Insights
Environmental risks are often closely connected to where suppliers and production facilities operate. Proximity to protected areas, water stress, deforestation and other location-specific factors can all be relevant when assessing potential risks across a supply chain.
However, identifying these risks can be challenging, particularly when organisations manage large supplier networks operating across multiple countries and regions.
By combining supplier location information with environmental datasets, organisations can develop a clearer understanding of potential exposure and identify where further investigation may be needed.
Bringing environmental data into supplier risk assessment
Origin integrates environmental data from the World Resources Institute (WRI), helping organisations assess location-specific risk indicators alongside their existing supplier information.
These datasets provide insights into environmental factors such as forest change, water-related risks and proximity to protected areas.
Rather than reviewing this information separately, teams can use it within Origin to support supplier profiling, risk identification and due diligence activities.
Accurate facility locations are an important part of meaningful environmental risk assessment.
Origin enables supplier facilities to be located using an interactive Google-powered map, with location information reviewed and validated by administrators or on-site assessors.
Once a facility's location is established, relevant geospatial information can help identify potential environmental concerns associated with the surrounding area.
For example, a facility located near a protected area may warrant further investigation to understand the nature of its activities and whether any environmental risks need to be addressed.
Geospatial information provides an additional layer of context for supplier risk assessment, but it does not establish whether a supplier is causing environmental harm or failing to meet regulatory requirements.
These indicators need to be considered alongside other information, including supplier activities, assessments, supporting evidence and relevant local conditions.
Origin helps organisations bring this information together, supporting a more structured approach to identifying potential risks, prioritising further investigation and determining appropriate follow-up actions.
As expectations around environmental due diligence evolve, organisations need practical ways to assess risks across complex supplier networks.
Integrating environmental datasets into supplier profiling helps teams move beyond country-level assumptions towards a more location-specific understanding of potential exposure.
By combining supplier information with geospatial risk indicators, Origin supports a more informed and targeted approach to environmental due diligence.
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