The sociologist and creator of the first concepts in corporate responsibility and the regenerative economy came to Brazil to speak at the 5th edition of INOVA Klabin
 

São Paulo, October 5, 2022 – On the invitation of Klabin, Brazil’s largest producer and exporter of packaging paper and sustainable solutions in paper packaging, John Elkington, a sociologist and leading authority on sustainable development, was in Brazil last week to speak at the 5th edition of INOVA Klabin, an event for clients, partners, suppliers and employees that aims to foster debate and reflection to connect innovation with sustainability. After his lecture, Elkington visited Klabin’s operations and social and environmental projects in the state of Paraná. The creator of the “triple bottom line” concept, which balances companies’ economic, social and environmental factors, was accompanied by the CEO of the ESG consulting firm Volans, Louise Kjellerup Roper.

 
Elkington visited Klabin’s largest investment ever, the Puma Unit in Ortigueira, which was designed in accordance with the highest sustainability standards. In Telêmaco Borba, he visited the Klabin Technology Center, which is responsible for the company’s journey of excellence in innovation, in particular the development of solutions to capture productivity gains and reduce environmental impacts. The visit also included the Klabin Ecological Park, a 10,000-hectare area formed 91% by native forests, which fosters biodiversity conservation, rehabilitates wildlife and protects endangered species.

In Imbaú, Elkington had an opportunity to speak to people benefited by Klabin’s family farming program, Social Forests, an initiative developed in partnership with the Association for Preserving the Environment and Life (Apremavi) and the Micro and Small Company Support Service (Sebrae), which promotes the economic, environmental and social development of small and midsized rural properties. The sociologist also visited the Guanabara settlement, where he toured a model property and had a colonial breakfast that included products made by women supported by the program.  “We showed him how Social Forests helped us increase our income without adversely affecting the environment and offered him some of our products to taste, such as the cheeses we make locally,” said Sirlene Alves Moraes, a beneficiary of the program. Elkington planted a tree in the settlement and saw first-hand the circularity promoted by the Social Forests program, with the supply to farmers of fertilizers produced by Klabin’s Solid Waste Processing Center, located in Ortigueira. The fruits and vegetables planted by program beneficiaries are used in the company’s cafeterias and for animal feed at the Ecological Park, among other uses.
 

“The presence of such an important figure in sustainable development at our event and facilities is a source of pride for Klabin and shows that we are on the right path,” said Uilson Paiva, Community Relations and Social Responsibility manager at Klabin.

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