Why Kabode Are Giving 1% For The Planet
Take a look at the products around you, the things in your home that you’ve bought because you needed or wanted them. Now imagine if each of the companies who sold you those products gave 1% of their annual sales directly to organisations who are working to help the environment. What a powerful change they could make by giving just a little bit each!
That is the principle behind 1% For The Planet, a global movement to join forces and funds between many businesses in order to amplify the impact of giving. Member companies give 1% of their total annual sales and the combined donations drive millions into environmental causes.
Business As A Force For Good
Here at Kabode we are passionate about ensuring that our kids and yours have a great planet to inherit from us. The effects of climate change are huge and we want to do everything we can to slow the damage. When we launched the business we knew that we wanted to find a way to use it as a tool for good, and find ways to leverage our brand, products and audience to support good causes in environmental and health care. We decided to join 1% For The Planet so that we could work along with other change-makers and find strength in numbers, amplifying our efforts and joining the power of a global movement.
How It Began
It all started when two businessmen met and bonded over their shared love for the outdoors. Realising their responsibility to protect our planet, they decided to give 1% of their sales back to the environment—whether or not they were profitable.
In 2002, Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia, and Craig Mathews, founder of Blue Ribbon Flies, created 1% for the Planet and started a global movement.
“The intent of 1% for the Planet is to help fund these diverse environmental organizations so that collectively they can be a more powerful source in solving the world’s problems.”
— YVON CHOUINARD IN HIS BOOK “LET MY PEOPLE GO SURFING”
Soon after its inception, 1% for the Planet’s mission began to resonate across the globe. The idea was simple: because companies profit from the resources they take from the earth, they should protect those resources. Realizing their responsibility, brands such as Brushfire Records, Klean Kanteen, Honest Tea, and now Kabode followed suit to join the movement.
How It Works
Here’s how it works. Kabode have joined 1% for the Planet as a business, and have made a commitment to donate 1% of our gross annual sales through a combination of monetary, in-kind and approved promotional support directly to environmental non-profits.
As part of 1% for the Planet’s network we will receive their advice and the benefit of their expertise to help us to ensure that Kabode is a force for good and environmental change. We will be paired with an environmental non-profit that aligns with our values and our brand in order to make a meaningful impact together. Our sales and donations will be audited and certified by 1% for the Planet to ensure we are always upholding our end of the bargain. Which we are very happy to do!
We are only just getting started with 1% for the Planet, and are celebrating being accepted into the network, but we are joining a fantastic cohort who so far have invested over $250million in environmental solutions through the network.
In 2019 the combined donations were used in the following environmental issue areas:
Climate - 41%
Land - 21%
Water - 15%
Food - 10%
Wildlife - 7%
Pollution - 6%
We are keen to support non-profits who are actively working to find solutions to these issues, as we believe that they have the opportunity to innovate change in ways and places that commercial businesses can’t, as they are not restricted by the need to make money and turn a profit.
Why It's Important For Us
As parents ourselves we, like many people, are worried about the environmental issues that are increasingly building up around us. We want to make sure our children can enjoy the World as much as we do, and benefit from all it has to offer. As an individual it seems impossible to make a real impact on climate change, so we’re really excited to have found 1% for the Planet and to be able to use Kabode as a way to contribute to a global movement.
However our efforts don’t just stop at this, we also have a programme to give an insecticide-treated mosquito net to a child in Africa for every product sold. Insect nets are a proven way to reduce transmission of Malaria and prevent deaths. Every single death from Malaria is preventable, but poverty prevents many families in Africa from being able to take the simple measures that will save lives. Through the Kabode Insect Net Donation Programme, we will directly help to protect children in areas with high incidence of Malaria and mortality rates.
We are always looking to lessen our environmental impact by making better choices in product development. Kabode’s products are packaged in plastic-free cardboard boxes, and are made with organic cotton. Using organic cotton has many benefits, including making economical use of water so that local communities can use water for drinking and growing food crop rather than cotton. Organic cotton farmers are also able to reap the benefit of healthy, chemical and pesticide-free soil by growing other crops alongside to diversify their income and feed their families. Growing crops without toxic chemicals protects bio-diversity and local eco-systems, giving wildlife a boost and ensuring healthy ground for future use. Furthermore organic cotton is better for kids and babies delicate skin, so perfect for use in our super soft snuggly bedding!
We believe Kabode should be a force for good, and to do more than just children’s bedding. Our mission to improve and empower lives in a sustainable world is what drives us.
We believe even a small shift can help influence a big change in the world. Caring for others and the planet we all share together, we can all live the dream.
Please learn more about 1% For The Planet here.