Quality Control: The Assurance Panel Review

The ResponsibleSteel Assurance Panel has experience from across the globe in the steel sector, social and environmental issues as well as in auditing and certification.

The Assurance Panel plays a vital role in ensuring the rigour of certification decisions made by certification bodies. The Panel reviews the audit reports, requiring clarification or revision of conformity classifications and suggesting amendments where needed, and either supporting or disapproving of the certification recommendations. They are guided by the following questions:

  • Does the audit report contain enough detail for the certification body to take an informed certification decision?
  • Do the evidence and rationales provided in the audit report support the conformity classifications?
  • Is the certification recommendation conclusive?

Enio Viterbo Junior

With over 40 years of field experience in Health, Safety, Environment and Quality (HSEQ) management, Enio has expertise in many specialisms including environmental assessments, due diligence, HSEQ auditing, and strategies to develop sustainability across the whole steel supply chain.

Enio joined Bayer SA in 1987 as HSEQ Head before becoming the Corporate HSE Director at Gerdau in 2007 – one of South America’s leading long steel producers with over 30,000 employees. Having left Gerdau in 2016, Enio continues to provide specialist HSE consulting, coaching, and technical support.

Enio holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering as well as master’s degrees in Information Technology Management and in Business Administration.

Enio Viterbo Junior,

Dr Joe Herbertson AM

Joe was a founding member of the Steel Stewardship Forum, which in 2010 began the project that was to become ResponsibleSteel. He is a co-founder and Director of The Crucible Group, a research and consulting business formed to enhance the link between sustainability, strategy, and innovation.

Prior to this, Joe was the Executive Director of The Natural Step, Australia, a global NGO with a science-based, systems approach to sustainable development. In a career spanning from 1970 to the present day, Joe has held positions with Imperial Smelting, British Steel, Sheffield University, and McGill University as well as spending 13 years at BHP from 1987-2000, where he was General Manage Research BHP Steel and also Director of the company’s Central Research Laboratories. He has been a member of numerous environmental and industry panels in Australia and internationally. Joe is currently a Conjoint Professor in Environmental and Life Sciences at the University of Newcastle.

Dr Joe Herbertson AM,

Nicole Sullivan

Nicole is thinkstep-anz’s Head of Strategy and Impact Australia, supporting companies in developing their sustainability strategies. She joined thinkstep-anz in 2020 having spent the previous four years leading the Green Star Solutions team at the Green Building Council of Australia. Green Star is a sustainability rating system for the construction sector.

For over 20 years, Nicole worked for BlueScope steel in a variety of roles, mostly as a Senior Process Engineer at the “hard-hat level”, before being appointed Senior Technical Advisor – Sustainability in 2011 and then Technical Manager, Sustainability – Marketing in 2014.

Nicole has expertise across steel manufacturing, environmental and safety management, sustainability communications, Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs). Her work has been awarded the World Steel Association “Steelie” Award for Excellence in LCA, and the BPN Sustainability Award for Innovation of the Year.

Nicole holds a degree in chemical engineering from the University of New South Wales, Australia.

Nicole Sullivan,

Meera Pau Mehta

Meera is a global sustainability leader with over 20 years of experience driving strategies and partnerships to deliver positive business and social impact. Most recently she led the human rights programme for Amazon’s worldwide operations. Prior to this she spent 10 years leading the social responsibility strategy for global steelmaker, ArcelorMittal, with a focus on supply chains and human rights. Meera started her career at PwC where she was an Associate Director in PwC’s sustainability consulting group in London.

Meera has extensive experience working with multi-stakeholder initiatives and developing partnerships between the private sector and civil society organizations. She has been a member of the steering committee for the Responsible Minerals Initiative, working with civil society groups and businesses sourcing minerals from high risk countries. At PwC, she supported the gold and diamond supply chain to develop the ethical jewellery initiative, the Responsible Jewellery Council.

Meera Pau Mehta,

Jon Woodhead

Jon Woodhead is a recognised expert in sustainability strategy, reporting and assurance, with over 25 years experience of sustainability and corporate responsibility management consulting and assurance and particular expertise in the steel sector. Jon’s recent clients include a wide range of global steel producers, advising and providing assurance over data and claims relating to GHG emissions and wider sustainability reporting. Jon has an M.Sc. in Environmental Impact Assessment and began his career in the mid-1990s working on global environmental reporting and assurance projects.

After co-founding the consultancy CSR Network in 1999, Jon spent 10 years working with a range of multinational clients and other organisations on sustainability challenges, leading in 2009 to the formation of Two Tomorrows Group. In 2012 Two Tomorrows was acquired by DNV, where Jon worked for 5 years before leaving to co-found his current consultancy practice, Challenge Sustainability. Over his career, Jon has been involved in the development of a wide range of standards including the ResponsibleSteel International Standard, the AA1000 series, and others.

 

Jon Woodhead,

Marnie Bammert

Marnie is an independent consultant with 20 years of experience in developing, implementing and communicating sustainability certification and verification programmes.

Marnie started her journey in the field of sustainability with oekom research, a rating agency specialised in sustainable and ethical investments. She then moved to the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), a certification programme for sustainable fisheries. Between 2005 and 2015 Marnie held various positions with MSC, including Deputy Director Europe.

Since then, Marnie has worked as a consultant on projects ranging from protected areas to nature-based solutions, to infrastructure and mining. Marnie has worked with ResponsibleSteel since early 2018.

She holds a master’s degree in Sustainable Urban and Regional Development from the University of Trier, Germany.

Marnie Bammert,