Last year was a success for 1% for the Planet.

The nonprofit that encourages and facilitates businesses to give at least 1% of their profits to environmental causes said it certified a record $66 million in giving to 3,000 approved environmental partners in 2022. That brings the organization’s lifetime certified giving to $450 million since it was founded in 2002 by Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard and Blue Ribbon Files founder Craig Mathews.

In 2022, 1% for the Planet also added more than 1,800 new members, bringing total membership to 5,300 businesses. In the promotional products industry, a number of suppliers and distributors have partnered with the organization. Among that continually growing list are Chameleon Like (asi/44558), Top 40 supplier Vantage Apparel (asi/93390), Better by Bluestar (asi/141977) and Storm Creek (asi/89879). Top 40 supplier Polyconcept North America (PCNA, asi/78897) notes on its sustainability-focused ProudPath site that it has facilitated a total of $940,000 in certified giving through 1% for the Planet partnerships.

“Our members brought urgency and generosity to their support of environmental organizations this past year,” said Kate Williams, CEO of 1% for the Planet. “Working together, we build unique giving strategies that forge lasting partnerships between businesses and environmental partners. We are creating a new system for driving powerful impact at scale through strategic collective action.”

Member giving supported a range of organizations, from the Yukon River Inter-Tribal Watershed Council, an Indigenous grassroots environmental organization working to protect and preserve the Yukon River Watershed, to One Girl, an education-focused program for girls and young women in Sierra Leone and Uganda, to Counting Coral, a coral reef conservation nonprofit that derives 40% of its funding from 1% for the Planet members.

“As a nonprofit, connecting with companies and creating a community of like-minded philanthropists can be daunting,” said Jolyon Collier, president of Counting Coral. “1% for the Planet quickly became the organization that helped us meet new partners and make actionable steps within our organization. 1% for the Planet has been an invaluable part of our reef restoration growth.” 

For 2023, 1% for the Planet is calling on companies to live up to climate pledges, and noted that third parties like 1% for the Planet can help certify carbon-reduction efforts and hold them accountable to their commitments. The nonprofit also stated the power of purpose-driven companies, like Certified B Corps, to weather economic downturns better than peers, and added that collective action – rather than individual shaming – should mark the future of the environmental movement. Individuals, businesses and nonprofits need to come together to tackle the “systems-level challenges facing our planet,” according to the organization.

From Oct. 17 to 19, 1% for the Planet plans to host its fifth annual Global Summit in New York to help members tackle those trends and network with each other.

“As we look forward to our 21^st year as a rapidly growing organization, 1% for the Planet is more committed than ever to spur commitment, action and partnerships that accelerate environmental philanthropy and build a global system of changemakers,” said Williams.

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