Avon Hello Green Tomorrow is
mobilizing a global environmental
movement to nurture nature and help end deforestation
In 1886 the founder of Avon committed the company “to meet fully the obligations of corporate citizenship by contributing to the well-being of society and the environment in which it functions.”
Today, Avon is continuing this promise by helping end deforestation – a global crisis that endangers the wellbeing of the planet and the survival of all living creatures. The company is applying its resources to empower a global environmental movement, using its unique ability to educate, engage, and mobilize people worldwide to do good and give back in this important cause.
And while the global mobilization rolls on, behind the scenes, Avon is focused on environmental stewardship throughout the business enterprise.
We know that working together, we can help plant a future.
Learn more in the Hello Green Tomorrow Impact Video
Launched in 2010 in more than 50 countries across 6 continents, the Hello Green Tomorrow Project generated more than $3.5 million in its first two years. These funds are directly helping save two of the most critically endangered ecosystems on earth: the Atlantic Rainforest and the endangered forests of Borneo and Sumatra in Indonesia.
A collection of unique fundraising products has been created by Avon worldwide, with all proceeds donated to the Hello Green Tomorrow Fund.
Avon is also mobilizing its unique woman-to-woman network of 6.4 million Sales Representatives to help drive “green” education and behavior change, focused on the “Five R’s”:
reduce, reuse, recycle, rethink and replant.
Avon has robust environmental management, metrics and goals throughout the business enterprise to ensure it operates as a steward of the planet. The company is working towards global goals for 2012 and longer term goals for 2020 in areas that are most material to the global operations. Details can be found in the Sustainability section of the online Corporate Responsibility Report.
In identifying areas on which to focus, Avon assesses these conditions:
Some highlights of the 2011 achievements are as follows (all measured against a 2005 baseline). More details can be found by clicking here.
Avon is a significant consumer of paper products, and is positioned to influence both supply and demand in the market, and thus contribute to the development of environmental solutions that conserve, protect and restore forests. In early 2010, Avon launched the Avon Paper Promise, a policy that fully supports responsible forest management practices that both protect biodiversity and ecosystem integrity and result in long-term social and economic benefits to communities.
The goals of the Avon Paper Promise are to:
Avon is also a member of the World Wildlife Fund Global Forest & Trade Network to further advance the global efforts to drive sustainable forestry and sourcing.
Palm oil is a common ingredient in innumerable consumer products, and palm oil plantations have had a great impact on the destruction of tropical forests and peatlands, especially in Southeast Asia (including Indonesia). While 80% of palm oil is used for food, and Avon is not a significant user of palm oil, the company is committed to doing its part and developed in 2011 the Avon Palm Oil Promise to help drive awareness and lend the company’s voice to this important cause.
Through the Palm Oil Promise, Avon has become the first major beauty company to commit to back 100% of its global palm oil use with certificates designed to advance the production of sustainable palm oil. The company is paying a premium to producers by purchasing GreenPalm certificates covering all of its global palm oil use, which will help drive demand for sustainable palm oil and increase the supply. GreenPalm is a certificate trading program endorsed by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), which seeks to increase sustainable palm oil production.
Avon is a member of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil to help continue the development, implementation and verification of credible global standards for sustainable palm oil. Avon also supports the current moratorium on the conversion of primary forests and peatlands into palm oil plantations.
While Avon does not have traditional “bricks and mortar” stores, the company has over 1 million square feet of real estate worldwide and is working to ensure these spaces are developed and operated sustainably. Through the commitment of the the Green Building Promise, all new construction and major renovations are built to certified green standards, with certified “Gold” level or higher facilities in the US, UK, Colombia, China and Brazil. Click for details and photos.
Hello Green Tomorrow continues to raise funds and drive awareness in the more than 50 countries listed below, with fundraising products launching between April and the fall. Contact an Avon Sales Representative or the local Avon website to learn more. Click here for a list of local country websites.
The Nature Conservancy (TNC) was founded in 1951 and is a leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. The organization is headquartered in the US and works in more than 30 countries. TNC has protected more than 119 million acres of land and 5,000 miles of rivers worldwide, and they operate over 100 marine conservation projects globally.
TNC was the original partner for the launch of Hello Green Tomorrow and in 2010-2011 the organization received over $2.7 million from the Avon Hello Green Tomorrow Project. These funds support their continuing work to restore the endangered Atlantic Rainforest in South America. With the Hello Green Tomorrow Funds, TNC’s work has included:
Visit www.nature.org to learn more.
Map showing remnants of the Atlantic Forest in Brazil, 2000, courtesy of The Nature Conservancy.
World Wildlife Fund (WWF) is one of the world’s leading conservation organizations, working in 100 countries for the past 50 years. With the support of almost 5 million members worldwide, WWF is dedicated to delivering science-based solutions to preserve the diversity and abundance of life on Earth, halt the degradation of the environment and combat climate change.
WWF became a recipient of funds raised by Hello Green Tomorrow in 2011, and in that year received more than $775,000. These funds support WWF programs in the devastation areas of Borneo and Sumatra, in the island nation of Indonesia. These funds will help conserve some of the most diverse forests in the world.
Visit www.worldwildlife.org to learn more.
Map showing span of Indonesian tropical forests courtesy of World Wildlife Fund
