One of India’s leading designer labels, House of Anita Dongre (HOAD), has joined Canadian environmental organisation Canopy to commit to saving ancient forests. Canopy, which is best known for globally greening the Harry Potter book series, focuses on initiatives that help protect the world’s ancient and endangered forests.

By joining Canopy’s CanopyStyle and Pack4Good initiatives, not only has the designer brand become the first Indian fashion house to do so, but also taken a further step towards sustainability, a cause that’s always been close to the brand. While CanopyStyle directs its efforts towards preventing the use of forest-derived cellulose materials for fashion, Pack4Good is focused on making packaging solutions forest-free. 

Image Source: Canopyplanet.org, Anitadongre.com

Currently, packaging products like shipping boxes and man-made fabrics like viscose and rayon are made by cutting down over 3.2 billion trees every year from vital forests in Brazil, India, Canada, and Indonesia. International brands like H&M, Penguin-Random House, Stella McCartney, Target, The Guardian Media Group, UNIQLO/Fast Retailing, Zara/Inditex, and more have partnered with Canopy’s initiatives to help make a shift from fashion’s current forest disturbing practices. 

By joining the environmental organisation’s initiatives, HOAD will be doing the same. “Fashion is not just about what’s next but also what’s good – for the maker, for the wearer and for the planet. Protecting the world’s forests is the need of the hour and hence we are partnering alongside Canopy to help conserve the world’s forests and build supply chains that have the health of our planet at their heart,” said Chief Creative Officer and designer, Anita Dongre, about joining hands with Canopy.

Along with urging brands across the globe to shift away from forest sourcing, Canopy also helps brands scale more environmentally friendly Next Generation Solutions. These include making paper from agricultural residues like leftover wheat straw, and making viscose/Lyocell textiles from used cotton fabric or microbial cellulose.

In a statement about partnering with the Indian brand, Canopy’s founder and Executive Director, Nicole Rycroft, said, “This is the turn-around decade to address the biodiversity and climate crises before us and to change global supply chains to operate within the bounds of our natural world. House of Anita Dongre models the compassion and innovative spirit that business, civil society, and political leaders need to bring at this key juncture.”