Making a difference together

In 2022 and 2023, Aldi piloted an innovative living wage verification process on banana farms. As a core partner, Heartwood built capacity among all actors and facilitated dialogs between worker representatives and farm management.  

Heartwood wrote the Living Wage Playbook for AIM-Progress and its members. It is designed as a “how to guide” to help companies build and implement a living wage strategy, whether for their employees, across their suppliers, or both. 

Heartwood supported the revision of this leading sustainability standard, based on a systems approach that emphasizes risk managements and a vision for more humane, environmentally responsible and socially just textile supply chains.

Heartwood has worked with GIZ and corporate partners to better understand employment and compensation systems across supply chains, in order to make informed and meaningful investments.

Sustainable Food Lab (SFL) works with leading food and beverage companies to meaningfully progress toward sustainable agriculture goals. Heartwood works with SFL and companies on the economics of farmer income, ROI, resiliency, and regeneration.

From 2019-2023, Heartwood worked with IDH on game-changing tools like the Salary Matrix, learning platforms, and multi-stakeholder collaborations to help businesses and certification systems advance on decent wages for workers.

New procurement legislation; human rights due diligence frameworks; and worker demands have amplified the call for labor and wage transparency. Heartwood helps dozens of companies respond to it.

Carbon credit marking company, Everland LLC partnered with Heartwood LLC to create an extra level of due diligence to enhance REDD+ project performance and reporting.

Heartwood contributed to the development of ISEAL Alliance guidance on indicators for landscape-scale initiatives, with the aim to improve impact measurement and transparency around claims.

Heartwood Principal, Jessica Grillo, serves on the Technical Advisory Committee of the Living Income Community of Practice (LICoP) and has written papers and guidance for the LICoP including, "Applying the Household Economy Approach to Measure and Address Income Gaps in Agriculture Supply Chains." 

Heartwood helped Burton develop policy on engaging civil society, as part of their alignment and membership with the Fair Labor Association (FLA)

Impact Buying Academy is IDH's auditor training partner on living wage verification. With Heartwood's help, they developed their Salary Matrix verification training program to provide trust in the results.