Did you know that cotton uses more insecticides than any other commodity? Or that there are over 100 million individual cotton farmers in 75 countries? In light of recent efforts in this important crop, what lessons can cotton share with other crops?

I recently had the honor of sharing my reflections on the six sustainability lessons that producers of commodities would want to know at the annual intergovernmental forum of the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC). One is that we must continue to evolve beyond a compliance mentality of ticking boxes to measuring actual performance to drive continuous improvement because sustainability is simply not a static goal.

In addition to focusing on learning across crops, the FAO and many other conference participants discussed how best to advance common cotton sustainability indicators – something which sits at the heart of COSA’s mission.

Indeed, the know-how of COSA partners across crops is becoming particularly relevant for new Sustainable Development Goals which come into effect on January 1st. We look forward to working even more with countries and companies as the SDG measurement components are developed early in 2016.

Finally, as we close out a year busy with activity – 19 projects, six new partners, and the expansion of our work into cotton and sugar – we pause to thank all of you who make our work possible.