Earth Day is April 22. Indeed, the entire month of April is Earth Month. But why stop there?
At Eastman, makers of Naia™ cellulosic fibers, we believe it’s time to start celebrating Earth Year or Earth Decade. Of how about Earth Lifetime? After all, the theme for Earth Day 2021 is “Restore Our Earth,” a goal that requires transformational change. Now.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the world loses 10 million hectares of forest each year. And land degradation affects almost 2 billion hectares—that’s an area larger than South America. An entire continent.
To combat climate change and our planet’s biodiversity crisis, we must make every forest count. That’s why Eastman partnered with GP Cellulose recently to provide 60,000 longleaf pine seedlings to Torreya State Park in northwest Florida. In celebration of the International Day of Forests (March 21) and in collaboration with The Longleaf Alliance, this planting was part of a larger effort to restore important longleaf habitats that provide homes to endangered, threatened, and at-risk species. Restoring longleaf pine forests also helps protect Florida's water quality.
The Torreya State Park site was selected because it was in the path of Hurricane Michael in 2018, which damaged more than 1.4 million acres of forest. By restoring this forest, the park can now grow into a healthy biodiverse ecosystem.
Planting trees helps conserve water by reducing evaporation from the ground, filtering rainfall, and preventing erosion. In Torreya State Park, it will also help its residents, especially gopher tortoises, who can live up to 60 years and take 16 years or more to mature, and nonvenomous eastern indigo snakes, who can grow over 9 feet long.
"Eastman recently announced our vision for ‘A Better Circle’ to address climate change, mainstream circularity, and build a more inclusive and equitable world," said Jon Woods, general manager, textiles for Eastman. "As part of this vision, we also announced our Naia™ sustainability commitments, where our Naia™ team underlines our full commitment to the protection of forest ecosystems across the globe. We are proud to work with The Longleaf Alliance and Georgia-Pacific to restore a threatened ecosystem so that it may thrive once more for future generations."
Responsibly managed and maintained forests are also important to sustainable fashion designers and brands—because they’re the source for versatile Naia™ low-environmental-impact fibers. Made from wood pulp sourced from responsibly managed forests, the Naia™ brand continues to grow in more ways than one. We take a holistic and ecosystem-based approach to sustainable forest management, one that prohibits sourcing wood cellulose from controversial sources.
When designers and mills choose Naia™, they can be confident that Naia™ acetate fiber used in their fabrics and garments is made with the highest safety, social, and environmental standards.
People want to feel good about what they wear. And what could feel better than wearing sustainable fashion that exemplifies your lifelong devotion to Mother Earth? Sure, Naia™ cellulosic fiber is the perfect choice for ready-to-wear, sweaters, loungewear, and casual everyday wear with supreme softness and comfort. But this Earth Month, feel good about environment-friendly clothing materials that are:
- Responsibly sourced from sustainably managed pine and eucalyptus forests to ensure no deforestation of protected forests.
- Produced in a safe, closed-loop process where solvents are recycled back into the system for reuse.
- Produced using an optimized, low-impact manufacturing process with a low tree-to-fiber carbon and water footprint.
- Certified TÜV AUSTRIA ‘OK biodegradable’ for freshwater and soil environments and ‘OK compost’ for home and industrial settings.
At Eastman, sustainability is about creating significantly more value in the world than the resources we use. We at Naia™ encourage you to take an active step in more sustainable future, preserving precious natural resources and their beauty for future generations.
Looking for a sustainable solution? Contact us to learn more how we could collaborate.
