ISO 37101:2016

Overview

ISO 37101:2016 - "Sustainable development in communities - Management system for sustainable development - Requirements with guidance for use" - specifies requirements and guidance for establishing a management system to advance sustainable development in communities (including cities). The standard adopts a holistic, multi‑actor approach to help communities become more resilient, smart and sustainable, and to assess and communicate progress. It is applicable to communities of all sizes, types and levels (local, regional, national; urban or rural). Claims of conformity are permitted only when an organization’s management system fully incorporates all ISO 37101 requirements.

Key topics and requirements

ISO 37101 structures a management system around familiar system elements while focusing on community sustainability outcomes:

• Context of the organization: understand the community, territorial boundaries and interested parties.
• Leadership & policy: establish sustainable development purposes, governance, roles and responsibilities.
• Planning: identify sustainability issues, risks and opportunities; conduct baseline reviews and set strategy, objectives and programmes.
• Support: allocate resources, build competence, ensure stakeholder communication and manage documented information.
• Operation: plan and control strategies, programmes, projects, plans and services to ensure coherence and delivery.
• Performance evaluation: monitoring, measurement, internal audit and management review to track progress on sustainability, smartness and resilience.
• Improvement: manage nonconformities, corrective action and continual improvement.

The standard also highlights specific sustainability issue areas, including governance and engagement, education and capacity building, innovation, health and care, culture and identity, social cohesion, economy and sustainable consumption, living and working environments, safety, infrastructure, mobility and biodiversity. Annexes provide a maturity matrix and mapping of issues, indicators and metrics to support implementation.

Practical applications

ISO 37101 is used to:

• Develop integrated community sustainability strategies and action plans.
• Systematically measure and report on community sustainability, resilience and smart city initiatives.
• Coordinate cross‑sector programmes (infrastructure, mobility, health, biodiversity, economy).
• Improve stakeholder engagement through multi‑actor processes and participatory partnerships.
• Demonstrate a credible management system for funding, procurement or reporting purposes.

Who should use it

• Municipalities, city councils and regional governments
• Designated organizations (public authorities or entities appointed by a community)
• Urban planners, community development agencies, NGOs and multi‑stakeholder partnerships
• Consultants and auditors supporting community sustainability management systems

Related standards

ISO 37101 is compatible with and can be used alongside other management standards such as ISO 14001, ISO 45001, ISO 50001, ISO 20121, ISO 14046 and ISO 26000, enabling integrated sustainability management across environmental, social and economic domains.