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Our actions in 2023
In 2023, we supported 28 projects working to protect forests in developing countries and to maintain trees outside of forests in Europe with the help of local communities.
“Keen to better support our partner associations, in 2023 we focused on experimenting with innovative projects to improve our impact on the ground. Here are four examples:
Together with Les Planteurs Volontaires (Volunteer Planters), we tested a system aimed at helping to strengthen their structure through diagnosis, support by a specialist consultant and financing of identified actions (such as training courses, for example). The action plan will be rolled out and the monitoring/evaluation of this pilot project will be carried out in 2024.
In parallel, we brought together our partner associations, experts and administrators during our first meetings of the Maisons du Monde Foundation on 9 November in Nantes, France. Following on from this day of discussions and knowledge sharing, our ambition is to create a community of partners committed to tree conservation, which we will continuously drive forwards.
On the projects side, we launched a joint call for projects with the Yves Rocher Foundation to support an ambitious project and maximise its impact. Together, we selected the “La forêt des voisins” (The Neighbours’ Forests) project, led by the Forest Commons association and the social housing provider Plaine Commune Habitat, which we are supporting for two years, from June 2023.
Finally, as regards environmental awareness, we are funding a documentary series for the first time, aimed at the general public. Entitled “L’arbre qui cache la forêt” (The tree that hides the forest), this series dedicates each of its six episodes to a different variety of tree from around the world and will be broadcast on Arte in 2024.
It was with great optimism and enthusiasm that we launched these new innovative projects in 2023, and we are already counting up the benefits!”
Rémi-Pierre Lapprend, General Manager of the Maisons du Monde Foundation
A whole world of projects
In 2023, we used our own funds to support 24 projects in 12 countries across the world, which all contribute to conserving forests and maintaining trees outside of forests. Of these projects, 14 are located in developing countries and 10 are in Europe.
In addition, four other projects (three in developing countries and one in France) are being financed by donations made by Maisons du Monde customers when making a purchase in France. These projects, which follow the same selection process as the projects financed from our own funds, are chosen by the brand’s employees who vote for their favourites.
Forest conservation
Trees do so many things for us, including conserving biodiversity, fighting climate change, protecting soils and improving water quality. In order to protect them, we are supporting those on the ground all over the world.
- We are helping to preserve the most endangered forests in developing countries
According to the latest report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 10 million hectares of forest disappear each year, 90% of which are in tropical zones. Since urgent action is needed, in 2023 we supported 17 forest and tree conservation projects in developing countries.
According to the same report, agricultural expansion is responsible for 90% of this mass deforestation. In Peru, the deforestation of the Amazon is the result of the precarious position of local populations, who transform the rainforest floor for agricultural exports (such as coffee or cocoa) or for subsistence agriculture. To counter this phenomenon, the environmental association Envol Vert (Green flight), which we have supported since 2021, is committed to supporting local populations in the adoption of sustainable natural resource management practices.
“Thanks to the support of the Maisons du Monde Foundation since 2021, our project to conserve the Amazon rainforest in Peru supports more than 250 coffee and cocoa producers each year in their agroecological transition, while conserving the forests. The donation campaign via the ARRONDI en caisse (Rounding up at the till) scheme has allowed our organisation to become known and recognised throughout France for its farmer training activities, the implementation of agroforestry systems and the conservation of forests and their biodiversity. We would like to say a big thank you to the Maisons du Monde Foundation for their unwavering support for the last three years!”
Marion Imbert, Envol Vert Peru Project Coordinator
Visit the Envol Vert project page to learn about the organisation and the project that we support.
- We are involved in the recovery and protection of trees outside of forests in Europe
Apart from forest ecosystems, trees play a fundamental role and must be protected in order to stem the decline in biodiversity. That is why, in 2023, the Maisons du Monde Foundation supported 11 projects to recover and maintain trees in urban and rural areas in France, Spain and Italy.
This fight is led by Oasis Citadine (City oasis) through its collaborative urban farm project in Montpellier. This initiative provides support for awareness campaigns and training on agroecology and permaculture practices, as well as on planting trees and hedgerows. These approaches are crucial alternatives to agricultural and wine-growing models that still cause too much pollution and are too destructive to biodiversity.
“For two years now, Oasis Citadine has been experimenting with agroforestry and vitiforestry in urban areas, supported by the Maisons du Monde Foundation. Between the training sessions and workshops, people of all ages have been able to grasp the challenges of the agricultural transition. Funding from the Foundation has enabled hundreds of people to attend occasions celebrating trees and their place in our ecosystems. Our second year of partnership demonstrates the sustainability of our projects and will allow the vision put forward and supported by the Maisons du Monde Foundation and our association to take root.”
David Viala, Founder and General Coordinator at Oasis Citadine
Would you like to know more about the project run by the Oasis Citadine association? Visit our project page!
Promoting environmental awareness
Because forest conservation first requires awareness and action on both individual and collective levels, the Maisons du Monde Foundation has its own environmental awareness programmes.
- We Love Trees
Created in 2018, this movement is designed to make people more mindful of the issues at play and encourage everyone to act to protect trees. In this effort, we teamed up with the Parisian festival We Love Green, which is known for its commitment to sustainable development, in June 2023 for the second year in a row. At our stand, festival-goers were able to participate in activities to reconnect with trees and learn about tree conservation.
We Love Trees in numbers:
- More than 2000 people educated about tree conservation at the We Love Green festival
- More than 1800 employees have walked to conserve trees as part of our internal challenge
Visit the page dedicated to our movement on our site to find out more!
- Solidaritrips
Launched in 2011, Solidaritrips is an annual event that gives Maisons du Monde employees the opportunity to go all over the world to discover a project supported by the Maisons du Monde Foundation. This year, our employees had the opportunity to discover our projects aimed at conserving trees outside of forests in France, as well as our actions to safeguard and protect tropical forests in Madagascar.
Solidaritrips 2023 involved:
- Twelve employees who gathered in the south of France together with the Conservatoire Méditerranéen Partagé (Shared Mediterranean Conservatory) to conserve the biodiversity cultivated in the Mediterranean Basin and understand the challenges facing French forests in the Massif des Maures mountain range.
- Nine employees who travelled to the island of Nosy Boraha off the coast of Madagascar to discover the biodiversity of this island in the Indian Ocean and contribute to the conservation of its forests alongside GRET and local populations.
Since Solidaritrips was launched, more than 220 Maisons du Monde employees have taken advantage of this initiative! For more information, click here.
- ARRONDI en caisse
ARRONDI en caisse is a great lever for raising awareness among Maisons du Monde customers about our tree conservation challenges: 2023 was no exception, as we reached a new milestone with 20 million donations made since it was launched in 2016. In two words that say it all: THANK YOU!
ARRONDI en caisse in 2023:
- More than € 316,000 collected thanks to the generosity of Maisons du Monde customers
- More than 2 million donations made to four organisations
Visit the ARRONDI en caisse page to find out more.
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