Today is World Wildlife Day – a day formally set by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to celebrate and raise awareness of our planet’s wild animals and plants.
At Sienna’s Rose we are supporting and celebrating this day because this years World Wildlife Day focusses on Forests and Livelihoods – Sustaining People and Planet. A way to highlight and draw attention to the essential roles our forests, wildlife species and ecosystems serve for the planet. As well as how they can sustain indigenous and local communities around the world.
When we started planning and developing Sienna’s Rose and our range of vegan soy wax candles, our first thought was sustainability. We’re not the first soy candle company, and we won’t be the last. It was, therefore, important to us to ensure that our supply chain was sustainable, ethical and environmentally friendly. With the increase in soybean demand, it is essential that as a species us humans learn from the mistakes of the previously unregulated Palm Oil industry.
Large areas of forests and ecosystems were systematically cleared to make room for palm oil plantations. Deforestation has a grave impact on an environment – from actively changing the local climate to the loss of the critical habitat for endangered species. Monoculture plantations greatly reduce biodiversity within the affected area, destroying the habitat of already endangered species like the Orangutan, Pygmy Elephant and Sumatran Rhino.
Photo by Gareth Davies from Pexels
Photo by Nicholas Githiri from Pexels
Other impacts include soil erosion, air pollution and water pollution too. There is also the affect on the local, indigenous people of the areas where these large-scale, corporate activities take place. Not only is their land compromised, but so is their livelihoods, and in some extreme cases, their lives too. The “gold rush” of Palm Oil led to a boom in illegal deforestation and farming around the world often leading to localised pollution within the area. On top of that, there also exists some exploitation of workers and child labour. The research is quite harrowing, and as a company we wanted to ensure that our impact on the environment is as minimal as possible.
Our first approach was to completely omit any plastic from our retail lines, and we’re proud to report that our 300ml soy wax candles are 100% free of plastic packaging. Something we will continue with all future product lines.
We’re all too aware of the impact of plastic pollution on our planet. From the greenhouse gases released in the production processes, to the non-biodegradable product itself. We believe that we all should play a fundamental part in reducing our reliance and dependence on plastic.
However, moving away from plastic creates alternative issues, such as a greater dependence on wood / plant-based products.
Photo by Solo Shutter from StockSnap
To offset our dependence on paper-based products as a business, we donate £1 from every sale towards planting a tree within the UK. The Woodland Trust Organisation plant trees, protects and restores woodlands in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. So far, they’ve planted over 50m trees since they began in 1972!
As home to over 80% of all terrestrial life on Earth, there’s so much more we can and should do.
Help us to do our bit and spread the word about World Wildlife Day. Use their hashtags for this year’s celebration – #ForestPeoplePlanet; #WorldWildlifeDay; #WWD2021. Follow on the organisation on Facebook and Instagram to learn more and see in what little ways we can all help.
Until next time,
Sienna's Rose
Sienna's Rose