Vivek is an associate with the Economic Law & Policy Program who has over 10 years of experience working in sustainable development. He currently supports the State of Sustainability Initiatives, which assesses and reports on the characteristics and market performance of voluntary sustainability standards to enable sustainable consumption and production.
Along with his work on voluntary sustainability standards, he contributed to the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development's policy research on China's role in greening global value chains and the State of Sustainable Markets joint report. His past work at IISD includes projects related to market-based instruments for sustainability, sustainable agriculture and water management, establishing a World Heritage Site, natural capital and ecosystem services.
Before joining IISD, Vivek gained a wide range of work experiences in the environmental and sustainable development fields, which include: environmental representative for a manufacturing operation; laboratory technician and supervisor for stratospheric ozone, air quality and greenhouse gas monitoring laboratories; project assistant for wastewater/stormwater quality monitoring and improvement initiatives; consultant for wind energy development projects.
Vivek is a professional engineer who holds a Master of Science in Environment and Management from Royal Roads University and an International Master of Advanced Studies from the Graduate Institute of Development Studies. He is currently a PhD candidate in the Environmental Sciences and Policy program at Central European University where his doctoral research focuses on the intersection between voluntary sustainability standards and the water, energy and food security nexus.
All Publications
- Global Market Report: Cotton
Report - June 30, 2020
This report examines how voluntary sustainability standards are performing in the cotton sector. - Global Market Report: Bananas
Report - May 20, 2020
This report examines how voluntary sustainability standards are used to promote sustainable development in the banana sector. - Global Market Report: Palm Oil
Report - April 27, 2020
This report examines how voluntary sustainability standards can mitigate some of the worst environmental impacts of producing palm oil, the world’s most consumed edible oil. - Global Market Report: Sugar
Report - January 29, 2020
Voluntary sustainability standard sugar production is on the rise with continued growth expected. - Global Market Report: Tea
Report - December 17, 2019
Global demand for tea is growing despite sustainability challenges. - Global Market Report: Cocoa
Report - November 21, 2019
Western Europe and developing economies in Asia are driving demand for cocoa but farm risks may affect supply in the long-term - Global Market Report: Coffee
Report - June 3, 2019
Voluntary sustainability standard-compliant coffee production is increasing at a higher rate than the overall sector, with significant growth coming from least-developed countries. - Do Voluntary Standards Actually Stop Biodiversity Loss?
Blog - December 12, 2018
Protecting our biodiversity is a complex challenge many voluntary sustainability standards are trying to address. We look at their strengths and weaknesses. - Can Sustainability Standards Help Protect the World’s Biodiversity?
Blog - May 22, 2018
Voluntary sustainability standards provide an opportunity to reduce agriculture's impact on biodiversity and promote best practices. On World Biodiversity Day, we interview IISD expert Vivek Voora, on on how standards can impact biodiversity. - Voluntary Sustainability Standards and Biodiversity: Understanding the potential of agricultural standards for biodiversity protection
Policy Brief - November 30, 2016
Voluntary sustainability standards offer an opportunity to reduce the biodiversity impacts of agriculture and to promote best practices, which can also improve yields and help to feed a growing population. - The State of Sustainable Markets: Statistics and emerging trends 2015
Report - January 11, 2016
IISD contributes to a joint report with ITC and FiBL on the State of Sustainable Markets. This joint report builds off of the IISD’s State of Sustainability Initiatives Review 2014 by reporting on the market performance of 14 voluntary sustainability standards across nine agricultural commodity sectors. - Rural Women, Partner in the Development Process
Commentary - August 16, 2014
Rural women are invaluable to sustainable development and human well-being, yet they often remain in the shadows as they face incredible challenges... - Small-Scale Social-Environmental Enterprises in the Green Economy: Supporting grassroots innovation
Paper - June 28, 2014
To achieve a top-to-bottom growth of the “green economy,” incentives and enablers need to be identified for those micro enterprises working at the... - Meeting China's Global Resource Needs and Managing Sustainability Impacts to Ensure Security of Supply: Copper Pilot Study
Paper - April 17, 2014
China’s large and growing inbound supply chains are among the most direct ways in which China’s rise impacts economies worldwide. - Meeting China's Global Resource Needs Managing Sustainability Impacts to Ensure Security of Supply: The IISD Supply Risk Tool Methodology
Paper - April 17, 2014
China’s large and growing inbound supply chains are among the most direct ways in which China’s rise impacts economies worldwide. - Meeting China's Global Resource Needs Managing Sustainability Impacts to Ensure Security of Supply: Palm Oil Pilot Study
Paper - April 17, 2014
China’s large and growing inbound supply chains are among the most direct ways in which China’s rise impacts economies worldwide.For exporting... - The State of Sustainability Initiatives Review 2014: Standards and the Green Economy
Book - March 8, 2014
The State of Sustainability Initiatives (SSI) Review 2014 provides a bird's-eye view of market and performance trends across 16 of the most... - Implementing an Agricultural Water Security Market for Southwestern Manitoba
Paper - June 10, 2013
Water security is increasingly becoming a concern in many parts of the world. Although southwestern Manitoba is endowed with relatively sufficient... - A Three-Year Investigation Into the Triple Bottom Line Performance of Small and Micro Social and Environmental Enterprises in Developing Countries
Paper - May 9, 2013
The SEED Initiative seeks to increase knowledge and understanding about small-scale social and environmental enterprises.In 2009, SEED and its... - An Investigation Into the Triple Bottom Line Performance of Micro and Small Social and Environmental Enterprises in Developing Countries: Year 2
Paper - May 9, 2013
In 2009, SEED and IISD started a three-year study of the performance of social and environmental micro enterprises, with two key questions in mind:... - Social and Environmental Enterprises in the Green Economy: Supporting sustainable development and poverty eradication on the ground—Analysis of a 3-year study for policy-makers
Paper - May 9, 2013
SEED has worked closely with the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) since 2007 on a program of research to increase... - Connecting the Bay - Hudson Bay Inland Sea Initiative
Video - April 4, 2013
The Hudson Bay Inland Sea, the largest seasonally ice-covered inland sea in the world, consists of Hudson Strait, Foxe Basin, Hudson Bay, James Bay... - Food Price Inflation and Food Security: A Morocco case study
Paper - January 29, 2013
This report comes in the context of rising food prices and UN predictions of a looming global food crisis in 2013.Written at the request of Pulse... - First Nations Carbon Collaborative-Indigenous Peoples and Carbon Markets: An annotated bibliography
Paper - April 18, 2011
The emergence of carbon markets has created a unique opportunity for indigenous communities to develop an economic sector that can be aligned with... - Establishing a Foundation for Ecological Infrastructure Investments in the Red River Basin
Paper - March 23, 2011
Finding a better balance between human-altered and natural environments while maintaining or enhancing the overall long-term socioeconomic... - Understanding Phosphorus and its Impact
Video - February 15, 2011
IISD Project Manager Vivek Voora explains the nature of phosphorus. It is essential to human life, he says, but when mismanaged, it can cause... - Water Quality Trading in the Lake Winnipeg Basin: A multi-level trading system architecture.
Paper - July 13, 2010
Lake Winnipeg is an iconic feature on the Canadian Prairie landscape and its multi-jurisdictional basin covers the majority of Western Canada's... - Using Emergy to Value Ecosystem Goods and Services
Paper - June 8, 2010
The emergy (not to be confused with energy) approach is an attempt to comprehensively measure and value the energy that directly and indirectly... - Peak Phosphorus: Opportunity in the Making
Paper - March 4, 2010
The long-term security of our global food and water supplies may be impacted by the mismanagement of our phosphorus nutrient resources. Essential... - Pimachiowin Aki World Heritage Project Area Ecosystem Services Valuation Assessment (Summary Report)
Brochure - December 3, 2008
This short document is a summary of a November 2008 report. ... - Pimachiowin Aki World Heritage Project Area Ecosystem Services Valuation Assessment
Paper - December 3, 2008
Pimachiowin Aki Corp. is a non-profit organization working to establish a World Heritage Site within an area of about 40,000 square kilometers of... - The Natural Capital Approach: A Concept Paper
Paper - June 3, 2008
Natural Capital is gaining considerable interest as a means for devising policies that reconcile economic and environmental imperatives.... - An Ecosystem Services Assessment in the Lake Winnipeg Watershed: Phase 1 Report - Southern Manitoba Analysis
Paper - May 8, 2008
Addressing the eutrophication of Lake Winnipeg is a unique challenge that could be realized by preserving and restoring environmental assets at the...