Canon Europe is celebrating a 10-year-long partnership with international climate protection solutions provider, ClimatePartner, that enables Canon to offer carbon-neutral papers to its office and cut-sheet customers.
As part of its global responsibility to provide the highest quality products and to conduct business in an environmentally-friendly and socially engaged manner, Canon and ClimatePartner help customers reduce greenhouse gases and make an important contribution to fighting global warming.
Since collaborating on the first project, around 34m kg of CO2 have been offset through Canon’s carbon-neutral paper.
Last year alone, according to the firm, Canon Europe counterbalanced nearly 6m kg of CO2.
A statement by the company said, “Climate-conscious customers can make a demonstrable and measurable contribution to climate protection. How? By purchasing products that have a ClimatePartner ID ensuring climate neutrality and certified carbon offsetting.
“This ID can be found on Canon´s Zero paper products. So if you buy Canon Zero paper, you get access to up-to-date calculations of the product´s CO2 emissions as well as details about the certified projects that are supported by the offsetting of unavoidable emissions.”
It added that Canon also helped with sustainable development in countries involved in carbon offset projects, for example, by improving clean drinking water supplies, expanding local infrastructures, creating jobs or protecting biodiversity.
Among the many projects Canon has been supporting, forest preservation in Para, Brasilia, has compensated for almost 24m kg of CO2 emissions alone to date.
The project protects 90,000 hectares of forest and prohibits commercial logging, helping to create alternative sources of income for the 94 resident families.
Maurice Pardoel, Director Product Line Management, Canon Europe Imaging Supplies, explained, “ClimatePartner is one of the pioneers and international market leaders in corporate climate protection and, through this partnership, we’re able to offer our customers a certified solution to help minimise their carbon footprint while supporting valuable development projects that make a difference for many people.
“Using the ID code on the packaging of our Zero paper products provides a visible reminder of our carbon offsetting efforts. And it is this transparency – one of the foundations of our partnership – that is very important to Canon as it allows us to demonstrate to our customers our commitment to sustainability.”
Canon first introduced carbon-neutral office paper products to its customer base in Austria in 2010. The initial aim was to expand its activities and measures for climate protection and sustainability in the context of Canon’s overall climate strategy and to complement its “sustainable” product portfolio of printers and other office equipment, in addition to its initiatives in responsible forestry.
Pardoel said further, “At Canon, we operate according to the philosophy of Kyosei, a Japanese word which means ‘living and working together for the common good’. ‘Common good’ is defined by the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which provide a framework for Canon to manage our social and environmental impact. Climate neutrality has been a vital part of our comprehensive sustainability strategy for over a decade now. As we look to the future and the development of more sustainable practices, climate neutrality will continue to play a key role in our corporate strategy.”
Speaking on the occasion, Moritz Lehmkuhl, Founder and CEO, ClimatePartner, added, “We are very happy to celebrate this long-standing partnership with Canon and are looking forward to continuing to be the best possible partner in climate protection, providing our support, counsel and expertise to Canon and its customers.
“Our 10th anniversary demonstrates how climate protection still remains a top priority for Canon’s business and we will work collaboratively with the team to continue this success, positively impacting both the environment and the climate.”
