Organisations can help nature by improving their practices and purchases. Concrete steps to take include reducing waste and plastic packaging, purchasing organic and deforestation-free products and requesting transparency and action from suppliers.
Why is it important?
Nature can protect us from the adverse consequences of climate change. Land and oceans absorb more than half of all greenhouse gas emissions. (1) (2) Yet human activities are destroying nature on an unprecedented scale. Deforestation is mainly driven by demand for goods – including coffee, chocolate, cattle, soy, palm oil and timber. (3) Millions of animals are killed every year by plastic. Pesticides kill pollinators and contribute to soil degradation, which threatens global food security. Organisations can help limit their impacts through key concrete nature-friendly actions.
Key solutions
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#1 Pollution from waste
Reduce and manage solid and liquid waste – including food and packaging waste – to help reduce water and land pollution, thus preserve ecosystems.
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#2 Deforestation & overfishing-related goods
Identify and avoid problematic products such as fish, meat, palm or soy oil, and put in place environmental specifications for goods and services that have meaningful criteria and use trustworthy labels and certifications, including zero-deforestation products.
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#3 Pesticides & organic food
Buy pesticide and chemical-free products, especially organic food.
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#4 Plastic packaging & single-use items
Ban single-use items and avoid plastic packaging as much as possible by reducing packaging and switching to alternative materials.
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#5 Supplier engagement
Request transparency on sourcing and include environmental specifications in contracts.
Tools and best practices
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City of Ryde's Business Toolkit
On cutting single-use plastic
Read here -
Palm Oil Awareness Toolkit
Read here -
Palm Oil-Free List
A list of some UK products which are palm oil free or only use sustainable palm oil
Read here -
Certification labels and forest destruction
Insight from Greenpeace International on how some labels may still be linked to deforestation and human rights abuses
Read here -
The FSC Logo (Forest Stewardship Council®)
Want to help save the world's forests? Look for the FSC logo when you shop – An article by the WWF
Read here -
Soil Association Certification
The UK leading organic certifier offering a huge range of organic and sustainable certification schemes
Read here -
Fairtrade International
Fairtrade is the most recognized and trusted sustainability label in the world
Read here -
Sustainable procurement criteria
By the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
Read here -
Catalogue of green items
Read here -
1.5°C Supplier Engagement Guide
The interactive website provides practical guidance for 1.5°C aligned targets and action throughout global supply chains. It includes a section on procurement with key steps to implement and examples of actions
Read here -
The Procura+ Manual
A guidance on how to implement sustainable procurement, targeting public authorities, and providing a general framework that are relevant for any type of organisation
Read here -
UNDP Practitioner’s Guide to Sustainable Procurement, 2015
This document offers guidance on how to incorporate sustainable criteria into the diverse procurement process stages
Read here
To go further
(1) European Commission, 2019, Nature’s role in climate change. Read here.
(2) UNEP, 2021, Five ecosystems where nature-based solutions can deliver huge benefits. Read here.
(3) CarbonBrief, 2021, Scientists calculate trade-related ‘deforestation footprint’ of rich countries. Read here.
(4) European Commission, 2019, Nature’s role in climate change. Read here.
(5) FAO, FAO Remote Sensing Survey reveals tropical rainforests under pressure as agricultural expansion drives global deforestation. Read here.
(6) WWF, Food. Read here.
(7) Greenpeace USA, Save the bees. Read here.
(8) National Geographic, 2019, The world’s plastic pollution crisis explained. Read here.
(9) HP Sustainable Impact Report, 2021. Read here.
(10) WWF, 2019, Collaborating to conserve forests: HP and WWF project goes beyond responsible sourcing toward a healthier planet. Read here.
(11) HP Sustainability and Compliance Centre, 2021, HP a-t-il élaboré des directives en matière d’emballages écologiques pour ses produits ? Read here.
(12) Patagonia, Regenerative Organic Certified™ Cotton, Read here.
(13) Patagonia, Take Back Program, Read here.
(14) The Guardian, 2018, Iceland to be first UK supermarket to cut palm oil from own-brand products. Read here.
(15) Iceland, 2018, Palm Oil Pledge. Read here.
Cover photo © Thomas Kelley/Unsplash.