Everybody! Stay Calm!

On February 23rd 2024, the ISO standards body issued a communique along with the International Accreditation Forum, that they have published an amendment to the series of Management Systems standards, which includes the popular ISO 9001 (Quality), as well as ISO 14001(Environmental) and ISO/IEC 27001 (Information Security) as well as others. The amendment affects the section 4 requirements - the Context of the Organization (part of the so-called Annex SL or High Level structure) which nearly all Management Systems Standards (MSS) are formatted.

The amendment, which is to be implemented with immediate effect, includes the requirement for an organization to consider the impacts of climate change when evaluating the internal and external issues that can impact the effectiveness of their management system. The communique, which can be viewed here simply adds the need for the organization to consider if it is relevant.

As with the other requirements of section 4, there's no need for either a documented process, or "maintained documented information" (ISO 9001-speak for documents such as procedures, instructions etc.) nor "retained documented information" (aka records), but simply that the organization "shall monitor and review information. No need to buy some software to help calculate GHG (greenhouse gas emissions), or author another document.

As far as the rest of the communique goes, it gives direction on how both the accreditation bodies (ABs) and conformity assessment bodies (CABs or registrars) should approach the effect on the certified organizations. Be aware that asking your certification auditor may not be the wisest choice when seeking information, however. Contact your CAB operations management for their position on when they anticipate being ready to audit your organization.

In the words of the famous book by Douglas Adams, "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" - "Don't Panic!" (it's written on the cover in large, friendly letters, BTW)

As with the other issues of internal or external nature, consider using - or revisiting - a S.W.O.T or P.E.S.T.L.E Analysis (as ISO/TS 9002 suggests). Record that analysis at your next available Management Review - that you considered the impact on climate change. And remember, it's not "open to interpretation" by an auditor...