The webinar “La sostenibilità e la tracciabilità nel mondo della pelle” was successfully held on 25 March 2021. The online event was the second in a cycle of two episodes organized by UNIDO ITPO Italy in collaboration with UNIC – Concerie Italiane, Lineapelle and The Thinking Watermill Society, with the goal of promoting a dialogue focused on the leather material and the sustainability of its industry thanks to the active participation of several public and private experts operating in the sector.

Moderated by Mr. Mario di Giulio, representative of The Thinking Watermill Society and partner of Pavia e Ansaldo, the webinar opened with the welcome remarks of the Head of ITPO Italy Ms. Diana Battaggia, who provided an interesting insight in terms of the sustainability of the leather industry and its future towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda promoted by the United Nations.

The panel was joined by Ms. Fabiana Orlandi, Sustainability Manager at UNIC - Concerie Italiane, who introduced the activities and the mission of the Italian Tanners' Association in terms of responsible production and consumption, customer health and safety, employment and women empowerment, social development and growth, energy efficiency, recycling and sustainable management of raw materials; Ms. Alessandra Siena, Leather Expert at Lineapelle, who overviewed the features, techniques, terminology and materials which make the leather material unique; and finally Ms.Chiara Cazzani, Manager of Economic and Product Certification at ICEC - Institute of Quality Certification for the Leather Sector, who further discussed the themes of traceability and transparency of the leather industry with an introduction to the different procedures for verification and certification of raw materials and byproducts also in terms of environmental impact.

This initiative, also thanks to its first episode titled "La pelle, un materiale unico: caratteristiche, terminologia e trasparenza per il consumatore", represented a virtual journey through the world of the leather industry, which successfully provided a platform for the exchange of experience, lessons learned and best practices for sustainable development in the field.