Life On Planet WWF By C.Y. Chong Book Review

lifeonplanetwwf

Life On Planet WWF by C.Y. Chong gives an insight into the workings of one of the world’s largest conservation organisations. Far from being a boring business book it has amusing stories about various royal families and even an archbishop. It is an interesting book which is outright funny in places. It certainly is entertaining and fun as well as being well written and easy to read. I actually managed to read it in a few hours. The stories about Prince Philip are my personal favourite. Did you know that Buckingham Palace has a library and a copy of every book published goes there? I certainly didn’t. There is a lot to be learned from this book and I found it very enjoyable.

An interesting memoir that amuses and entertains in equal measure.

C.Y. Chong’s captivating and insightful revelation about what it’s like to spend over two decades at WWF.

This light-hearted collection of memoirs tells the compelling story of a company executive who walked away from global corporations and immersed himself in the world of non-profit – in this case, WWF, one of the world’s largest conservation organisations.

After years of working in the corporate sector, C.Y. Chong decided to pursue a new avenue of work. He joined WWF International as a finance manager and was soon promoted to Director of Finance – however, this book is about his non-financial experiences…

Life on Planet WWF follows Chong as he travels and tells of a myriad of interesting and unforgettable happenings – being attacked by a mad crow being one. From fitting the letters ‘WWF’ into a television interview as many times as possible, to having cocktails with HRH Prince Philip, he recalls visits to conferences, field projects or other events – each anecdote providing a unique insight into some of his truly extraordinary experiences at WWF.

This book makes an interesting read for anyone thinking about a career outside the corporate sector as well as for the five million supporters of WWF and everything it stands for.

Life on Planet WWF: From Archbishops to Belly Dancers – My Time at WWF is available here.

Pukka Herbs Peppermint and LicoriceTea | Drink Review

Peppermint and Licorice is one of those things that you don’t really expect to go together, but in the land of tea, they do. Made with peppermint & FairWild licorice 20p from every pack of this goes towards supporting WWF conservation projects. Tasty and good for the environment: Frost approves.

The blend of the two flavours really works. It tastes fresh and refreshing. The peppermint soothes the digestion and naturally sweet, soothing licorice calms and nourish. I don’t put sugar in herbal teas but this tea is great for people with a sweet tooth. It definitely doesn’t taste bland. If you love licorice you will love it. It is a good, delicious, healthy tea. Get someone to try it if they think herbal tea is boring, it will prove them wrong.

It is caffeine-free and ethically sourced with 100% organically grown ingredients.

A really great tea.


Pukka Herbs celebrates 10 years in business

This year marks the tenth birthday of herbal innovators, Pukka Herbs.

Founded in 2002 by Sebastian Pole and Tim Westwell based on their mutual passion for natural health and wellbeing and the principals of Ayurveda (traditional Indian medicine), Pukka has grown into an international success story, employing 45 people in the UK and is sold in around 40 countries across the globe including the United States and throughout Europe.

Over the last decade, Pukka Herbs has used the finest organic herbs to optimise health and wellbeing. One of only a handful of totally organic businesses (certified by the Soil Association) Pukka inspires and educates people to live healthier, more sustainable lives. Their portfolio includes 23 premium herbal teas, a collection of skincare (11 products) and over 75 food supplements.

Everything that Pukka produces is inspired by Ayurveda – ‘the art of living wisely’. This ancient Indian wisdom empowers us to look after our health in harmony with nature and, as a result, all products have a functional benefit that is drawn from the high quality herbs used in each blend. Everything Pukka is free from synthetic flavour and colour.

As an ethical business, Pukka strives to be responsible for its actions. Their commitment to the environment ensures that they plant over 20 million plants and trees every year and invest in renewable and sustainable energy projects as well as reforestation programmes with Climate Care. Pukka works with farmers on long term regeneration projects and uses FSC certified and recyclable materials for marketing literature and product packaging.

NEW for 2012 – Revamped Original Ayurvedic blends

Pukka has rebranded their original teas – Relax, Refresh and Revitalise – that were launched when Pukka started in 2002. Retaining the vibrancy and iconic recognition of these incredible teas, we have updated the design and copy to reflect the importance of our heritage in Ayurveda and to educate consumers on the authenticity of the blends.

NEW selection pack

In response to consumer demand, Pukka launches a selection pack of award-winning teas as part of its 10th birthday celebrations.

Containing four sachets of five bestselling blends Three Mint, Three Ginger, Three Tulsi, Three Green and Three Fennel, Pukka’s selection pack offers first-time consumers an exciting introduction to Pukka’s tea portfolio.

This selection pack will be launched at a time in which the herbal and green tea categories have seen a lift in consumer spend (up 2% and 5% respectively in 2011 to £74m*). *Source: Mintel Feb 2012

Pukka Herbs and WWF UK ‘Create a beautiful World’ together in 2012

Throughout 2012, as part of their 10th Birthday celebrations, Pukka Herbs is working with world famous conservation charity WWF UK to help ‘Create a Beautiful World’ – one that is vibrant, integrated and healthy.

Every year Pukka creates hundreds of acres of organic land for growing herbs that creates jobs for farmers and collectors, but also brings beauty into our everyday lives. Every pack of Pukka tea makes the world – whether on the shelf in your kitchen, or farmland in rural India – a more beautiful place.

In supporting the work of WWF UK, Pukka aims to raise in excess of £50,000 for conservation projects across the world – initially through a 20p donation from each sale of their special Peppermint and Licorice tea, and then through a year-long fund raising campaign and viral public film competition to be premiered in November 2012.

Throughout the summer, Pukka will be inviting the public to upload photos and clips to their Facebook page of their own personal ‘beautiful world’ – anything from their children laughing, to a sunset, to a merry-go-round, to their pukka tea shelf – whatever they believe brings beauty into their world. Combined with footage from Pukka and WWF, the clips will be created into 5 minute short films by students and filmmakers. The most popular films as voted for by the public will be screened at an environmentally friendly premier in November.

To support sales of the organic Peppermint and Licorice tea (certified FairWild licorice) in the health food trade and retail industry where the brand has grown, Pukka will be providing support in the form of promotional materials to help create theatre in store and build momentum and awareness of the charitable aims of the partnership.

Pukka will also be bringing out their first range of gorgeous, environmentally sensitive merchandise to showcase the campaign – once again helping people to ‘Create a Beautiful World’ in their every day lives. Profits from the sale of these exclusive items will go to WWF UK.

Sebastian Pole, co-founder and herbal director of Pukka Herbs, says: ‘When we started Pukka in 2002, we wanted to create a totally organic business that inspired people to live healthier, more sustainable lives. It seems only natural that as we celebrate ten years of bringing the power of plants into people’s lives, we also take the time to remember and celebrate the amazing planet that lets us do this.

Each year, we plant over 20 million plants and trees and invest in renewable energy, sustainable projects and reforestation programmes. We work with our growers, customers and consumers on a one to one basis to ensure that everyone profits from being involved with Pukka: sensually, healthily, ecologically and socially. Most importantly, we strive to leave nature in an ever richer, more glorious state than how we found her.

Partnering with WWF to promote our shared conservation values seemed the perfect next step. With a whole host of exciting activities going on over the next 12 months we hope to exceed our target of raising £50,000 to support their important international work.’

Commenting on the partnership, Rachel Bloodworth from WWF said: ‘We are delighted to be working with Pukka Herbs in their tenth birthday year – their dedication to supporting the natural environment and creating a beautiful world is perfectly aligned with our goals. Over the past 50 years, WWF has achieved countless successes from preserving existing species such as mountain gorillas, polar bears and giant pandas, to helping the development of international agreements for the protection of the planet – none of which would be possible without the continued support of dedicated individuals and companies like Pukka.’

“This is Pukka’s first ever consumer campaign and so they sought out the skills and expertise of communications agency Neo to help develop the campaign ideas. Neo only work with organisations that are changing the world for better and have worked with WWF UK on previous projects including their 2012 global ‘Earth Hour’ campaign. Account Director Nicole Bradfield comments on working with Pukka, “Creating an engaging platform for Pukka to bring their brand story to life and share their commitment to creating a beautiful world is a fantastic project. Their work to protect and enhance our natural world is a brilliant story and we’re delighted to be helping Pukka communicate it. We’re especially looking forward to seeing the public’s interpretation of their beautiful worlds weave together to become a stunning piece of filmmaking.”

You can find out more about these projects and how you can get involved at www.pukkaherbs.com/beautifulworld

Celebrities help WWF go ‘under the hammer’ for tigers

WWF supporters, Kelly Hoppen, Graeme Le Saux and Jo wood will today help launch a special online auction, raising funds for tiger conservation.

Items ranging from tiger print Jimmy Choo shoes to an eco-gold tiger paw bracelet, exclusively co-designed by Sabine Roemer and Jo Wood, will be available to bid for. The auction began at 10am Friday 1 June and will end at 12pm Friday 10 August 2012. To make your bid you can go to: www.wwf.org.uk/auction4tigers

The auction follows on from WWF’s Year of the Tiger campaign which began in 2010 – the Chinese year of the tiger – and aims to double wild tiger numbers by the next year of the tiger, in 2022.

Auctions items:

• Jimmy Choo Bag

• Jimmy Choo Shoes

• Tiger print signed by Ronnie Wood

• Tiger t-shirt and swimming costume designed by Melissa Odabash

• 18ct tiger necklace by Fifi Bijoux

• Signed Andy Murray t-shirt from Australian Open 2012

• 100cm tiger plush toy donated by Keel Toys

• Kelly Hoppen Design School place – Sept 2012

• Handcrafted bracelet by Sabine Roemer co-designed with Jo wood

• Panda print signed by Sir Peter Scott, WWF’s Founding Chairman

• 12 month WWF tiger adoption pack and Panda Made Me Do It t-shirt

• Tiger print by wildlife photographer Roger Hooper

Heather Sohl, senior species policy officer at WWF-UK said:

“There are now thought to be as few as 3,200 tigers left in the wild, and their numbers have fallen by about 95 per cent over the last century. Wild tigers desperately need our support if they are to survive. By taking part in WWF’s online auction you can make a bid and help raise crucial funds to protect them from threats such as poaching and habitat loss. Plus, it’s not every day that you can get yourself a pair of tiger print Jimmy Choo’s and do your bit to help save a species! We really appreciate the support we have received from Kelly, Graeme and Jo, and initiatives like this will go a long way to help WWF’s work to double wild tiger numbers by 2022.”

For more information, or to make a bid, please visit: www.wwf.org.uk/auction4tigers