At Cocofloss, giving back to the environment and the communities that support us is interwoven into our DNA. That’s why we’ve partnered with San Francisco–based Wildlife Conservation Network (WCN), an inspiring nonprofit dedicated to assisting communities in 37 countries as they work to protect 87 different wildlife species. (Be sure to check out their website for a few moments of awww-worthy animal footage.)
We’ll proudly be donating $10,000 per year to help this remarkable organization’s conservation efforts, beginning with boosting an important reforestation project in Brazil, along with supporting the work of three WCN partners: Global Penguin Society, Painted Dog Conservation, and Spectacled Bear Conservation.
This 4-Spool Eco Set is packed with benefits — for you and the planet!
What You Can Do
You can help, too! For starters, $5 from every purchase of our 4-Spool Eco Set will go to WCN. Locals in Brazil will use that donation to plant thousands of tree seedlings in the Atlantic Forest, eventually resulting invaluable additional habitat for native wildlife, including at least 18 endangered species. 🌳🐒
So not only will your 4-Piece Cocofloss gift set — part of our Paradise for Your Smile Collection — come with the benefit of gum bliss, it will also benefit our beautiful planet! 🌎💚
Why WCN?
We ❤️ how WCN takes a holistic approach to protecting endangered animals “by supporting conservationists who ensure wildlife and people co-exist and thrive.” They help “conservation entrepreneurs” connect with local communities, lobby for habitat protection and wildlife corridors, facilitate environmental education, and conduct scientific research.
WCN also assists conservationists as they raise funds and strategize how best to use them, while sharing best practices globally so their projects can pack the most punch. Sort of sounds like a United Nations for saving some of the most amazing wild creatures on Earth!
WCN has promised to give 100% of our donations to wildlife conservation efforts, with no overhead costs. This quote from their website says it all: “Essentially, we treat every donation as if our grandmother had given it to us to do good.” ’Nuff said.
An expert in agroforestry, Dr. Laury Cullen, Jr. trains farmers to grow crops such as coffee under a canopy of native trees, helping both the local people and the wildlife to prosper.
Money on a Mission in Brazil
We think grandma would approve of how Cocofloss’s donations to WCN will help fund reforestation efforts in Brazil through a local organization called Instituto de Pesquisas Ecológias (IPÊ). Co-founded by Brazilian forestry engineer Dr. Laury Cullen, Jr. in 1992, IPÊ has already established a 6,000 hectare wildlife corridor — Brazil's first and largest corridor — linking the two largest protected areas of the interior Atlantic Forest in the state of Sao Paulo.
Now this formidable nonprofit has set ambitious goals to achieve by 2025: Plant 15 million native trees and protect a total of 60,000 hectares, while restoring an additional 5,000 hectares. They estimate this project will generate $10 million in local income through reforestation services alone, with additional income through community nurseries and agroforestry products.
To reach this high goal, IPÊ takes the sustainable approach of training local farmers in “agroforestry,” which integrates planting native trees with producing food crops or pastureland — creating greater profits for both the farmers and the forest. Dr. Cullen says, “We win because we now have an army of people helping to plant new forest, and the small landholders win because they get to make a living.”
Linking tracts of land to create wildlife corridors is essential to the survival of the Atlantic Forest’s 18 endangered species.
We Speak for the Trees (and the Tamarins)
With your help, Cocofloss’s donation will buy thousands of diverse tree seedlings (over 100 different native species) for the Atlantic Forest — a wet, tropical region where trees grow quickly, giving hope for a speedy recovery. Locals will plant these sprouts to create additional habitat that links tracts of land to bolster the essential wildlife corridor. The project will also directly employ 200 people from poor, rural communities.
Even more, a total of at least 18 known endangered species live in this forest. Dr. Cullen says, “The Mata Atlântica [Atlantic Forest] is the very top ecosystem for endemism on the planet — 55 percent of the animals and plants found here are found nowhere else.” As a result of IPÊ’s past work, the endemic black lion tamarin was downlisted from “critically endangered” to “endangered” — a big win for conservation efforts — and many other threatened species now have much larger areas of linked habitats.
Walk on the Wild Side
Here are a few of the unusual critters you might find if you were to take an Indiana Jones–style expedition into Brazil’s Atlantic Forest. Grab your hat!
This monkey matters! Only about 1,000 black lion tamarins live in the world.
Black Lion Tamarins
Once considered extinct, this hairy, hoppy monkey lives almost exclusively in Morro do Diabo State Park in the Atlantic Forest. They sport a black, mane-like crest around their faces (giving them their names), a bright golden rump, and a tail that’s longer than their body.
Black lion tamarins have a complex communication system, using a series of “clucks,” gestures, and screams as alerts and mating calls. Perhaps smartest of all: they raise their young as a group.
An ocelot kitten’s baby blue eyes will turn brown as it matures — and will see just as well at night as we do during the day.
Ocelots
Double the size of a domestic kitty, ocelots are slinky, spotted cats that mostly live in South American rain forests, but have been found roaming as far north as Texas. Unlike your average “Fluffy,” ocelots don’t mind water and are strong swimmers. They eat small rodents, frogs, and fish, but they’ll also climb trees to catch a monkey. Watch out, tamarins!
Winner of the quirky-cute award, baby tapirs have camouflaging spots and stripes that make them look like fuzzy watermelons.
Tapirs
Dainty they’re not — tapirs look a bit like a cross between an anteater and a wild boar — but these endangered land mammals are still called “the gardeners of the forest.” That’s because they gorge on fruit and then help disperse seeds throughout the forest, leading to habitat diversity and a healthy ecosystem. 💩
As babies, tapirs are covered in stripes and spots that make them resemble fuzzy, wide-eyed watermelons.
Jaguars have been called “the sumo wrestler of the animal world” due to their power and stocky build.
Jaguars
Lions and tigers and jaguars, oh my! The third-largest feline on the planet (after the other two feared by Dorothy), jaguars are residents of remote regions of South and Central America. They take prey by surprise, ambushing them with explosive force and then crushing their skull between powerful jaws — unlike other wild cats that go for the jugular or underbelly.
Jaguars are not easily tamed and so are rarely seen in zoos or animal acts. Revered by the Mayans and other pre-Columbian cultures, they were known as the “God of the Underworld” or the “Night Sun.”
Listen as a bare-throated bellbird unleashes his metallic “serenade,” which can be heard echoing across the Atlantic Forest in Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay.
Bare-Throated Bellbirds
One of the loudest birds on Earth, the male bare-throated bellbird prefers to perch on the tallest trees in the canopy. Then it opens its turquoise-feathered throat wide and pierces the sky with its metallic-like “song” — like a hammer smashing into an anvil. Apparently for female bellbirds, this striking courtship call is like a sexy Harry Styles serenade.
Bare-throated bellbirds are particularly in need of protection, as their beautiful bright white and blue feathers make them targets for the caged-bird trade.
