relevant, with workers, affected communities, and other stakeholders, so that they reflect how things actually work and remain in the hands of those who carry them forward.