When it comes to sustainability, it’s not enough anymore to simply offer eco-friendly products. That’s a good start, but it’s just the beginning. Corporate Imaging Concepts (CIC; asi/168962) demonstrated how to take sustainable swag to the next level for client Microsoft. The Top 40 distributor incorporated a carbon-sequestering tree-planting initiative into a traditional thank-you gift – helping it secure a 2022 Promo Campaign Award from ASI Media for Best Sustainability-Driven Campaign.

Microsoft wanted thank-you gifts for the 40,000 team members and partners that worked on the Windows 11 release in October 2021. So, Steve Star, CIC vice president, and his team partnered with Top 40 supplier Polyconcept North America (asi/78897) to create a lineup of covetable items: an ethically sourced, recycled hoodie, a cozy blanket and a high-end reusable water bottle.

Team members could choose the items they wanted to ensure sizing was accurate and that they received only the products they actually wanted. For each piece of swag distributed, CIC had a mangrove tree planted in Madagascar. Mangroves are considered “powerhouses of climate mitigation” and “biodiversity superstars,” according to nonprofit The Nature Conservancy. 

As a direct result of the thank-you campaign CIC organized for Microsoft, more than 60,000 mangroves were planted in Madagascar, which helped to support four of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, according to Starr. That’s the equivalent of 1,071 single-bedroom apartments filled with trees, he adds. The project also provided 120 paid workdays to tree planters in the country. CIC anticipates that 12,973 tons of carbon will be sequestered thanks to their efforts.

For more details on CIC’s campaign for Microsoft and to see all of this year’s winners, check out ASI Media’s 2022 Promotional Campaign Awards.

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