A plan to save the world’s Ancient and Endangered Forests was given a massive capacity boost, designed to unlock widespread transformation of the paper, packaging, and fashion viscose supply chains. Canopy, a solutions-driven non-profit that has partnered with over 900 global brands, from H&M Group and Zara, to Penguin Random House, Stella McCartney, and LVMH, will receive $60 million in funding from The Audacious Project to catalyze the commercial production of low-carbon and circular solutions across the globe. Such a move will have planetary impacts for the climate and biodiversity.
“The audacious work being done by Canopy is not only transforming carbon-intensive supply chains at a critical juncture for our planet, but with a network of engaged and willing partners, some truly exciting and innovative solutions can now be delivered at scale,” said Anna Verghese, Executive Director at The Audacious Project. “We are excited about the change they will catalyze over the coming years with this surge in support.
Housed at TED, The Audacious Project is a collaborative funding initiative that drives social impact on a grand scale. Every year, they select a group of bold solutions to the world’s most urgent challenges. This year, Canopy was one of the selectees for its critical work in advancing vital forest-free supply chains.
Canopy will utilize the funds to accelerate the commercial-scale production of low-impact and circular clothing, paper, and packaging solutions that don’t rely on pulp from Ancient and Endangered Forests. These Next Gen Solutions are derived from what is usually landfilled (waste textile, waste food scraps), or burned (agricultural residues), to create new fabrics, paper, pulp, and packaging. Next Gen alternatives have on average 95% to 130% less GHG emissions, 88% to 100% less land use impacts, and 5x lower impact on biodiversity.
By 2033, Canopy’s work will:
- Unlock over 60,000,000 tonnes of low-carbon NextGen fibre production;
- Avoid 1.3 billion tonnes of emissions (almost twice the annual emissions of Germany);
- Divert nearly 800 million tonnes of agricultural residue and waste textiles from being burned or landfilled (equivalent to the weight of 76,000 Eiffel towers); and
- Completely eliminate the use of Ancient and Endangered Forests in the paper, packaging, and fashion viscose supply chains.
“We are very proud to be included in this year’s group of Audacious grantees and believe that Canopy’s creative, collaborative, and transformative work will be key in driving supply chain change at scale and, in turn, provide a reprieve to critical forests that are under current and future threats, within the next decade and beyond,” said Canopy’s Executive Founder and Executive Director, Nicole Rycroft.
“We are very glad to see Canopy’s leadership and commitment to find scalable solutions for the industry being recognised. Moving towards more sustainable alternatives for our materials and packaging plays a crucial role in our journey towards circularity. Innovative low-carbon solutions, such as regenerated cellulosic fibers from waste textiles or agricultural residues, are showing the potential to reduce our impact on climate and protect forests, so no Ancient and Endangered Forests are put at risk to make fashion. Together with Canopy and other industry leaders, we want to use our size and scale to continue driving demand for low-carbon material solutions while building scalability faster,” said Leyla Ertur, Head of Sustainability H&M Group.
Conserving and restoring forests has been identified as a major part of the solution to the growing climate crisis. Forests are a massive carbon sink, absorbing a net 7.6 billion metric tonnes of CO2 yearly – 1.5 times more carbon than the United States emits annually. Despite this, over five billion trees are cut down yearly for paper, packaging, and fashion fabrics alone, many from the world’s oldest, most carbon- and biodiversity-rich forests.
Additional information about Canopy’s plan is available here.
