Developing Impact Measurement Metrics for the Safer Chemistry Impact Fund

Data analytics will provide a solid foundation for setting goals and measuring progress towards chemical hazard reduction. The Fund will then build upon these to create a docket of programs and projects to activate systems change across supply chains, and catalyse a collaborative, multi-stakeholder movement for safer chemistry.”

Bill Walsh, Director, Safer Chemistry Impact Fund

Situation

The Safer Chemistry Impact Fund (the Fund) was established to accelerate the transition from hazardous chemicals to safer alternatives. Within the next five years, it aims to target four consumer-facing supply chains, such as auto, electronics, and apparel, to embed safer chemistry metrics and tools. The Fund was fiscally sponsored by the Windward Fund, with initial investment from Apple and Google. It will fund non-profit initiatives to identify, scale, and measure impact solutions to embed safer chemistry across supply chains as the standard operating system. 

The Fund has four components: Data Trust, Impact Programs, a Knowledge Hub and Metrics to measure the transition to safer chemistry. The Metrics are essential to achieving the mission and will play a key role in the Fund. 

Goals for the metrics development project included:  

• Understanding the leading ideas related to safer chemistry metrics;  
• Developing a vision for the next three to five years;  
• Refining and validating a framework for safer chemistry impact metrics to guide this transition; and  
• Identifying priorities for the deployment of capital to strategically accelerate progress and quantifying the replacement of toxic chemicals with verified safer chemistry. 

Solution

The Fund engaged Anthesis to conduct work on understanding the landscape around chemical management and safer chemistry adoption and measurement. Anthesis led a series of stakeholder engagement exercises, including interviews and both in-person and virtual workshops, and developed metrics to measure progress towards and the impact of adopting preferred or low-concern chemicals.  

Key outputs: 

• Landscape analysis and interview summaries outlining approaches, key challenges, successes, and areas of divergent thought around chemical management and safer chemistry adoption and measurement.  
• Collaborative in-person workshops with impact leaders were a productive addition to this work, allowing for conversations to flow and discussion of practical, implementable steps and metrics to facilitate reaching a necessary future state. 
• Refined Metrics and feedback on the final evolution of Metrics for the Fund to evaluate its operations, encourage companies, brands, and retailers to start building a baseline and set actions and goals around a safer chemistry transition. 

Key findings: 

• Access to consistent chemical hazard data is the key enabler of these efforts. 
• Sector-specific considerations for transparency efforts and safer alternatives require different approaches, which lead to the sector focus of the work. 
• Action by all members of the supply chain is needed to drive these efforts, and data access and reporting can help facilitate transparency and progress. 

Impact

The impact of these metrics is expected to be far-reaching: 

• Industry: Businesses can set clear goals for reducing chemical hazards, track their progress, and communicate their achievements to stakeholders. The metrics will also facilitate collaboration across supply chains, driving the development and adoption of safer alternatives. 
• Investors: The metrics will provide investors with a standardised way to assess chemical impacts as part of the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance of companies, enabling them to make more informed investment decisions. 
• Policymakers: The metrics will provide policymakers with the data they need to develop effective regulations and incentives to promote safer chemicals and protect public health and the environment.