Mondi Group and WWF Internationa havel announced that they have renewed their global partnership for a further three years. In 2014 Mondi entered into a three-year global partnership with WWF, focusing on promoting environmental stewardship in the packaging and paper sector. This global partnership has now been extended by another three years, becoming the longest standing WWF International partnership of its kind.

This partnership evolved from the collaboration between Mondi and WWF South Africa through  the WWF-Mondi Wetlands Programme, and is a clear signal that Mondi is committed to demonstrating that responsible environmental stewardship makes good business sense.

Phase II of the partnership will embed and extend Mondi’s stewardship of forests, climate & energy and freshwater, with the work being organised around three areas:

• Ecosystem Stewardship – with special focus on sustainable forestry development in north west Russia and collective water stewardship activities in South Africa.
• Manufacturing Stewardship – to demonstrate Mondi’s ongoing commitment to reducing its freshwater footprint, and its contribution to a low-carbon economy by further reducing Mondi’s energy footprint.
• Product Stewardship – via responsible sourcing of wood and fibre, and working to increase the availability of credibly certified fibre.

Marco Lambertini, Director General of WWF International, says, “Forests are providing some of the most vital nature services that underpin the global economy and are critical for supporting the lives and prosperity of local people, communities and humanity globally. If protected and managed responsibly these key ecosystems can continue to provide economic and social benefits now and for future generations, while contributing to the local and global ecological balance essential to all life on Earth.  The partnership with Mondi focuses on achieving this, and we are very excited to take forward this new phase of collaboration."

Peter Oswald, Mondi Group CEO, comments, “This international partnership contributes to our goal of growing responsibly and sharing best practice in our industry. We’ve worked closely with WWF for many years and this partnership continues to give us a great platform for exploring sustainable solutions with a trusted partner. The work of the partnership is focused on the future and as we celebrate Mondi’s 50th anniversary this year, we’re able to recognise our past successes while firmly keeping our focus on the future.”

Ultimately, this partnership is working to ensure that forests continue to be an ongoing sustainable source of fibre within a world enriched by extensive, resilient forest landscapes benefiting biodiversity, climate and human well-being.