About us

Realizing that changed “living conditions” require new “survival strategies” is our main motivation. Considering the global challenges that humanity is facing it may be helpful to refocus on the questions: “What actually characterizes a good life? What makes us satisfied or happy?”

Non-monetary values such as community, solidarity, responsibility, friendship, trust, relationships, etc. rank first. Sustainable management aims to promote these values and to establish a “good life” for all people.

We see ourselves as pioneers for a respective economic and cultural development. The Economy for the Common Good and the CSE standard offer a possible answer to the question of how we can change from an entirely profit-oriented economy to one that is based on ethical values and functions within existing structures. Our ecological product certifications can be an entry into a more sustainable way of doing business.

In close dialogue with committed actors from economy, society and science we are continuously working on the question of “how” sustainable economics could be put into practice. We are convinced that change can only be realized through the participation of all those who are involved in the process.

Our actions are based on a “strong” understanding of sustainability. Strong sustainability means that natural and artificial resources are not interchangeable. Therefore, the total amount of natural resources and their composition should not only be preserved but increased, if possible.
This understanding has a direct impact on business growth: the paradigm of quantitative growth has become strongly entrenched in modern civilization. Driven by capital markets and predatory competition companies also feel the pressure to grow. We at GfaW fully understand this dilemma. On the other hand, first examples of companies that focus on the growth of quality certainly show that other ways of doing business is possible (see "already aboard").

The quality of a a certification is determined by several factors. The basis of every certification is the scope which must be defined. To be of significance, the criteria must be clearly assigned, formulated and, above all, testable and measurable.

The quality attributes scope and significance are ensured already while developing the standard and its criteria.

Another quality attribute is the audit frequency – the regularity with which a company is audited. The last 12 months of the business´ activities form basis of the certification process. From that, prospective necessary measures can be derived.

To ensure our ambitious goals, it makes sense to implement annual audits.

Good to know: the criteria of a product certification only apply on the products themselves; the CSE certification is a combination of management, company and product certification. Thus, the certifications differ in their extent and process.

The audit process for a product certification equals every year and involves checking the qualities of the raw materials that are used during production. This includes the ingredients for the product and the packaging. Based on random samples, the qualities can be checked by means of batch traceability.

When it comes to the CSE sustainability certification the extent of the certification process can vary from year to year. Experience shows that the initial audit is very extensive since the implementation of a management system mostly takes longer than one year and doesn´t change annually. The follow-up audits serve to review the initiated process. The focus in on the compliance with the absolute criteria, the product-related criteria and, if necessary, the implementation of measures to eliminate deviations. The fourth-year audit will be a more extensive one again.

The communication with the certification bodies is another quality characteristic for us. Through regular exchange, GfaW as standard owner keeps close touch to the standard users and receives information about the reasonableness, manageability and sustainable benefit of the criteria in a timely manner. Periodically, but at least once a month we exchange information with the certification body.

Training and further education of the auditors are another important component when ensuring the quality of certifications; GfaW offers trainings at least once a year.

GfaW also assures a complaint management concerning the certifications which is a specification of the ISO 17065 for certification bodies. Complaints reaching us directly are processed personally by the management and are incorporated into our process according to the principle of continuous improvement.

When developing and defining criteria, we always act holistically while being aware of our principles defined previously.

Thus, when gathering new criteria, the added value, in terms of sustainability, is paramount to us. Thereby, a comprehensive understanding of sustainability considering ecological, social and economic aspects at the same time is a premise.

When developing a new criterion, we ask ourselves the following questions, all of which must be answered with a "yes" - whether the criterion is developed for a new standard or an existing standard that needs to be updated.

• Does the criterion meet the related scope of the standard?
• Does this criterion provide a distinction from a non-ecological product or a non-sustainable business practice?
• Does the criterion minimize rebound effects?
• Is the criterion measurable? Is it clearly assigned and specified?
• Does the criterion meet our intention and our definition of sustainability?

We develop new and update existing standards in line with our vision and induced by impulses that are brought to us.
If daily business, research or expert discussions show that our standards need to be changed, GfaW management acts according to the following defined scheme:
The management prepares a draft, which is discussed with the participants from economy and science at the next work group meeting (if there is an urgent update that cannot be deferred, the companies that are directly affected are informed immediately in advance).

The results of the work groups are incorporated into the draft, which is sent out for comment to all stakeholders and those it affects (certification body, customers, experts). Following this final round of voting, the changes are incorporated into the updated standard; the respective version can be clearly identified by its version number.

The current standard is available online at any time on the website under downloads. If you have any queries, please contact our office. unter downloads abrufbar. Bei Rückfragen wenden Sie sich bitte an die Geschäftsstelle.

Download chart 1

Download chart 2

The work group meetings take place regularly once a year and if necessary, there are additional meetings. They are convened by the managing director of GfaW.

You are very welcome to participate. You can either get in touch with us via our contact form, by email or by phone. On our social media platforms (e.g. Instagram, LinkedIn or Xing) we exchange views with stakeholders and consumers, especially on topics like our CSE label.

As the developer and owner of the most ambitious and comprehensive sustainability standard, we obviously adhere to the defined principles too.

Seit Februar 2019 ist die GfaW nach dem CSE-Standard zertifiziert. Unser Zertifikate:

2018: CO2-Kompensation.2018

2019: CO2-Kompensation-Greenpeace-Gas und CO2-Kompensation 2019

2020: CO2-Zertifikat-2020

Unseren Nachhaltigkeitsbericht 2020 mit Hilfe des STAR finden Sie here..

In our office we only use items from the sustainable wholesaler memo including recycled paper. When purchasing new computers or other electronic equipment, we also buy them from memo or AfB.

Our server provider works with green electricity from hydropower and uses energy-efficient hardware.

Both our electricity and gas are sourced from Greenpeace Energy. Additional emissions from greenhouse gases are compensated with atmosfair.
In addition to the legal requirements from the existing waste separation system (residual waste, yellow bag, etc.) we reuse packaging material or paper that is printed only on one side. For room care, we use cleaning agents of our CSE pioneers Sonett and Sodasan.

And, as a matter of course, the idea of sufficiency can be found in all our operational processes – from consumables to travel expenses.
Additional emissions from greenhouse gases are compensated with myclimate.

Furthermore, we introduced a sustainability management system analogous to ISO 14001:2015.

Our employees are mainly free to divide up their working hours and have the option of working mostly from their home offices. Regular meetings ensure transparency in a structure of flat hierarchies in which suggestions and impulses of all participants are understood as potential. The personal well-being of our employees and partners forms the basis of a trusting and successful cooperation.
Beyond that, we aim to build long-term partnerships that are based on shared values.

GfaW achieves the greatest effect on the environment and sustainability through the activities of its customers. Therefore, it is GfaW's declared sustainability goal to lead even more companies to CSE certification.

Zur Zeit investieren wir in die GfaW-Infrastruktur und die Weiterentwicklung der Zertifizierungstools und -prozesse. Sobald Überschüsse bzw. Gewinne generiert werden, fließen diese in eine gemeinwohlorientierte Stiftung, deren Gründung bevorsteht.