The Board of the International Iron and Steel Institute has accepted the eleven sustainability indicators that were recommended by the Sustainability Indicators Project Group.

The indicators were presented to the Board at their meeting late last year. From 2004, the eleven sustainability indicators are being measured and reported to the Board of IISI on an annual basis.

In 2002, the member companies of IISI had committed themselves to sustainable development. They agreed to a set of seven goals to advance their economic, environmental and social performance. The adoption of the sustainability indicators furthers the commitment of IISI and its member companies to sustainable development.

The implementation of the sustainability indicators will help companies, and the industry as a whole, to communicate progress towards sustainable development. They will enable members to acknowledge success and identify issues for greater attention. The use of sustainability indicators will promote reporting across the industry and provide a framework for companies seeking guidance on sustainability reporting. The indicators complement the efforts of the companies who are already reporting.

Several criteria were used to select the indicators. The group considered it advantageous to start with a short list of indicators in order to gain wide acceptance and participation. The data collection procedure was tested over several months.