The Sustainable Green Printing Partnership (SGP), Sayville, New York, an NGO and an authority in sustainable printing certifications, has announced a pilot project to expand its certification program beyond the United States and Canada. SGP has been holding all audits virtually for more than a year. Using this method, the organization can expand internationally, allowing printers and industry suppliers worldwide to achieve SGP certification. Through its cloud-based SGP Impact Tracker, information for a virtual audit is quickly and effectively shared with SGP’s independent auditors.

Wendy Nadan, SGP lead auditor, said in 2018, SGP released the SGP Impact Tracker. With enhancements, the tracker provided a virtual audit solution for the current global situation. This inspired SGP to rethink how the group could extend the SGP certification to more distant countries. Everything from the initial planning meeting to the completion of document review including photographic evidence can be accomplished through conference calls with the local sustainability team. Each facility can meet the expectations of the audit as if an SGP auditor were physically on site.

The SGP certification pilot program will be launched in October 2021 with the next revision of the SGP certification criteria, which is adopted after a public review process every five years. More program details, including the application for pilot testing, will be released in August 2021.

Print facilities interested in eliminating waste, reducing energy consumption, transitioning to sustainable materials and winning new business from organizations that require sustainable printing practices should visit www.sgppartnership.org/certification to learn more about becoming SGP-certified.

For more information, visit www.sgppartnership.org.