The subcategories in S-LCA represent specific areas of social impact that are relevant to particular stakeholder categories. They are classified based on stakeholder categories and impact categories, enabling a comprehensive assessment. By combining stakeholder categories and impact categories, the S-LCA subcategories cover a wide range of topics, reflecting socially important themes or attributes associated with each stakeholder group.
The UNEP/SETAC (2009) Guidelines recommended 31 subcategories, which can be used as a starting point for identifying relevant social impacts for a given product system.
For example, the subcategories for the stakeholder category “local community” include:
- Access to material resources
- Access to immaterial resources
- Delocalization and migration
- Cultural Heritage
- Safe & healthy living conditions
- Respect of indigenous rights
- Community engagement
- Local employment
- Secure living conditions
Subcategories are assessed using inventory indicators, as recommended by the UNEP/SETAC framework (2009). This framework suggests over 100 inventory indicators and corresponding sources of required raw data, which are published in a separate document titled ‘The Methodological Sheets for Subcategories in Social Life Cycle Assessment’ (UNEP/SETAC 2021).
For example, the subcategory “cultural heritage” associated with “local community” can be assessed using the following indicators (UNEP/SETAC 2021):
- Evidence of policies/management plan(s) in place to protect and/or support cultural heritage
- Presence of organizational program to include cultural heritage expression in product design/production
- Presence of relevant organizational information to community members in their spoken language(s)
- Presence of documented initiatives and activities oriented to support and promote cultural heritage (e.g., funding of cultural activities and events)
Alternatively, some researchers formulate inventory indicators using the PSILCA database, which was developed by Green-Delta GmbH in Berlin and contains comprehensive generic inventory information for nearly 15,000 industry sectors and commodities, available at https://nexus.openlca.org/database/PSILCA.
Most of the subcategories and indicators in the UNEP/SETAC framework (2009, 2021) can be linked to the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations (SDGs). For example, the subcategory “local employment” associated with “local community” can be linked to SDG 8: Decent work and economic growth (promote sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all).
In summary, S-LCA provides a holistic and rigorous tool for assessing the social and socio-economic impacts of product life cycles. As a research field gaining traction among scholars, practitioners, and policymakers, S-LCA has great potential to advance our understanding of where we stand in the transition to social sustainability. Furthermore, the standardized assessment frameworks and quantitative methods characterizing S-LCA can help identify hotspots for improvement in order to achieve social sustainability goals.
UNEP/SETAC (2009) Guidelines for social life cycle assessment of products. United Nations Environment Programme, Paris. https://www.lifecycleinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/2009%20-%20Guidelines%20for%20sLCA%20-%20EN.pdf Accessed 07/31/2022
UNEP/SETAC (2021) The methodological sheets for sub-categories in social life cycle assessment (S-LCA). https://www.lifecycleinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Methodological-Sheets_2021_final.pdf Accessed 08/01/2022
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