We want to become 100% sustainable
100% sustainable. Pretty ambitious, right! We know. But, honestly, nothing else would feel right. Or enough. Because we want run Once Upon in a way that is sustainable in the long run, both for the planet and the people that live here, that's why there's no other way forward than aiming for 100% sustainability. What we do today affects our tomorrow and the rest of our futures. We need to take responsibility for our children and ensure that they can live on a healthy planet for generations to come. In other words: If we have started a company, we need to take full responsibility for it.
What we are doing to reach our goal
We have developed a clear plan on how to move forward with our sustainability work. And we may just getting started, but instead of looking back feeling that we should have started sooner (isn't that always the way?) we're looking forward and are super dedicated to get to where we want to be, fast!
What the plan looks like:
Understanding our own impact and constantly challenging ourselves and our suppliers is essential when it comes to moving forward quickly. We are aware that we do not have all the answers but are learning more all the time. To be a little more specific, these are three of our focus areas at the moment:
Know and knowhow
We are now, in this very moment, challenging our suppliers regarding the environment, ethics and work environment and insisting that they meet our requirements pronto. We are mapping our emissions and as soon as we have calculated our carbon footprint, we will tell you exactly what it looks like and how we plan to reduce it.
Managing our resources in the best way
When we have full knowledge and control over our supply chain and emissions, we can take steps in the right direction to manage our resources in the smartest way possible. Our business requires resources; forest, paper raw material, energy and fuel, just to name a few. We are currently investigating ways in which we can reduce these resources impact on the environment. For instance, we want to understand how we can contribute to a more sustainable forestry and what changes we can make to reduce our carbon footprint as quickly as possible. An other important resource for us is of course our employees - to safeguard a sustainable culture for everyone who works at Once Upon is also one of our top priority sustainability issues.
3. Chemical knowledge
In 2022 and 2023, we’re working to learn even more about the chemicals and glue used in our products. This is to gain knowledge about what our impact looks like, and what we can do to minimize it
What the plan looks like:
Our business requires lots of different resources; paper raw material, energy and fuel, to name a few. We aim to use only the resources we really need and always give back more than we take. Here we work with three focus areas:
Know and knowhow
We are now, in this very moment, challenging our suppliers regarding the environment, ethics and work environment and insisting that they meet our requirements pronto. We are mapping our emissions and as soon as we have calculated our carbon footprint, we will tell you exactly what it looks like and how we plan to reduce it.
Managing our resources in the best way
When we have full knowledge and control over our supply chain and emissions, we can take steps in the right direction to manage our resources in the smartest way possible. Our business requires resources; forest, paper raw material, energy and fuel, just to name a few. We are currently investigating ways in which we can reduce these resources impact on the environment. For instance, we want to understand how we can contribute to a more sustainable forestry and what changes we can make to reduce our carbon footprint as quickly as possible. An other important resource for us is of course our employees - to safeguard a sustainable culture for everyone who works at Once Upon is also one of our top priority sustainability issues.
3. Our energy footprint
The energy from our printing shops stands for our single largest emission (read more in our emission report). Here we have a constant dialogue with the printers to identify where they can save energy and how they can switch to renewable sources - work that has already had an effect. Our largest printing company has just installed solar panels on the roof and several of the others are actively choosing renewable electricity for their production as of this year.
What the plan looks like:
Creating a sustainable culture for everyone who works at Once Upon is a priority for us. It is also important for us to contribute to the well-being of our customers by carefully thinking through what signals we send and what we encourage. We believe that change begins with one's self. That being allowed to be one's whole self - the good, the not so good, and everything in between - is a prerequisite for finding the power for change that is required to create a sustainable future, not only for the planet but for all of us who live here too.
Know and knowhow
We are now, in this very moment, challenging our suppliers regarding the environment, ethics and work environment and insisting that they meet our requirements pronto. We are mapping our emissions and as soon as we have calculated our carbon footprint, we will tell you exactly what it looks like and how we plan to reduce it.
Managing our resources in the best way
When we have full knowledge and control over our supply chain and emissions, we can take steps in the right direction to manage our resources in the smartest way possible. Our business requires resources; forest, paper raw material, energy and fuel, just to name a few. We are currently investigating ways in which we can reduce these resources impact on the environment. For instance, we want to understand how we can contribute to a more sustainable forestry and what changes we can make to reduce our carbon footprint as quickly as possible. An other important resource for us is of course our employees - to safeguard a sustainable culture for everyone who works at Once Upon is also one of our top priority sustainability issues.
What the plan looks like:
We want our product development to align with our vision of sustainability, but in the long run, we don't want to settle for "good enough" when it comes to these issues. That's why we want to contribute, help and inspire more companies to do their bit, both within and outside our own business sector. The mere thought of it all makes our hearts skip a beat. We have a lot of work ahead of us, but we know where we want to be and are beginning to figure out how we're going to get there.
Know and knowhow
We are now, in this very moment, challenging our suppliers regarding the environment, ethics and work environment and insisting that they meet our requirements pronto. We are mapping our emissions and as soon as we have calculated our carbon footprint, we will tell you exactly what it looks like and how we plan to reduce it.
Managing our resources in the best way
When we have full knowledge and control over our supply chain and emissions, we can take steps in the right direction to manage our resources in the smartest way possible. Our business requires resources; forest, paper raw material, energy and fuel, just to name a few. We are currently investigating ways in which we can reduce these resources impact on the environment. For instance, we want to understand how we can contribute to a more sustainable forestry and what changes we can make to reduce our carbon footprint as quickly as possible. An other important resource for us is of course our employees - to safeguard a sustainable culture for everyone who works at Once Upon is also one of our top priority sustainability issues.
FSC-certified by the end of the year
We’re in the process of getting FSC®-certified and as of May 2022 we use FSC-certified (FSC- MIX) papper in all our books that are ordered to The Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium, France, Spain, Italy, Poland and Luxemburg. Our FSC-license number is FSC-N003984. Our aim is to only use FSC-certified marked paper in all our print-shops and products by the end of the year.
What is FSC?
FSC stands for Forest Stewardship Council and is an independent, international member organization that works for environmentally friendly, socially responsible and economically viable use of the world’s forests, through its FSC certification system. Certified companies follow FSC’s rules (standards) for forestry and traceability. Those who follow the rules may label their products with the FSC brand. The FSC label allows consumers and companies to choose wood products that come from responsible forestry, which means forestry that takes people and the environment into account.
Our printers
We have printers all over the world, from Australia to America and a few places in between. This means that your Once Upon books are printed as near to you as possible, reducing out climate footprint a great deal.
