Success Stories

Cutting edge of environmentalism

Protecting the environment requires tenacity and rapid strategic evolution. In a constantly changing landscape, we continually pioneer new, innovative ways to achieve success. When our adversaries adapt to our strategies, we change them. When protests against logging companies weren't working, we went after the companies that were buying from the logging companies—and we won. When conventional wisdom tells us something can't be done, we challenge it. No one believed that that logging companies, government officials, indigenous leaders, environmentalists and corporations could ever come together to protect a rainforest—until we made it happen in the Great Bear Rainforest.

Armed with this unique ability to adapt to challenges and find collaborative solutions, we are able to share a variety of success stories:

Securing one of the world's largest forest protection commitments

In June 2009, the province of Ontario, home to a large portion of Canada’s Boreal Forest introduced world-leading legislation to protect 50% of Ontario’s Northern Boreal Forest, and implement community-led land-use planning in the rest of the region. The Far North Planning and Protection Act, if passed, would help Ontario fight climate change, protect critical ecosystems and species at risk, and ensure First Nations have control over land-use decisions on their homelands. Moreover, it would legally protect 55 million acres (22 million hectares) in the northern Ontario Boreal Forest—an area six times the size of Belgium, or half the size of California.

However, there is still work to be done. We're working with the Ontario government and others to ensure that the government's commitment results in true protection for the Northern Boreal Forest, and the species and communities that live there. We're also pushing for protection in the Southern Boreal Forest, where caribou are severely threatened by logging.
View our more of our forest success stories >>

Victoria's Secret and ForestEthics: Transformation through collaboration

In December 2007, an unlikely alliance between Limited Brands, parent company of Victoria's Secret, and ForestEthics yielded an unprecedented victory for the protection of Endangered Forests. The transition from adversaries to allies was not easy, but in the end, a mixture of our grassroots tactics, practical negotiations, and corporate responsibility on the part of Limited Brands brought an historic environmental agreement. This video captures the essence of the of our unique ability to leverage large corporations to help make lasting environmental agreements.
View more of our successes in transforming industries >>

At the first annual BENNY Awards, sponsored by the Business Ethics Network, we came away with not one but two awards for its corporate campaigns. One award was for the Victoria's Dirty Secret campaign; the other was for the Staples campaign, an award ForestEthics shared with Dogwood Alliance.

ForestEthics was the only organization to be recognized with two awards. The awards were given based on nominations and voting by the corporate campaigning members of BEN.

The BENNY awards were created to recognize "spectacular achievements in the advancement of business ethics." The Business Ethics Network was established "to inspire a race to the top by the world’s largest corporations [and] to bring corporations back to their original purpose to serve the common good."

Additionally, ForestEthics and our dedicated staff have won:

• Forest Leadership Parnership Award in 2005 (To Joint Solutions Project)
  
• Wilburforce Conservation Award in 2005
  
• Gift to the Earth Award from WWF in 2007
  
• Certificate of Honor from the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 2007
• BEN Path to Victory award in 2008
• Transformative Leadership Award by the Seasons Fund for Social Transformation
  
• Wilburforce Conservation Award in 2005
  

We need your support to protect the future of our forests

In less than a decade, we have secured the protection of more than 65 million acres (25 million hectares) of Endangered Forest—an area the size of Colorado. And we're just getting started. With your help, we can continue to protect Endangered Forests for the threatened species and local communities that live there, for the protection they give us from climate change, and for the clean air, clean water and boundless inspiration they provide to all of us.