For more than 200 years, we have worked with our hands, nurturing and protecting our quality craftsmanship – with gratitude and respect for what nature gives us from year to year. Today, we are still hands-on. We build, craft and sustain everything we do by hand. But how can we lend a hand to nature? How can we practically move towards being more sustainable and ultimately carbon positive?
CAN A COMPANY BE CARBON NEUTRAL?
We do not know yet, but we certainly want to do our part and try our very best to support natural climate solutions. Not by buying climate quotas. Not by supporting a tree certificate in far flung destinations. That’s not moving the needle for us. Instead, we want to take responsibility for our local environment and nature – directly connected to our life and supply chain. So, we decided to be hands-on by restoring, planting and nurturing a forest in our very own backyard.
RHANDERS FOREST
“We scoured all the forests for sale in Central Jutland, but when we stumbled upon this gem, there was no doubt. It's truly extraordinary; a beautiful fairytale land with both lake, forest, and wildlife," shares CEO and owner Rina Hansen.
Nestled north of Randers, the area comprises 2 hectares of lake, 2 hectares of forest with cypresses, Nordmann firs, birch trees, weeping willows, and more than 50 other plant species. Additionally, there's 2,5 hectares of newly planted forest with 12.000 Nordmann firs added annually over the past 6 years. The plan is simple: to restore the existing forest and continue planting and nurturing it to ensure its growth and flourishing. Moreover, the dream is to reintroduce the kalmus water plant, RHANDERS' emblem, which with its citrus-like scent, contributed to making Randers' gloves famous as far back as the 18th century. Remarkably, the story behind the lake in the forest is that it was 'rewilded' before the concept even existed. In 1946, the local merchant Bloch began planting the area around a peat bog to create a 'pleasure ground' where family and local residents could gather. And despite the ownership transfer to RHANDERS, the second generation Bloch, grandmother Birthe, still takes a stroll around the lake every day, ensuring the area is well looked after.
Fact box:
Trees: As trees grow, they pull in carbon dioxide (CO2) through their leaves and convert it into carbohydrates, which they use to grow. So long as a tree lives, that carbon stays within it – and trees can live for decades or centuries. Trees are a natural “carbon sink”. Therefore, planting trees, is one of the most effective carbon drawdown solutions to date.¹
WHY NOT DO IT THE EASY WAY?
Owner and CEO, Rina Hansen, explains: ‘We could choose to do it the easy way and just purchase CO2 quotas to offset our emissions. This would only cost us about 25.000 DKK a year. Meaning, I could be retired and hand over to the next generation, and they could too, before the investment of the forest would make sense economically. But this is not about financial matters, this is about taking responsibility and doing the right thing”.
In line with our belief in protecting and nurturing our quality craftsmanship, we also believe in protecting and nurturing our nature. We are hands-on. We build, craft and sustain everything we do by hand. So, it is no different when it comes to our obligations in society. We do it with our very own hands.
Naturally, in parallel we also minimise our emissions in other ways. E.g., by only utilising leather by-products from the food industry, responsibly up-cycle and recycle our own leather, by developing our plant-based textile collection, by expanding our craftsmanship hyperlocal production in Denmark, and by minimally wrapping the beautiful products in plastic-free, FCS certified packaging.
Still, we have a long way to go. And, while we strive toward carbon neutrality, we might just craft a beautiful treetop house or two, as a sanctum for our employees and community…
