EMS Toolkit

UN entities worldwide now have access to a guidance to design and implement their Environmental Management Systems (EMS). The UN EMS Toolkit was created with the specific needs of UN entities in mind - providing a tool to accelerate the UN system’s engagement on environmental sustainability management into action.

The UN System has made bold commitments in the UN Sustainability strategy on Environmental sustainability management 2020-2030 to improve the environmental sustainability of its facilities and operations. In May 2019, the UN’s Chief Executive board, CEB, committed to “adopt environmental management approaches based on the principles of continuous improvements and on the integration of sustainable development considerations on all our internal management functions to ensure that opportunities for improvements are captured wherever possible.” But achieving these commitments will not happen without a systematic approach.


WHAT IS THE UN EMS TOOLKIT?

An EMS is the engine of “continual improvement” that help keep UN entities focused and advancing towards improved internal environmental sustainability.

The UN EMS Toolkit is a guidance designed to help make the UN’s work on environmental management more systematic, efficient and connected.
 

UN ENTITIES CAN USE THE UN EMS TOOLKIT IN DIFFERENT WAYS:

  • For entities just getting started on an EMS, the Toolkit can be used as a step-by-step guidance for personnel to learn more about the Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle of an EMS, guided by practical tips and provides access to training material.
  • For entities ready to implement an EMS, the Toolkit offers a step-by-step approach including a range of case studies from UN entities and supporting documents.


WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF USING THIS TOOLKIT?

Designing an EMS is an ongoing process of planning, learning and adaptation that will allow for continuous improvement for an organization’s environmental performance over time. The toolkit provides support to implement an EMS step-by-step efficiently with a systematic approach.

  • Practical guidance & examples: Explanatory guidance, practical tips and case studies are available for each EMS requirement - drawn from trusted international standards (e.g. ISO 14001) and UN best practices.
  • More collaboration, fewer redundancies: Colleagues across offices, regions and globally can work together establishing e.g. location specific libraries with compliance obligations such as host country requirements, operational procedures and controls etc.
    • Offers a “UN EMS Library”: Implementing an EMS requires the development of many documents from policies, strategies, action plans, evaluations etc. UN entities can help each other implement and innovate on EMS more quickly by sharing documents in the Toolkit’s library.


HOW TO GET STARTED?

Getting started with the UN EMS Toolkit is easy. UN-System personnel can access the EMS Toolkit via the Greening the Blue Teams channel. Further information is available there.