Posts Tagged ‘Earthkeepers’

Helping Haiti

By admin / January 13th, 2010 / Categories: Corporate Social Responsibility
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The shock of yesterday’s 7.0 earthquake in Haiti is being felt around the world.

We wait now for news of both damage and survivors … we pray for those whose lives and families have been devastated … and we unite, in concern and compassion and with a desire to do whatever we can to contribute to the relief and recovery Haiti and its community desperately and urgently need.
Waiting is unavoidable.  Praying is, for many, instinctive.  But uniting in common concern and acting, in hopes of turning devastation into renewal, is where our greatest power now lies.

A few months back, Timberland announced its partnership with Yéle Haiti – a grassroots movement that builds global awareness for Haiti while transforming the country through educational, cultural and environmental programs.  At the time, the vision for our partnership with Yele Haiti was one of reforestation – building a tree nursery in Gonaives , a city in northern Haiti devastated by a series of hurricanes and storms; enlisting local farmers to maintain it; and using the trees grown there to reforest the hillsides surrounding the city.

Yesterday afternoon, our partnership with Yele Haiti took a dramatic and unexpected turn.  Many communities in the island nation have been reduced to rubble … and instead of focusing on ways to positively transform those communities, Yele Haiti today is mobilizing medical and emergency supplies to provide them critical relief.

As part of our partnership with Yele Haiti, Timberland makes a donation to the organization for every pair of Earthkeepers™ Yele Haiti boots and every Yele Haiti t-shirt that we sell.  While the original intent for that donation was to support Haiti’s reforestation, we’re now rededicating our efforts – and our donation – to the country’s earthquake relief.

It is good intent and good effort … but undoubtedly not enough.  Should you wish to contribute personally to the massive relief effort underway, this link will allow you to donate directly to the Yéle Haiti organization.  You can also donate $5 to the Yele Haiti Earthquake Fund by texting the word “yele” to 501501.

While the enormity of this earthquake has left destruction beyond comprehension, the will, spirit and soul of people around the globe who are willing to help a nation in need will equally astound.  Together, we can and will help Haiti and its people heal, strengthen and recover.

Jeff Swartz
President & CEO, Timberland

Earthkeeping in India

By admin / January 11th, 2010 / Categories: Corporate Social Responsibility, earthkeeping
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Rita Kodkani is a member of the Timberland team in India, as well as one of our company’s Global Stewards — a group of passionate individuals who volunteer, above and beyond their regular work duties, to engage and empower fellow employees to take part in community service initiatives worldwide.

A few months back, Rita took a much-deserved vacation … and spent it in her home region of Bundelkhand in central India, leading a tree-planting project.  Over the course of several days, Rita worked with a local NGO and community volunteers to plant more than 100 trees in village and farm areas alike — and also spent time educating community members on energy conservation, forestation and climate change.

Talk about making the most of your vacation.

Our sincere thanks to Rita for sharing her story and the following photos from her tree-planting experience … and for providing leadership and inspiration to other Earthkeepers across the globe.


A Final Word (or two) on Copenhagen

By admin / January 5th, 2010 / Categories: Corporate Social Responsibility, earthkeeping
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Our Copenhagen correspondent team caught up with Timberland CEO Jeff Swartz when he joined other business leaders at the climate conference last month. As the video suggests, plenty of businesses and their leaders are forging ahead with creating climate solutions — even absent binding legislation.

Coming Out of Copenhagen

By admin / December 21st, 2009 / Categories: Corporate Social Responsibility, earthkeeping, green consumerism
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The big question now, as the dust settles and media and world leaders alike bring their presence and focus back from Copenhagen to the world at large: what next?  Absent universal agreement and legally-binding legislation to show us the path forward on climate change solutions, where are we and where do we go from here?

The answers are as varied as the participants at Copenhagen themselves: some remain optimistic, others are discouraged and despondent.  It’s true that COP15 didn’t produce the real and concrete outcomes many were hoping for … but like many, we’re choosing to regard it not as the end of an effort, but the beginning of an important path forward.  Through the lens provided by our COP correspondent team of Olivia Zaleski and Gabriel London, we observed plenty of disparities of words and actions among leaders and nations … but we also witnessed the power of the individual demanding (sometimes violently) to have a voice.  By all accounts, the number of engaged citizens that gathered in Copenhagen over the last two weeks — some in the spirit of goodwill, others in animosity – was staggering.  Regardless of their view or voice, they were all there in the name of an issue they care deeply about …and that’s the kind of personal passion that gives us hope as we look to the future and contemplate what’s next.

Regardless of the climate conference outcome, there are things we can and should be doing as part of our commitment to Earthkeeping – from making environmentally-conscious decisions about the products we buy and the energy we use, to participating in local community greening initiatives, to urging our legislators to support climate change solutions.  For our part, Timberland will continue to push to reduce our impact on the environment — and continue to encourage others to do the same.  We didn’t entirely expect a global agreement coming out of Copenhagen, and we don’t need one to keep on as we have been, modifying our operations and our products to lessen our carbon footprint and create positive environmental action.  The lack of agreement in our post-Copenhagen reality doesn’t derail our efforts or stall our progress or diminish our passion for creating global standards for greenhouse gas emissions … nor does it prevent us from being optimistic that COP15 wasn’t the end of the road, but rather the starting line for an important journey still ahead of us.

Share your thoughts with us about all things Copenhagen here … how was our coverage, what are your thoughts about the outcome, how hopeful are you about the future?  And then please stay tuned — we look forward to sharing news of our progress and projects for 2010 with you soon.

See You In Copenhagen . . . Wait, We’re Here!

By admin / December 6th, 2009 / Categories: Uncategorized
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Seventy days ago, at the Climate Week Opening Ceremony in New York City, brilliant filmmaker, Gabriel London , released the short-film series, “See You in Copenhagen.” The films played to a crowd of climate legislation influencers United Nations policy leaders–including Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Danish Minister of Climate and Energy Connie Hedegaard.

Through impassioned imagery, the films tell the stories of the real people–the innovators, entrepreneurs and UN Ambassadors–behind the Climate Change "policy puzzle." Simultaneously, the series highlights the urgent need for upcoming action on climate legislation.

Inspired, I joined Gabriel London’s efforts to call for action. First, I lent my voice to his series–literally by introducing and tracking three abridged episodes.
Watch the first episode here–explaining why small island nations, like Grenada, have so much at stake.

Though great, the series is "See You in Copenhagen." Now Gabriel and I are actually IN COPENHAGEN! The need for action is no longer "upcoming," but here and now. With said urgency, Gabriel and I have teamed up with Earthkeepers to bring you daily–from the ground reports–on anything and everything related to COP15. The events here–as they unfold before us–IN Copenhagen.

We’ll be here for the next two weeks of negotiations so be sure to leave your thoughts and suggested questions (for interview subjects such as green entrepreneur Shai Agassi and Nobel Peace Prize-winning scientist Stephen Schneider ) IN THE COMMENTS SECTION BELOW.

Til tomorrow, signing out from Copenhagen.
Can’t wait to see what happens!

Olivia

Earthkeeping in Egypt

By admin / September 29th, 2009 / Categories: Corporate Social Responsibility, earthkeeping
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Ramadan is the Islamic month of fasting, in which Muslims refrain from eating, drinking and smoking from sun-up until sundown … a time to ask for guidance and forgiveness, and to practice self-restraint and good deeds.

Timberland’s team in Egypt took the “good deeds” piece to heart this year, hosting their annual Serv-a-palooza community service day in the middle of Ramadan for the benefit of a local school in need.  35 volunteers spent the day installing a water tank and pump (the school previously had no water access), cleaning, painting and landscaping the school grounds, and distributing packets of school supplies and flu prevention information to more than 600 students.

If our volunteers were experiencing any lack of energy due to the fast, it wasn’t evident in the effort and enthusiasm they brought to their service day:

Timberland Egypt reminds us that critical needs exist every day of the year, all around the globe; our thanks to them for inspiring the rest of us to take on more good deeds.

Who Wants to Be a Green Guru?

By admin / September 28th, 2009 / Categories: earthkeeping
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Now through October 16th, we’re holding a gaming tournament on our Earthkeepers Hero: Mission Possible Facebook trivia game to determine who is the Ultimate Green Trivia Guru.

The person that earns the most points and is able to unseat our reigning Earthkeeper Hero Champion, Greena Garbo, will be awarded:

  • A CASH PRIZE! of $1000 for themselves 
  • $500 for the environmental non-profit of their choice
  • Bragging rights as the Ultimate Green Trivia Guru (Priceless or tasteless?  You decide.)

Enter and start playing today to be the top player in our Hall of Fame, win a fabulous prize, and earn the opportunity to help a great cause.

More details about the contest, including important instructions on how to download and start playing the game, can be found at http://bit.ly/EKGAME_CONTEST.

May the best Earthkeeper win!

Earthkeeping in Japan

By admin / August 10th, 2009 / Categories: Corporate Social Responsibility, earthkeeping
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Our Earthkeeping colleagues in Japan shared the following video montage of their good work this past Earth Day. From weeding and planting in one of Tokyo’s largest city parks (Yoyogi Koen) to a beach clean-up in Fukuoka, 173 volunteers (including Timberland employees, friends and family, community and business partners) spent a total of 873 hours making many of Japan’s streets, parks and public areas greener and cleaner.

Thank you, Team Timberland Japan!

Save the Date: Timberland Talks Citizen Engagement

By admin / July 27th, 2009 / Categories: Changents, Corporate Social Responsibility, earthkeeping
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Since 2008, Timberland has hosted quarterly calls with a diverse set of stakeholders to support our long-term corporate CSR strategy. This level of transparency and accountability helps Timberland elevate a dialogue on material issues for our industry while providing us critical feedback as we chart our path to become a more sustainable organization.

DATE: Tuesday, August 4, 2009
TIME: 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM EST

SUBJECT: How we’re building an Earthkeeper movement to empower our own employees and citizens worldwide to incorporate sustainability into their everyday lives.

SPEAKERS: Jeff Swartz of Timberland & Deron Triff of Changents

Please register for the event by following these simple steps:

1. Click this link (or copy & paste into your web browser: http://bit.ly/gyDM1)

2. Click “Physically Attending” to register for the event.

3. Click “Submit.”

You’ll receive an email from Justmeans within 24 hours that confirms successful registration. You may also register for the event by emailing csrinfo@timberland.com.

Be sure to sign up by July 30 to receive additional information about the call and call-in details.

The results of this and other calls are posted on our reporting web page on Justmeans.com. This online stakeholder platform enables a continuation of the discussion through stakeholder comments and discussion. You can learn more about past Timberland stakeholder calls by visiting the CSR section of our website.

Timberland’s Quarterly Corporate Responsibility Results Released

By admin / June 17th, 2009 / Categories: Corporate Social Responsibility, earthkeeping
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Timberland’s Q1 2009 corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance report is now available online at JustMeans.com.  Results are organized according to our 4 CSR pillars (energy, product, workplace and service) and choice highlights include:

  • We achieved continued greenhouse gas emissions reductions due to less air travel and a conversion of our Danville distribution center to renewable electricity.
  • We continue to report supply chain emissions in our effort to address the largest part of our carbon footprint. We’re refining our data collection from factories and will report emissions related to Timberland-only products later in 2009. Establishing a baseline for Timberland-related emissions will allow us to work more effectively with our partner factories on carbon management.
  • The growth in our Earthkeepers product line has resulted in our apparel team and licensees greatly exceeding our organic cotton procurement target. This reduces our dependence on conventional cotton, which is grown with harmful pesticides and herbicides.
  • We are now reporting our consumption of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which is a more holistic measure of hazardous chemical consumption than our previous water-based adhesive metric. Tracking this metric will allow us to better manage the chemicals in our footwear supply chain.

To see our detailed disclosure, click on the reports at www.timberland.justmeans.com.  Here, you’ll find quarterly comparisons to annual data and forward-looking targets, description of our metrics and data collection processes, and analysis of this quarter’s results.  For more information, contact csrinfo@timberland.com.

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