Ricoh partners with PrintReleaf for reforestation support

Ricoh has entered into a partnership with PrintReleaf in Australia to support customers with sustainability programs by offsetting paper consumption through reforestation projects.

PrintReleaf, which is facilitated by Dynamic Software Solutions (DSS), converts an organisation's paper footprint into new trees. As users consume paper in their printers, the platform plants an equivalent volume of trees in targeted forests or offsets the related carbon emissions through verified projects worldwide.

Sul Koralege, Product Manager at Ricoh Australia, highlighted the importance of the company's commitment to sustainability by partnering with DSS. "PrintReleaf can be directly integrated into existing managed print service monitoring software, thus automating the collection of data," said Koralege. "The platform's cloud-based infrastructure and unique APIs allow customers to get involved without requiring any additional hardware or software in the printer fleet."

Koralege explained further, "PrintReleaf gathers the data and then reverse calculates how many trees were required and how much carbon was emitted as a result of the paper being consumed. Trees are then automatically replanted at certified global reforestation projects of the customer's choice. As an example, approximately 8,333 A4 sheets of paper is equivalent to one standard tree while 117,647 sheets represents one metric tonne of CO2."

Launched in March 2014 and based in Boulder, Colorado, PrintReleaf is currently utilised by over 40,000 organisations worldwide. The company manages certified reforestation projects in various countries, including Brazil, India, Ireland, Mexico, and the United States.

"The entire process is completely automated with end-to-end integration from printers through to the planting of trees," explained Andrew Tsiorvas, General Manager of Dynamic Software Solutions. "The ecosystem is also verified by independent third-party verifiers." According to Tsiorvas, DSS appreciates Ricoh's green initiatives and its strong commitment to sustainability.

"The company has an unwavering commitment to achieving a sustainable society through comprehensive environmental, social and governance initiatives, all of which align with DSS's own green credentials as well as those of PrintReleaf," stated Tsiorvas.

Koralege expects Australian organisations to embrace the option to mitigate their environmental impact via an automated sustainability programme. "PrintReleaf makes it easy for them to understand the impact of their printing and offset that impact to make a positive difference for the planet," Koralege said. "Customers will receive a certificate for each biomass or carbon offset issued as well as annual and lifetime summaries which are continually updated."

"We welcome our partnership with DSS and believe that PrintReleaf will provide our customers with genuine and concrete environmental benefits in the years ahead. It offers a highly reliable and practical system for sustainable printing and is a vehicle through which our customers can monitor and reduce their environmental impact," Koralege added.