Ekos Wins Sustainable Business Network Award

Press Release For Immediate Use

EKOS WINS SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS NETWORK AWARD FOR RESTORATIVE INNOVATION

Last night the charity Ekos won the Sustainable Business Network Award for Restorative Innovation at the SBN Awards Ceremony in Auckland. Ekos is a ‘rainforest carbon boutique’ founded by forest carbon scientist Sean Weaver, based in Takaka.

Dr Weaver established Ekos as a supplier of ethical carbon offsets for businesses seeking to go carbon neutral or simply offset their business flights.

“We built the Ekos supply chain of internationally certified, community rainforest carbon projects over the last 8 years with funding from the EU, the German Government, the Asian Development Bank, the UK Government, and Te Puni Kokiri. We focus on the protection of indigenous forests owned by indigenous peoples and have developed the first, and so far only, rainforest carbon projects in New Zealand, Fiji, Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands,” Dr Weaver said.

In receiving the Restorative Innovation Award Dr Weaver thanked two main groups of people.

“Firstly, I want to thank the indigenous peoples who own the rainforest carbon projects in the Ekos supply chain. They have given up the right to log their forest in exchange for the opportunity to sell rainforest carbon offsets to people like you. In so doing they have decided to finance their community economic development through the carbon market instead of the market for rainforest timber. In this way they have also pledged their support for a low carbon economy.”

The second group he thanked were the Ekos buyers.

“These are businesses whose leadership in sustainability is an inspiration. Not only have they chosen to go carbon neutral, but they have elected to do so by supporting our community-based rainforest carbon projects in New Zealand and the Pacific Islands. They are investors in climate protection, biodiversity conservation and community economic development.”

“This is truly a marriage of ecology and economics and exactly what lies behind the Ekos brand.”

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