Introduction to HILCSA – the Holistic and Integrated Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment method

Discover HILCSA – the Holistic and Integrated Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment method – the first ISO 14040/14044‑compliant LCSA framework that integrates environmental, economic, and social dimensions in a single, consistent model. Developed by Walther Zeug and the ISAS working group at the Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ), HILCSA LCIA method is now available on Nexus(openLCA).

In this FSLCI webinar, you will learn how HILCSA supports indicator‑based, evidence‑driven decisions for products, processes, organizations, and regions across entire life cycles – covering material and energy flows, labor and social conditions, trade‑offs, synergies, and hotspots. With around 80 indicators mapped to 14 of the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals and aggregated into transparent indices and metrics, the method enables robust comparison of technologies and production systems, detection of burden shifting, and assessment of systemic risks and opportunities.

Built on the ecoinvent and soca database, HILCSA is designed for transdisciplinary analyses of production and consumption systems in research, policy, and practice. The webinar will also discuss how HILCSA can inform technology development, governance of transformation processes, and potentially contribute to future implementations such as the European Commission’s Digital Product Passport under the ESPR.