Siegwerk, global provider of printing inks and coatings for packaging applications and labels, has launched CIRKIT NOVASEAL, a new dedicated portfolio of heat seal lacquers (HSL) within its CIRKIT coatings brand.  The new product family is said to deliver reliable and consistent sealing performance for fiber-based and selected flexible packaging solutions, supporting brand owners and

The Phoenix Challenge Foundation is honored to announce the formal adoption of Flexography in the Classroom© as an official educational resource across all of its high school and career center programs. This milestone marks the latest addition to the Foundation’s growing educational tool box, reinforcing its commitment to advancing industry knowledge and workforce readiness in

Cary, North Carolina based Container Graphics Corp. (CGC), an industry leader specializing in high-performance tooling and technical solutions for the corrugated industry, has announced a series of transitions in its Northeast leadership group. After 28 years, Oscar Roque, Vice President of International Sales, retired from the company on June 1, 2026. Oscar’s CGC career spanned

Grupo Flexografico, a label converter based in León, Guanajuato, Mexico, has installed a Cartes GT364HFSR, adding hot foil stamping, flexography, traditional screen printing and semi-rotary die-cutting capability within a single converting line. Last year, the company invested in a Nilpeter FA-17 press configured with eight printing units, a Pantec embellishment unit, GEW drying technology and

Chicago, Illinois based JohnsByrne, a leading provider of premium packaging and display solutions, announced the release of its first-ever Responsibility & Sustainability: Our Approach & Impact 2025 report, outlining the company’s progress, commitments, and strategy for advancing environmental and social responsibility. The report offers a comprehensive look at how JohnsByrne integrates sustainability across its operations,

Wikoff, Fort Mill, South Carolina, has named David Donnelly as Chief Operations Officer. Donnelly, who joined Wikoff in 2025 as director of the Project Management Office (PMO), will now assume responsibility for all core operational functions. In his new role, Donnelly will oversee manufacturing, supply chain, quality, environmental health and safety, PMO and IT, bringing

AICC, The Independent Packaging Association, will host two webinars designed to help packaging industry leaders stay informed about the latest employment law developments and workforce management challenges. These webinars are available free of charge to AICC members in good standing.  Managing and retaining employees is one of the most important priorities for independent packaging companies.

AICC has announced the promotion of Rebecca Rendon to Director of Education and Leadership Development effective July 1. Since joining AICC as Senior Manager of Education in 2024, she has been actively involved in AICC by participating in the AICC Emerging Leaders Program and the Women’s Advisory Group, where she has contributed her insights and

During the FINAT European Label Forum 2026, held in Seville from 27 to 29 May, FINAT announced the appointment of Dana Kilárska as President and Vito Giurazza as Vice President of the association.  On the same occasion, outgoing President Philippe Voet and former President Chris Ellison were appointed Honorary Members in recognition of their service

According to Lesprom Network, Ontario is investing $10 million in Georgia-Pacific North Woods to support a $191 million upgrade of the company’s oriented strand board plant in Englehart, with the project set to increase production by 14 percent and protect more than 220 jobs at the site. The Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources said the

We are thrilled to be included in this recently published video wiki “Green Groups Helping To Offset Carbon Emissions,” Details about our work start ~2:35 in the video. Please watch and share! 6 Green Groups Helping To Offset Carbon Emissions (ezvid.com) History of Wiki.ezvid.com Established in 2011, Wiki.ezvid.com is a free-to-use video wiki published by the California technology company Ezvid Inc. Wikis are generally architected around a video, whereby a user is introduced to a concept in the space of a four-to-seven minute video presentation, and then additional text, images, data, and links to third-party information sources are provided to add more detail to each topic. The gentle nature of Ezvid’s introductions to thousands of topics renders the Wiki particularly useful for teaching environments. Ezvid Wiki evolved from the message board surrounding Ezvid For Windows, first released in 2010. In those years it has grown from a small user-generated forum into the largest and most comprehensive video wiki on the planet, providing useful, unbiased information and actionable guidance to hundreds of millions of users around the world, in thousands of knowledge categories. You can contribute your own ideas and research to Ezvid Wiki by using Ezvid Wikimaker.

  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE     Reforest the Tropics and New England Biolabs®, Inc. enter into agreement to plant 100 hectares of forest to offset carbon emissions Mystic, CT and Ipswich, MA (August 15, 2019): Reforest The Tropics (RTT), a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization based in Mystic, Connecticut and New England Biolabs, Inc. (NEB®), a global leader in the production of reagents for the life science industry, announce that they have entered into an agreement to plant 100 hectares (247 acres) of new tropical forest in Costa Rica. This project will offset the emissions generated by NEB’s headquarters, located in Ipswich, MA, which houses over 450 of NEB’s employees. The reforestation project will conservatively sequester over 50,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent in the initial 25-year contract period. The forest carries the potential to capture and store an additional 50,000 metric tons of CO2 in a subsequent 25-year contract term. The project will offset approximately 20% of the current emissions generated by NEB’s operations in Ipswich. In addition to offsetting a significant portion of NEB’s carbon footprint, the project will create an important habitat for countless animals in Costa Rica, including some threatened and endangered species. Local communities in Costa Rica will benefit from improved water quality, job creation, and other economic opportunities as well. “At NEB, we continuously advocate for and implement ecologically sound practices and environmental sustainability in order to protect our natural resources, both locally and globally,” states Jim Ellard, CEO of New England Biolabs. “We are

‘Ex-Reducer Hugh Birdsall reaches out to youth with Reforest the Tropics environmental group’ ‘When New London pub rockers The Reducers toured Japan in 2004 and guitarist/vocalist Hugh Birdsall looked out from a Tokyo stage at a venue stuffed with screaming young fans, he probably figured it was as close as he’d ever get to living a Beatles/”Hard Day’s Night” mob-adulation moment. That’s probably still true. But the satisfaction Birdsall feels today, as an educational consultant for the environmental group Reforest the Tropics, speaking to classrooms full of young students about climate change, is an even more important and resonant experience. Birdsall says, “The planet is in trouble. We are in trouble. But it’s one thing to alert someone to an external crisis and quite another thing to look inward and find out what our relationship to the planet is. That’s what I try to convey to students and, ultimately, it’s up to them to answer that question. But I can ask, ‘Does the planet belong to us or do we belong to the planet?'” Reforest the Tropics is a Mystic-based nonprofit organization that works with farmers in Costa Rica to plant trees on their land to help offset carbon dioxide emissions. The group is sanctioned by the United Nations and works to mitigate climate change by sustainable forestry and long term carbon sequestration. Part of their efforts involve conducting programs and workshops with more than two dozen schools across Connecticut including both the New London and Norwich magnet schools. These

For decades, Reforest The Tropics has been measuring the productivity of its forest plantations. In June 2017, for the first time, RTT contracted with an accredited third party, EARTH University, to verify its carbon claims under the protocols established by the International Organization of Standards. The results are fantastic news for RTT and anyone with an interest in global sustainability. Verified forests are averaging 23.66 metric tons (MT) of CO2e capture per hectare, per year! To help put this into perspective, most literature on tropical reforestation demonstrates carbon capture of 10-15 MT of CO2e capture under favorable conditions. In other words, RTT is essentially doubling the carbon capacity of current, successful reforestation projects. One of RTT’s longstanding research goals was to design a mixed-species forest that can capture and store an average of at least 20 MT of CO2e per hectare, per year. Internally, we recognized this target was ambitious, however we have maintained the belief that lofty goals are fundamental to fulfillment of our mission of ‘making a tangible contribution to global sustainability.’ Not only have we met this objective, but we are exceeding it. The amazing carbon capture of RTT forests is only part of the story however. Two additional pieces distinguish the RTT approach: RTT’s mixed-species forests are more beneficial to the biome than ubiquitous single species monocultures, and RTT forests are designed to generate perpetual income, which allows partnering landowners to participate in the project over the long-term. Essentially, RTT is planting some of the worlds

This is the 2.5 acre, 5 ½-year old forest established by Reforest The Tropics for the CO2-emissions account of the Westerly, RI Middle School.  In a 25-year contract between RTT and the farmer, this forest is legally dedicated to sequestering and storing CO2 for this school’s account.  So far, it has captured 42 metric tonnes of CO2 equivalent at 5 years of age when last measured.  That’s 92,500 lbs of CO2, the equivalent of 4,625 gallons of diesel used in their school buses offset in this forest.

The scientific world was shaken recently with a report published in Nature, lead-authored by Joeri Rogelj of the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, which suggested that that we have already crossed an important global sustainability threshold. The report argues that, “the window for limiting warming to below 1.5 degrees Celsius with high probability and without temporarily exceeding that level already seems to have closed.” Under conventional thinking, it is undoubtedly closed, however we can still achieve our sustainability goals through negative-emissions technologies. The report makes the case, as have others, that emissions reduction strategies alone are ineffective. In other words, if we don’t start aggressively removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, we are in deep trouble.   Readers of this newsletter, and followers of Reforest The Tropics in general are already well aware of this reality. We have been showing the math for years. There is simply too much CO2 already present in the atmosphere. We have reminded supporters that the residency rate of atmospheric CO2 is hundreds of years and we have drawn the inescapable conclusion that if we do not pull it out of the atmosphere in large quantities, then all our emissions reductions efforts are futile. We have shared the knowledge that even if we were to reduce our emissions to zero, today, the planet would still experience significant climate change due to the longevity of existing, excessive CO2. Of course, the only reliable, efficient, and safe means of accomplishing large-scale carbon extraction is through massive

RTT recently launched an exciting new module to its educational program. In photos taken in both Costa Rica and Rhode Island, Greg Powell, the RTT Director, is giving a presentation about RTT forests to students at the Westerly Middle School. Greg, and RTT Forestry Engineer, Victor Martinez were able to make the presentation from Costa Rica using video-conferencing equipment funded by The Rotary Club of Westerly. Students were able to ask RTT staff questions about their forest in real time and learn about the importance of reforestation as well as specific elements of RTT’s reforestation approach. This level of connectivity between a school and their efforts towards sustainability is truly unique. RTT believes this type of engagement will foster a deeper understanding of the issues surrounding global sustainability for students throughout the region, moving forward.

This past February marked the 10th consecutive month in which the average global temperature set a record for warmth. Scientists are warning that the current rate of warming is unprecedented in the known history of our planet. As our globe continues to warm, it is becoming increasingly clear to even the most entrenched skeptics that we have a responsibility to address the excess carbon dioxide in our atmosphere. When a corporation, institution, individual, or other entity wishes to balance their carbon emissions, they often first turn towards efficiency measures. Light bulbs are changed, insulation is installed, packaging is reduced, transportation is addressed, and other activities are pursued that limit energy use and reduce carbon emissions. Even the most aggressive investments into energy efficiency however will not yield carbon neutrality. The one option to balance remaining carbon emissions is the pursuit of carbon offset projects. The World Bank has stated that carbon is the world’s fastest growing commodities market, with an annual value approaching $200 billion.  These carbon offsets come in various forms. Most common are credits that are given for renewable energy projects (solar, wind, geothermal, etc), improved forest management (managing forests in a manner that allows them to store more carbon than the norm), credits for avoided deforestation or degradation (the UN’s REDD mechanism allots credits to countries that limit deforestation beyond historical averages) and reforestation. Fraud in the carbon market A closer look at the inner workings of these strategies, however, exposes some uncomfortable realities. Horror stories of

When speaking with various stakeholders, we at Reforest The Tropics, often find ourselves talking about the “quality” of different carbon offsets. We maintain that all sustainability efforts are important and worthwhile, however the carbon offsets generated from tropical reforestation projects carry a special significance. Only carbon credits that are created from NEW forests are taking carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere. Offsets that are created through energy efficiency programs (think wind, solar, etc) or conservation programs (i.e. avoided deforestation, improved forest management) are only addressing the small yellow circle seen above. Of course, we need to shrink that circle to the extent that is possible, but we must not do so at the expense of ignoring the centuries of excess CO2 that has accumulated (represented by the checkered arc) in the atmosphere. This distinction is extremely important when we view the proportions of the carbon problem that we must tackle. THERE IS HOPE… The diagram on the left demonstrates the importance of carbon extraction strategies. The planet shares the collective goal and responsibility to reduce atmospheric CO2 levels to approximately 745 Gt CO2 (or 350 parts per million). Currently, the atmosphere contains approximately 850 Gt (or 400 parts per million). Most climate change strategies are currently focusing on limiting the 10 Gt CO2 that are being emitted each year. Although carbon emissions reduction is very important, this graphic illustrates the relatively small impact these efforts have on the climate equation. Due to the longevity of CO2 in the atmosphere (500-800