Clear definitions for the certifications and labels you'll see on ethical products.
Contains no animal-derived ingredients and no animal byproducts.
Neither the finished product nor its ingredients were tested on animals.
A for-profit company independently verified to meet high social and environmental standards.
U.S. federal certification for food and farming free from synthetic pesticides, GMOs, and irradiation.
Producers in developing countries are paid a fair minimum price plus a community premium.
The international gold standard for cruelty-free personal care and household products.
Made without genetically modified organisms, typically verified to a 0.9% threshold.
Personal care products free from the Environmental Working Group's list of ingredients of concern.
Certifies farms that meet standards for biodiversity, worker welfare, and climate-smart agriculture.
Wood, paper, and forest products from responsibly managed forests.
The leading worldwide standard for organic fibers, covering ecological and social criteria.
Certifies products designed for circularity — material health, reuse, renewable energy, water and social fairness.
A brand or product whose climate impact is balanced by offsets — credible only with verified, additional offsets.
Marketing a product or company as more environmentally responsible than it actually is.
An economic model where products and materials are reused, repaired, refurbished or recycled — minimizing waste.
Plastic particles smaller than 5mm — released by synthetic fabrics, tires, packaging breakdown and personal care.
Independent multi-stakeholder initiative auditing apparel brand factories for labor practices.
Capable of being broken down by microorganisms into natural substances — but conditions and timeframes vary widely.
Net-zero carbon emissions achieved by reducing and offsetting equivalent CO₂.
Reducing emissions by ~90% then offsetting only the unavoidable residual.
Indirect emissions across the value chain — usually a company's largest footprint.
Farming practices that rebuild soil health, biodiversity and watersheds.
A wage sufficient to meet a worker's basic needs in their location.
Public disclosure of suppliers, facilities and conditions across every production tier.
The strictest globally recognised cruelty-free certification.
The leading textile processing standard for organic fibres, covering ecology and labour.
Tests textiles for harmful substances at every production stage.
Multi-stakeholder certification for palm oil produced without deforestation.
Certifies wild-caught seafood from sustainably managed fisheries.
Personal-care products that meet the Environmental Working Group's transparency and ingredient-safety criteria.
The most widely used green-building certification system, run by USGBC.
UN body that publishes the authoritative scientific assessment of climate change.
A tradable credit representing one tonne of CO₂ reduced, avoided or removed.