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You can download the latest press releases and notifications of upcoming events, as well as a photo library and a wide range of background information here. Please contact us if you have any questions.
Masterclass - surveillance evaluation incl. development stage B indicators: Workshop 1 (virtual)
Masterclass - surveillance evaluation incl. development stage B indicators: Exchange, peer learning, impulses for implementation (workshop series)
For many of you, the second development stage B surveillance evaluation is just around the corner. On this occasion, we would like to invite you to our workshop series: 3 interactive workshops of 2 hours each are planned, in which Green Button companies can exchange views on the implementation of the stage B requirements and seek support for challenges. The events will focus on three subject areas in which experience has shown that companies face the greatest challenges and will establish links to various relevant stage B indicators. The number of participants is limited to 15 people per event. You can register for individual or all workshops. A preparation time of at least 1 hour should be planned, including participation in an anonymous survey prior to the workshops.
Target group: Green Button companies that have already completed the first surveillance evaluation
Dates:
- Workshop 1 (virtual): 18 March 2025 10.00 - 12. 00 AM
Focus: Progress in the strategic anchoring of due diligence in corporations
- Workshop 2 (virtual): 09 April 2025 10.00 - 12.00 AM
Focus: Impact-orientated improvement of (purchasing) practice
- Workshop 3 (in person): 14 May 2025 in Berlin (as part of the ‘Green Button exchange’, time to be confirmed)
Focus: Implementing measures in the (deeper) supply chain
Registration:
Please register for the workshops by e-mail (info@gruener-knopf.de). The registration deadline for Workshop 1 is 5 March 2025.
The workshops are held in German. If you are an English-speaking company and need advice, please send us an e-mail and we will organise an exchange.
‘Green Button Exchange’
This year, the ‘Green Button Exchange’ will take place on 14 May 2025 from 10.00 AM - 4.30 PM in Berlin. Take the opportunity to exchange ideas with other licensed companies. More information on the agenda and registration will follow. On 15 May 2025 from 9.00 AM - 4.30 PM, we also invite you to participate in interesting keynotes and workshops at the open section of the Members' Meeting of the Partnership for Sustainable Textiles (PST).
The Green Button at the 2025 OECD Forum on Due Diligence in the Garment and Footwear Sector
A Green Button delegation attended the 2025 OECD Forum on Due Diligence in the Garment and Footwear Sector and spent three intense days in Paris engaging in insightful discussions, contributed actively to sessions, carved out new and strengthened existing partnerships.
The Green Button played an active role in two sessions on the OECD Forum:
OECD Alignment Assessments
Our Head of Secretariat Christine Moser-Priewich, among Luke Smitham of Kumi Consulting, Emily Norton of the OECD and Annabel Meurs of Fair Wear Foundation, spoke as a panelist on the OECD Alignment Assessments. Here, we shared our insights from the Green Button assessment and emphasized that implementation assessments are a crucial step in measuring and advancing sustainability standards. They bring transparency, enable a sound comparison between initiatives, and provide clear guidance for companies and stakeholders alike. Our key takeaway here: The true value of the OECD Alignment Assessments lies in its implementation assessments that go beyond desktop assessments of what is written on paper to track real-life implementation of meaningful Human Rights and Environmental Due Diligence (HREDD).
OECD Monitoring & Evaluation Framework
This session introduced a sectoral approach for measuring and understanding impact. This framework was further enriched through first data points provided by research from Cornell University as well as contributions from Green Button companies.
Our goal remains to work with strong partners to promote sustainable supply chains and HREDD. We hope that some of the sparks from Paris will continue to spread in the coming weeks. For instance, the Green Button alongside ten other organisations released a Joint Statement on the Need for Legal Certainty and Pragmatic Implementation of the EU Sustainability Due Diligence Framework.
Here you can find the links to the recordings of the sessions:
Click here for the session on the OECD Alignment Assessment!
Clicke here for the session on the OECD Monitoring & Evaluation Framework!
Joint Statement on the Need for Legal Certainty and Pragmatic Implementation of the EU Sustainability Due Diligence Framework
Today, the Green Button alongside ten other organisations – including amfori, Cascale, Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI), ETI Norway, ETI Sweden, ETI Denmark, Fair Labor Association, Fair Wear, German Partnership for Sustainable Textiles, and Social & Labor Convergence Program (SLCP) – release a joint statement on the EU Sustainability Due Diligence Framework in light of the upcoming Omnibus legislation expected to amend key sustainability regulations.
The EU Commission is expected to present the Omnibus legislation in the coming weeks, aiming to enhance Europe's competitiveness and streamline key sustainability regulations. This package is likely to include changes to the EU Taxonomy, the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) – all of which form the backbone of Europe’s sustainability framework.
As discussions progress, the Green Button alongside ten other organisations reaffirm their strong support for a robust and pragmatic implementation of the EU Sustainability due diligence framework. They stress the need for legal certainty and a level playing field across global supply chains.
Safeguarding Progress: A Call for Stability and Legal Certainty
The joint statement reflects the organisations' years of experience in supporting businesses as they integrate ESG due diligence into their supply chains.
"The Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, as adopted, is a milestone that will scale up due diligence efforts and reinforce alignment with international standards such as the OECD Guidelines, the UN Guiding Principles (UNGPs), and ILO Conventions.”, the joint statement reads.
Key Recommendations to the European Commission
The signatory organisations call on the European Commission to:
- Ensure a pragmatic and effective implementation of the EU Sustainability Due Diligence Framework
- Provide legal certainty, enabling businesses to operate effectively within the EU market and ensuring global trading partners can confidently engage with EU businesses
- Avoid deregulation under the guise of moving “bolder, simpler, faster,” as this could weaken sustainability commitments
The Green Button alongside ten other organisations remain committed to supporting businesses as they navigate due diligence obligations and continue advocating for a balanced, legally sound, and future-proof sustainability framework.
Farewell to Florian Tiedtke on leaving the Green Button Secretariat
Christine Moser-Priewich takes over as head of the Green Button Secretariat
After almost five years with the Green Button and one and a half years in the senior management, the Green Button is saying goodbye to Florian Tiedtke. He will remain in the same GIZ project in which the government-run textile label is anchored but will in future take over the management of the advisory for the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) relating to the transformation of textile supply chains. From now on, Christine Moser-Priewich will be solely responsible for heading the Green Button Secretariat.
Florian Tiedtke:
“As I look back on the last few years at the Green Button, I am amazed and proud of how much the Green Button, the BMZ, the Green Button Secretariat, the certification bodies, the issuing body, the recognized standards, but also and especially the licensees of the Green Button have moved and achieved. At the end of 2019, hardly anyone had expected that the government-run textile label would develop so well and establish itself on the market so quickly. The Green Button has done pioneering work in the field of corporate due diligence. The transition to the Green Button 2.0 has made it clear that companies can and want to go the extra mile and implement more ambitious and far-reaching requirements. I am deeply grateful to have been able to accompany the team and you on this journey. Although it is a shame that I will no longer be able to experience the rest of the journey first-hand, I am very much looking forward to the new challenge. I am also reassured by the fact that the Green Button Secretariat has one of the best teams in the world and, with Christine Moser-Priewich, a wonderful head of the Secretariat. I would like to thank you all very much for the good, exciting and educational cooperation and support.”
Christine Moser-Priewich:
“Everything has an end... I would like to thank Florian Tiedtke for the last one and a half years of co-leadership of the Green Button Secretariat and for a total of five years of dedication to the Green Button! He contributed significantly to the development of the Green Button, and it is also due to him that the Green Button is where it is today. I and the team at the Green Button Secretariat have learned a lot from working with him, both professionally and personally, and always with a good sense of humor! Many thanks, Florian, for the time we spent together! All the best from all my heart.”
The Green Button wishes Florian Tiedtke all the best for his new role and looks forward to continuing the good cooperation with Christine Moser-Priewich.
Quarterly meeting of the Green Button certification bodies
The Green Button auditors and the Green Button Secretariat meet four times a year. The focus of this regular exchange is to promote a common understanding of the Green Button Standard and its certification program. Interpretations of Green Button indicators and findings from audit monitoring by the Secretariat are shared and information is pooled.
Green Button certification bodies and their staff will receive an invitation by e-mail.
Quarterly meeting of the Green Button certification bodies
The Green Button auditors and the Green Button Secretariat meet four times a year. The focus of this regular exchange is to promote a common understanding of the Green Button Standard and its certification program. Interpretations of Green Button indicators and findings from audit monitoring by the Secretariat are shared and information is pooled.
Green Button certification bodies and their staff will receive an invitation by e-mail.
Quarterly meeting of the Green Button certification bodies
The Green Button auditors and the Green Button Secretariat meet four times a year. The focus of this regular exchange is to promote a common understanding of the Green Button Standard and its certification program. Interpretations of Green Button indicators and findings from audit monitoring by the Secretariat are shared and information is pooled.
Green Button certification bodies and their staff will receive an invitation by e-mail.
Quarterly meeting of the Green Button certification bodies
The Green Button auditors and the Green Button Secretariat meet four times a year. The focus of this regular exchange is to promote a common understanding of the Green Button Standard and its certification program. Interpretations of Green Button indicators and findings from audit monitoring by the Secretariat are shared and information is pooled.
Green Button certification bodies and their staff will receive an invitation by e-mail.
Asian Dialogues Conference 2025 in Cambodia: Advancing Sustainability - The Need for Regional Perspectives
On 25 February 2025, the Green Button will be represented at the 14th Asian Dialogues Conference in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The Green Button will gather input from manufacturers in a workshop to improve its certification scheme, aligning with manufacturers' interests and supporting brands' Human Rights and Environmental Due Diligence (HREDD) efforts.
For further information please follow this link!
