Planet Ark Environmental Foundation is an Australian

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

environmental organization founded in 1992. Planet Ark aims to partner with organizations in the public and private sectors to help find ways to reduce impact on

planet Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all of Earth's water is ...

. The focus areas are the environmental impacts of human consumption in the home, the workplace, and the community. Planet Ark's campaigns include
Cartridges 4 Planet Ark
, Australia's
National Recycling Week
, and the country's biggest annual community

tree planting Tree planting is the process of transplanting tree seedlings, generally for forestry, land reclamation, or landscaping purposes. It differs from the transplantation of larger trees in arboriculture and from the lower-cost but slower and les ...

event
National Tree Day
The organisation operates from its office in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

. In May 2025, it was placed in

voluntary administration As a legal concept, administration is a procedure under the insolvency laws of a number of common law jurisdictions, similar to bankruptcy in the United States. It functions as a rescue mechanism for insolvent entities and allows them to carry on ...

History

Ark Australia was founded in 1992 by Paul Klymenko, Peter Shenstone, and former Ark UK member Jon Dee. At the time, curbside recycling was in its infancy, and environmental information was very limited. The organization was commissioned to create 300 "Save the Planet" videos involving high profile celebrities and soon became known as Planet Ark. Several major events are organized by Planet Ark, including National Tree Day, founded in 1996 with

Olivia Newton-John Dame Olivia Newton-John (26 September 1948 – 8 August 2022) was a British and Australian singer and actress. With over 100 million records sold, Newton-John was one of the List of best-selling music artists#100 million to 119 million record ...

; National Recycling Week; and the Schools Recycle Right Challenge. The organization began many high profile campaigns that have since either moved to other providers or become staples of the public recycling sphere, including 'Cards 4 Planet Ark', 'Phones for Planet Ark', Steel Can and Aluminum Can (Al Cans) recycling. To demonstrate that

cleaning products Cleaning is the process of removing unwanted substances, such as dirt, infectious agents, and other impurities, from an object or environment. Cleaning is often performed for beauty, aesthetic, hygiene, hygienic, Function (engineering), function ...

could be as effective without a heavy chemical composition, Planet Ark released the Aware Laundry Powder range in 1994. This was soon followed by 100% recycled toilet tissue. In May 2025, it was placed in

Campaigns

Planet Ark's campaigns seek to promote positive action that directly changes people's behavior. The organization intends to be non-political and non-confrontational, aiming to unite people and business in action. Planet Ark's main objectives are to promote

sustainable Sustainability is a social goal for people to co-exist on Earth over a long period of time. Definitions of this term are disputed and have varied with literature, context, and time. Sustainability usually has three dimensions (or pillars): env ...

resource use, encourage low carbon lifestyles, and connect people with nature. Planet Ark works with businesses and endorses a number of commercial products it considers to be environmentally friendly in production and manufacture, including recycled toilet paper, cleaning products, and car tires. Planet Ark's campaigns include: * National Tree Day is Australia's largest tree-planting and nature care event. 2014 was the biggest year in the event's history, with more than 4,000 sites and events and almost 300,000 people taking part, with similar numbers participating every year. * National Recycling Week is the annual opportunity for Australian schools, workplaces, councils, and the public to focus on the benefits of recycling. In 2013, more than 70,000 children participated in the Schools Recycling Right Challenge. * Cartridges 4 Planet Ark is a partnership between Planet Ark, the recycling center Close the Loop and six of the largest cartridge manufacturers –

Brother A brother (: brothers or brethren) is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a family, familial relationship, it is sometimes used ende ...

Canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the material accepted as officially written by an author or an ascribed author * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western canon, th ...

Epson Seiko Epson Corporation, commonly known as Epson, is a Japanese multinational electronics company and one of the world's largest manufacturers of printers and information- and imaging-related equipment. Headquartered in Suwa, Nagano, Japan, t ...

, HP,

Konica Minolta is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational technology company headquartered in Marunouchi, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Chiyoda, Tokyo, with offices in 49 countries worldwide. The company manufactures business and industrial imaging products, in ...

and

Kyocera is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational ceramics and electronics manufacturer headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It was founded as in 1959 by Kazuo Inamori and renamed in 1982. It manufactures industrial ceramics, solar power genera ...

. By 2017 more than 30 million cartridges had been diverted from landfill with zero waste to landfill. * BusinessRecycling.com.au is designed to make recycling at work easy. The site lists recycling services for more than 90 different materials ranging from aluminum can to fly ash and from packaging to batteries. The site is made possible through support of the NSW EPA. * RecyclingNearYou.com.au is a comprehensive directory of the recycling services offered by more than 500 councils around Australia. Each year millions of enquiries are made to the site covering items that can go in their home recycling to those items that must be recycled through dedicated schemes. * Make it Australian Recycled was launched in partnership with Australian Paper to promote the practice of purchasing consumer goods made from recycled materials to Australians. * Make it Wood is designed to encourage individuals and businesses to use responsibility sourced wood as a building material. * The Australasian Recycling Label was developed by Planet Ark and Green Chip with the Australian Packaging Covenant Organization to create a standardized labeling system to allow consumers to make better decisions about packaging recyclability.

Celebrity supporters

Celebrities who have fronted Planet Ark campaigns include

Pierce Brosnan Pierce Brendan Brosnan (born 16 May 1953) is an Irish actor and film producer. He was the fifth actor to play the fictional secret agent Portrayal of James Bond in film, James Bond in the List of James Bond films, James Bond film series, starri ...

, Kamahl,

Jamie Durie Jamie Paul Durie (born 3 June 1970) is an Australian horticulturalist and landscape designer, modern furniture, furniture designer, television host, television producer, and author of eleven books on landscape architecture, garden design and ...

Steve Irwin Stephen Robert Irwin (22 February 19624 September 2006), known as "the Crocodile Hunter", was an Australian zookeeper, Conservation movement, conservationist, television personality, wildlife educator, and environmentalist. Irwin grew up ar ...

Kylie Minogue Kylie Ann Minogue (; born 28 May 1968) is an Australian singer, songwriter, and actress. Frequently referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Princess of Pop", she has achieved recognition in both the music industry and fas ...

Dannii Minogue Dannii Minogue (; born 20 October 1971) is an Australian singer, television personality, and actress. As a child, she became known for her appearances on the television talent show ''Young Talent Time'' (1982–1988). She went on to play the r ...

Nicole Kidman Nicole Mary Kidman (born 20 June 1967) is an Australian and American actress and producer. Known for Nicole Kidman on screen and stage, her work in film and television productions across many genres, she has consistently ranked among the world ...

Tom Cruise Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (born July 3, 1962) is an American actor and film producer. Regarded as a Cinema of the United States, Hollywood icon, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Tom Cruise, various accolades, includ ...

Shelley Craft Shelley Craft (born 21 June 1976) is an Australian television personality. She is most well known for her long-running presenting roles on the Seven Network programs '' Saturday Disney'' from 1996 until 2002, and '' The Great Outdoors'' from 2 ...

Richard Branson Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson (born 18 July 1950) is an English business magnate who co-founded the Virgin Group in 1970, and controlled 5 companies remaining of once more than 400. Branson expressed his desire to become an entrepreneu ...

, and TV personality

Tim Webster Tim Webster (born 15 December 1951) is an Australian television and radio personality and sports broadcaster. He held various presenting roles on Network 10 from 1981 until 2008. Career Early career In 1972, Webster started working for B ...

. Current ambassadors include surfer Layne Beachley, TV personality James Treble, ABC's ''

Gardening Australia ''Gardening Australia'' is an Australian lifestyle television program which suggests and promotes organic and environmentally friendly ways of gardening. It is created by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and airs on ABC TV, in an ho ...

'' host Costa Georgiadis, ''Grand Designs Australia'' host

Peter Maddison Peter Maddison is an Australian architect and television presenter. He is best known for presenting the TV series ''Grand Designs Australia'', which has been shown in Australia, New Zealand, the Netherlands and the UK. Early life and education ...

, author Anita Van Dyke, Dr. Amanda Lloyd,

Magdalena Roze Magdalena Roze (born 1982) is an Australian meteorologist, weather presenter and journalist who grew up in Greenacre. She also danced with Lajkonik Sydney and performed in PolArt Adelaide 1994. Early life Roze was a scholarship holder and gra ...

, Ranger Stacey, Candice Dixon, and children's sensation dirtgirlworld. Planet Ark's official spokesperson is environmentalist

Rebecca Gilling Rebecca Gilling (born 3 November 1953) is an Australian former model and actress, now environmentalist. Career Gilling made her debut in theatre in 1972and her debut film role in the 1974 biker film ''Stone (1974 film), Stone'' but came to pr ...

Criticism

Planet Ark's carbon capture and sustainable building materials campaign 'Make it Wood' was criticized by Jon Dee and

Pat Cash Patrick Hart Cash (born 27 May 1965) is an Australian former professional tennis player and coach. He reached a career-high ATP singles ranking of world No. 4 in May 1988 and a career-high ATP doubles ranking of world No. 6 in August 1988. Upo ...

who appeared on television to complain about the links to the timber industry and involvement in drafting the Australian Forestry Standard. which

Nick Xenophon Nick Xenophon ( Nicholas Xenophou; ; born 29 January 1959) is an Australian lawyer and former politician who was a Australian Senate, Senator for South Australia from 2008 until 2017. As a centrist, populist, independent politician, he twice sh ...

has said "raises some serious questions of a potential conflict of interest" and caused

Christine Milne Christine Anne Milne (; born 14 May 1953) is an Australian politician who served as a Senator for Tasmania. She was the leader of the parliamentary caucus of the Australian Greens from 2012 to 2015. Milne stepped down as leader on 6 May 2015, ...

to criticize the organization. Planet Ark responded to the enquiries in a letter explaining its position in detail. The Australian Forestry Standard is an attempt to create an Australian specific standard, as opposed to the international

Forest Stewardship Council The Forest Stewardship Council GmbH (FSC) is an international non-profit, multistakeholder organization established in 1993 that promotes responsible management of the world's forests via timber certification. This organization uses a market-b ...

and Planet Ark recommends choosing FSC wood products.

History

Campaigns

Celebrity supporters

Criticism

See also

References

External links