Global outdoor lifestyle brand Timberland announced a new commitment to plant 50 million trees around the world by 2025 as part of its pursuit of a greener future. This bold goal builds on Timberland’s longstanding commitment to make products responsibly.
Timberland plans to use its global tree-planting project as a chance to talk about its long-term sustainability strategy, which it hopes will help strengthen brand perceptions among consumers.
According to new research led by Swiss University ETH Zürich, the restoration of trees remains among the most effective strategies for climate change mitigation, and a worldwide planting program could remove two-thirds of all the emissions that have been pumped into the atmosphere by human activities. Trees help to clean air by removing carbon and releasing oxygen into the air; cool the air through evaporation; prevent erosion and save water, and more. Over the next five years, Timberland will support multiple re-forestation initiatives around the world in support of a greener future.
According to Timberland’s senior marketing director for EMEA, Giorgio D’Aprile, this project is about more than just planting trees.
D’Aprile says Timberland is using the launch of its tree planting project and accompanying campaign, ‘Nature Needs Heroes’, as an opportunity to talk about its long-term sustainability strategy which he hopes will help strengthen brand perceptions among consumers.
It will mark the brand’s largest ever global campaign in terms of scope and scale.
Projects in the first year will focus on Haiti, China, the Dominican Republic, the United States, Tanzania and Mali – including support of the Great Green Wall, an African-led movement to grow an 8,000km line of trees across the width of Africa to help fight climate change, drought, famine, conflict, and migration.
“At Timberland, we’re conscious of the impact our modern way of life has on the planet. And we believe as a global lifestyle brand, and as individuals, we have a responsibility to make it better,” said Timberland global brand president Jim Pisani. “Trees and green spaces help improve the quality of our planet as well as individual wellbeing. Our commitment to plant trees is a real, measurable way to act upon our belief that a greener future is a better future. We encourage people everywhere to join the movement by taking their own actions – small or large – to be heroes for nature.”
To kick off its pledge, Timberland has launched its largest-ever global campaign, “Nature Needs Heroes,” calling on consumers around the world to join the movement by taking simple, small actions for a healthier planet. The campaign celebrates 12 eco-heroes who are making lasting, positive change for the environment and their communities. Each hero dons new styles from the fall 2019 collection, with city greenscapes as the backdrop.
The campaign will come to life through media activations across print, digital, out of home, social media and PR. The brand will also engage the global community to be heroes for nature through a series of tree planting and greening events.
To help realise its 50 million tree commitment, Timberland will partner with a range of organisations that support the environment through large-scale regreening and tree planting efforts. These organisations include the Smallholder Farmers Alliance, GreenNetwork, Tree Aid, the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, Connect4Climate – World Bank Group, Justdiggit, Las Lagunas Ecological Park, Trees for the Future, American Forests and Treedom.
