Stella McCartney is releasing a capsule supporting Greenpeace’s campaign to stop deforestation in the Amazon, which is fuelled by industrial agriculture and meat production. The initiative embodies a shared commitment to protecting the planet and wildlife, and jointly celebrates the two organisations’ respective 20^th and 50^th anniversaries. Launched as part of the Summer 2021 collection, the Stella x Greenpeace capsule pieces feature graphics inspired by vintage eco activist designs on two t-shirts and two sweatshirts made from a soft organic cotton in pale blue and white marble colourways.

“Stella McCartney has been a vegetarian brand since day one, and I could not be prouder to support an incredible organisation like Greenpeace to celebrate our anniversaries and raise awareness of this urgent issue. I hope things do not return to normal in 2021 – rather, I hope we return to life more mindful, particularly when it comes to our decisions. Precious forests, like the Amazon, should not be destroyed to produce industrial meat sold around the world. Simply reducing meat in your diet can help protect the Amazon from deforestation and safeguard this vital ecosystem and our climate for future generations,” says Stella McCartney.

Inspired by its McCartney A to Z Manifesto, Stella McCartney is going into its 20^th year more committed than ever to bringing a conscience to the fashion industry – staying accountable to its sustainable values and using the most desirable luxury products to communicate messages of positive change. Evolving its conscious leadership through innovation and investment in new materials, the brand has never used leather, feathers, fur or exotic skins since it was founded in 2001 – with all of its shoes and accessories entirely vegan, including its iconic Falabella bag.

Deforestation in the Amazon reached a 12-year high in 2020. Fires often follow deforestation to clear land for industrial meat production and, in 2020, official data showed an area larger than the UK was burned across Brazil as a whole. Burning is used to clear and prepare deforested land for cattle to graze or to grow soya for animal feed in factory farms. Some of the meat and dairy produced is sent to supermarket shelves and fast food restaurants in the UK and across the world. This negatively impacts the climate, with deforestation releasing billions of tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and reducing the number of healthy trees able to absorb greenhouse gases.

In addition to endangering millions of animals in the Amazon and other important habitats as well as fuelling climate change, Brazil’s Indigenous peoples are on the frontlines of this crisis, which is threatening their homes, livelihoods and even lives. Greenpeace has a longstanding history of campaigning to protect the Amazon rainforest and other forests internationally. The organisation’s presence on the ground in the region, as well as in over 40 countries around the world, makes it best placed to put global pressure on the industries responsible for driving deforestation.

Since 2014, Stella McCartney has committed to being a zero-deforestation brand by never sourcing from ancient or endangered forests – having achieved this in 2016, with the majority of its viscose now coming from sustainably managed trees in Sweden. It additionally uses sustainably sourced paper and wood, including in the soles of its Elyse platform shoes. As part of its Winter 2019 show, Stella’s #ThereSheGrows campaign encouraged audience members and the public to raise awareness and protect the Leuser Ecosystem rainforest in Sumatra; helping to reforest the planet, each Winter 2020 show guest was given a sapling that they either took home or it was planted in Paris as part of a local agroforestry project.

The Stella McCartney x Greenpeace capsule prices range from €265 to €595 and will be exclusively available at stellamccartney.com as well as select retailers globally beginning April 2021.