1% for the Planet: where our 1% goes
SUSAN BIJL has been a member of 1% for the Planet since 2025. This year we are making our first donations, over 2025. Here is where they go, and why.
How 1% works
1% for the Planet is a global network of businesses and organisations working together for people and the planet. It was founded in 2002 by Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia, and Craig Mathews of Blue Ribbon Flies.
As members, we donate at least 1% of our annual sales every year. Of our sales, not our profit.
Think of it as a tax on ourselves, paid to the planet. Even a business that works as sustainably as it can leaves a footprint: in materials, in production, in transport. Everything we make has an impact. 1% for the Planet is how we answer for that, every year.
The network has two sides. On one side are the member businesses, who give. On the other are the organisations that receive: foundations and initiatives working for people and/or the planet, each vetted and approved by 1% for the Planet. Because 1% is not only about nature. Social initiatives belong here just as much.
Two close to home, one further afield
We deliberately chose two Rotterdam initiatives and one organisation working across the Netherlands and beyond. Close to home, because it is concrete. For us, and for you. It is the city we work in, the streets we know. Change the world, start where you are.
Fonds Bijzondere Noden Rotterdam
Every year, thousands of people in Rotterdam find themselves in acute financial crisis. When the government has no solution and people are at risk of falling through the cracks, Fonds Bijzondere Noden Rotterdam (FBNR) steps in. With a one-off grant for whatever is most urgent at that moment: groceries, the energy bill, a pair of glasses, a washing machine. Requests come in through social workers, and the money is transferred within 24 to 48 hours.
We have worked with FBNR for several years. For every Rotterdam bag sold, The New Shopping Bag in Wena & Rotte, €1 goes to the fund. Through our 1% for the Planet membership, a substantial donation now comes on top of that.
Voedseltuin Rotterdam
On the Keilewerf in Rotterdam's M4H port district lies Voedseltuin Rotterdam, a food garden. Volunteers grow sustainable seasonal vegetables for hundreds of Rotterdam residents on a low income. Everything the garden produces is distributed free of charge through Voedselbank Rotterdam, the city's food bank. The garden is also a place to learn and work: people who face a long road to employment build their skills and work towards a first qualification.
Voedseltuin works where people and nature meet. Its goal is a city that is both inclusive and sustainable, because, in their view, one cannot be achieved without the other.
Trees for All
For more than 25 years, Trees for All has worked towards a world rich in forests. The foundation plants new forests and restores existing ones, in the Netherlands and around the world. Trees are good for the climate, for biodiversity and for the living conditions of people. Trees for All is a recognised charity, certified by the Dutch CBF.
New to the network
FBNR and Voedseltuin Rotterdam were not yet part of 1% for the Planet. We nominated them, and both are now officially approved. We are proud of that. It means that other member businesses, anywhere in the world, can now support these two Rotterdam initiatives too.
Run a business that is a member of 1% for the Planet? You will find them in the network.
