Gucci joins Lion’s Share Fund to boost wildlife conservation

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Feb 6, 2020

With good works having an ever higher profile at fashion and luxury brands, Gucci on Thursday announced that it has joined The Lion’s Share Fund, “a unique initiative raising much-needed funds to tackle the crisis in nature, biodiversity and climate across the globe”.

It’s part of a general trend that sees big names in the industry taking a more pro-active approach to a range of issues that affect the environment and both the humans and animals that live on the planet.

The fund is led by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and a coalition of businesses and UN partners, and is working to raise $100 million+ a year for animal conservation, biodiversity and climate. How does it expect to do this? By asking brands to contribute 0.5% of their media spend every time an animal is featured in their ads. 

That’s an interesting approach that directly links the use of animals to help sell products to initiatives that will also help their survival and could generate significant sums given that animals appear in about 20% of all ads.

Achim Steiner, UNDP Administrator, said: “This partnership with Gucci marks the continuing evolution of this innovative fund, which provides a unique opportunity for brands across all industries to join forces and help preserve and protect biodiversity across the globe. Wildlife populations are half the size they were just 50 years ago, and their habitats and ecosystems are destroyed at an unprecedented rate due to human activity. The Lion’s Share is an idea that is as innovative as it is simple – and it makes a real impact on wildlife conservation.”

Gucci CEO Marco Bizzarri added that this latest move is “an important addition to our conservation strategy. Nature and wildlife provide Gucci with inspired creation that is an integral part of our narrative through our collections and campaigns. With the increasing threats to the planet’s biodiversity, groundbreaking initiatives like The Lion’s Share Fund have the potential to be transformative by organically connecting the business community with direct action to protect our natural habitats and most threatened species.” 

The fund, which was launched nearly 18 months ago, has already had an impact, providing a grant to improve critical radio systems for law enforcement officers protecting wildlife in Mozambique’s Niassa Nature Reserve and helping reduce the elephant poaching rate to zero. Additionally it provided a grant to help secure land for endangered orang-utans, elephants and tigers in North Sumatra in Indonesia.