As well as working with our own suppliers, it is important that we also look at supply chain issues from an industry perspective.

Global e-Sustainability Initiative (GeSI)

Nokia became a full member of the Global e-Sustainability Initiative (GeSI ) in 2007. We have been a member of the GeSI Supply Chain Working Group (SCWG) since 2004. This Group works closely with the Electronics Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC). The main aims of this collaborative effort are to promote good conduct and to develop and deploy a consistent set of tools and processes to measure, monitor and improve CR performance across the ICT sector supply chain.

As part of our membership of the GeSI SCWG, we actively participate in the Learning and Capability Building, Shared Auditing and Extractives sub-groups working together with EICC.

Shared Audits
Our industry shares many of the same suppliers and our networked supply chain means that many of us are customers and suppliers of each other. As a result, one focus of the GeSI SCWG has been to develop a shared auditing process together with the EICC, which means a single audit of a supplier facility can be shared across customers. In doing so, the work group aims to reduce the burden of duplicate audits on suppliers and allow them to focus resources on addressing issues and improving conditions

During 2008 Nokia participated within the shared audit work group, helping to develop the shared auditing process and in the actual audit pilots. For the latest information on supplier assessments please refer to Progress and targets section

Learning & Capability Building
Recognizing that simply assessing suppliers for compliance does not create sustainable change, GeSI SCWG and EICC formed the Learning & Capability building work group, to which Nokia is an active member. During 2008, this work group hosted a supplier forum in China, concluded the pilot studies that emerged from the multi-stakeholder capability-building project for the ICT sector in China (in collaboration with BSR and the Foreign Investment Advisory Service (FIAS)) and, began developing a series of web-based e-learning modules.

Extractives
GeSI and EICC formed the Extractives Workgroup to enhance members’ understanding of social and environmental conditions at the mine level and to determine if and how we could act collectively or individually to improve these conditions. With this aim, the Workgroup commissioned an industry research project to understand:

• How six key metals (aluminum, cobalt, copper, gold, palladium, and tin) are mined, recycled, purchased and used within the electronics industry,
• How members of the GeSI and EICC can effectively influence social and environmental issues associated with the mining of metals used in electronics products. The research, published in June 2008, helped raise awareness of the key facts and challenges surrounding the supply of metals, the ability to trace the sources of metal used in electronic products and the industry’s ability to include conditions. After this research the work group coordinated stakeholder forums to gather feedback and define the groups priorities moving forward. For more information visit the GeSI website.

RosettaNet
RosettaNet is a voluntary initiative of over 500 major information technology and electronics manufacturers that is committed to developing solutions for the standardized exchange of information.

As part of its supplier cooperation development, Nokia is using the web-based RosettaNet information exchange solution in its product information exchange with suppliers, including information on material content.

For more information visit the RosettaNet site.