What you can do

• …as an individual

  buy FSC certified products choose sustainable palm oil travel light

  …as an individual

  buy FSC^® certified products
  Always look for the FSC label when shopping for wood or paper-based products, especially when buying wooden products, including furniture. Every FSC-certified product you buy – from lumber to furniture, and from paper to tissue – helps promote responsible forest management.

  The FSC logo guarantees that the product comes from well-managed natural forests and tree plantations. The logo also guarantees that the biodiversity of the forests and plantations is protected and that communities get a fair deal.

  

  …as an individual

  choose sustainable palm oil
  The oil palm is an amazingly efficient producer of high-quality vegetable oil and palm oil is therefore very widely used. It estimated that palm oil is an ingredient in 50% of supermarket products, from food to cleaners to cosmetics. Indonesia is by far the largest producer worldwide of palm oil and the rapid expansion of the crop has often led to deforestation on Borneo and elsewhere. That may make it seem that al palm oil is bad news. It does not have to be that way though. Many companies have committed to only use palm oil that is deforestation-free and show this by using the logo for sustainable palm oil from the RSPO – Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil. Not all companies use the label, there is only so much space on a package to provide information, and you may have to do some further research to find out. WWF – Worldwide Fund for Nature has developed the Palm Oil Buyers Scorecard that helps you to find out how well a company is doing.

  

  …as an individual

  travel light
  A recent study found that the global tourism industry is responsible for eight per cent of global carbon emissions — more than the construction industry! These carbon emissions cause the climate change that in turn causes forests to suffer from extreme weather. Usually, the steep increase in cheap holiday flights is cited as the main cause for increasing carbon emissions from tourism. Indeed, airline flying is going up five per cent a year, but efficiency improvements have only increased by one to two per cent. Flying less is certainly helping to reduce climate change.

  There are more ways to reduce your footprint when traveling. Tourists also contribute to climate change by consuming goods and services, such as food, accommodation and souvenirs. Be aware of what you do and make sure that you keep a light carbon footprint when you travel.

  

• …as a company

  buy FSC certified products reduce your carbon footprint offset your carbon footprint

  …as a company

  buy FSC^® certified products
  Always look for the FSC label when procuring wood or paper-based products, especially when buying wooden products, including furniture.

  The FSC Certificate Database can be used to verify FSC claims, search for FSC certified companies and find FSC certified products. It can also be used to search suppliers based in a specific region by very specific product categories. The FSC website also provides further information on the principles for sustainable forest management.

  

  …as a company

  reduce your carbon footprint
  Companies and other organizations have many possibilities when they want to reduce their carbon footprint. These range from optimizing heating and cooling systems, through minimizing single use plastic to switching to renewable energy. These measures and others allow a company to obtain B Corp status, which is akin to a Fair-Trade certification for businesses.

  

  …as a company

  offset your carbon footprint
  Not all companies have the possibility to reduce their carbon footprint to zero. Such companies may choose to offset their remaining carbon footprint. This can be done by buying certified carbon rights and The Borneo Initiative can help companies in finding the way to do this. Also, companies may wish to offset their carbon footprint by investing directly in projects and programs that are involved in the conservation of natural forests, forest restoration, biodiversity management, sustainable local economic development. Here again, The Borneo Initiative can help companies to make the choices that are best suited.