Tackling deforestation on a global scale

The partnership between World Wildlife Fund and HP is a powerful example of how collaboration can drive real environmental, social, and business impact.

The world’s forests are vanishing at an unprecedented rate. In 2023, the world lost nearly 16 million acres (6.37 million hectares) of forest—an area larger than the state of West Virginia. This destruction pushes countless species to the brink of extinction, destabilizing entire ecosystems, and negatively impacting communities and businesses that depend on them. The urgency for large-scale action has never been higher.

“Forests are a force of nature, but they are at risk,” says Linda Walker, senior director of corporate engagement for forests, at World Wildlife Fund (WWF), a leading international conservation organization. “Complex conservation challenges cannot be tackled alone. We need to engage everyone—individuals, local communities, governments, and companies—to create lasting change. Companies that take action now to understand and mitigate their impacts and dependencies on forests, and to increase healthy forests in business-relevant locations, will have a competitive advantage down the road.”

The leadership at WWF recognizes the importance of working with companies that understand the business benefits of taking action for nature. As one of the world’s leading print companies reshaping the future of work, HP is acutely aware that sustainability is an imperative for its own operations as well as for its customers, considering that print businesses have a significant dependency on forests to supply paper and paper-based packaging. And forests also provide essential goods and services, such as wood and paper, that people around the world use every day. Each year, forests directly generate $250 billion in economic activity.

Forests help stabilize the climate, filter the air and water, and modulate rainfall patterns. In total, about one-third of the world’s population has a close dependence on forests and forest product. Yet, these resources are being threatened by fires, droughts, and other natural disasters.

To make production forests more sustainable, protect wild spaces, and restore forests that have been lost, WWF and HP have partnered on a global scale. Together, they hope to make lasting change for people, climate, and nature.

A changing climate requires a response at all levels, and companies have ample reason to answer the call. “Every business is in the ‘forest business’ because every business depends, in some way, on the products or ecological services that forests provide, especially those that use or sell forest products,” says Walker. “Taking action for forests just makes good business sense.”

Transforming commitment into tangible impact

Even though forest destruction has had negative impacts on both the environment and society, halting deforestation through conservation and sustainable forest management is possible while restoration can help recover areas that have been deforested. Indigenous and community-led conservation, strengthened regulations, and forest certification incentives have all proven successful. WWF seeks to implement these strategies and works alongside the public and private sectors to address threats to forests. This includes using blended finance—the combination of public and private funds—to support critical landscape efforts, close the funding gap for forest conservation, and advance policies that address illegal and unsustainable logging. 

WWF’s partnership with HP is built on a long-standing relationship that initially started in 2009 on a smaller scale, focusing on the responsible sourcing of HP’s paper and paper-based packaging. As a result of the partnership, HP launched a comprehensive sustainable paper, paper-based packaging, and wood-sourcing policy to support efforts to mitigate climate change and promote responsible forestry management. The company has continued to refine and strengthen it ever since, requiring all suppliers and licensees to adhere to it for their products.

“Sustainability at HP isn’t just a buzzword—it is fundamental to who we are. We’ve been driving this work for more than 85 years and are proud of the impact we’re making globally. When customers choose HP printing solutions and paper, they’re also making a choice to support forests,” says Alex Michalko, director, climate and responsible sourcing, at HP. “We’re committed to investing in forest conservation for the health of the climate, planet, and all who live here.”

When WWF challenged companies to go beyond responsible sourcing and support conservation actions such as forest restoration and protection in priority global forest landscapes, HP stepped up to the plate. And in 2021, the company was one of the first five companies to join WWF’s Forests Forward corporate engagement program. The scope of the organizations’ partnership has expanded to deploy specific solutions that are locally relevant and critically needed to conserve forests around the globe, from supporting Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) certification for working forests in China to planting native tree species to restore forests and create wildlife corridors for the endangered jaguar in Peru. To date, WWF and HP have conservation actions underway across more than 500,000 acres of forests—the equivalent of two and one-half times the size of New York City—in key landscapes in Australia, Brazil, China, and Peru, which are home to some of the world’s most endangered forests. Through Forests Forward, HP is also one of the companies helping advance WWF’s Nature-Based Solutions Origination Platform (NbS-OP), a novel tool designed to create a new model of scaling up, aligning, and mobilizing public and private investments in high-quality NbS under an integrated landscape finance approach.

The team is already planning out its work through 2030, hoping to conserve additional acreage across critical global landscapes, employ innovative solutions to meet conservation challenges, and help foster sustainable livelihood opportunities in local communities where the partnership engages. Its inclusive strategy has already helped create jobs, build community, improve livelihoods, and contribute to healthy habitats, clean water, food security, and preservation of cultural and religious sites.

Leading for the future

For WWF and HP, the effort isn’t just about corporate commitment—it’s about measurable progress in forest conservation and mitigating nature and climate impacts while delivering benefits for communities. Walker and Michalko hope other corporate industry leaders will also take responsibility for their environmental impacts and engage in similar conservation efforts.

“Support from C-suite leadership is important on both sides,” Michalko notes, adding that it’s helpful to document agreement on key elements such as vision, governance, and communication at the beginning of a partnership. “Also, expect the unexpected, and be ready to adapt. Nature isn’t fully predictable, and neither are social and political conditions in the places where you’re operating.”

“Take the time to understand your company’s impacts and dependencies on nature and how risks to nature can affect your bottom line,” advises Walker. “Then, make a plan to strategically address those risks. Partner with nongovernmental organizations and other experts where appropriate to be as efficient as possible and to help amplify communications about progress and impact.”

Both Walker and Michalko cited the importance of looking toward the long-term horizon because conservation work is complex and takes time to implement. WWF’s history of working with HP has led to a robust partnership, and its leaders can apply that experience to guide them into the future.

“Better forests mean better business,” says Walker. “Companies that get out ahead of nature risks can have a strategic advantage that will resonate with increasingly demanding investor and consumer audiences.”