The future is here, and today People Daily has taken a bold step that signifies a rebirth of this 32-year-old publication.

As we evolve, we have transitioned from bringing you impactful and conversation-driving news at physical newsstands to the digital space, where we will continue to produce enhanced, quality, people-oriented and sustainable journalism informed by the urgency to conserve the environment and secure the future health of the planet. To put it in simple terms, People Daily has gone green.

And central in our new life is a campaign to grow trees. At People Daily, we believe small actions lead to monumental changes. As we commit to a greener future, we embrace simple steps: Reduce, Re-use and Recycle.

As Nobel Laurete Wangari Maathai said: “When we plant trees, we plant the seeds of hope and peace. For us, this is a new beginning, a shift from a structured mode of journalism consumption that is divorcing itself from sentimentality about print newspapers and responding to the changing needs of our consumers.

Journalism insiders have known for a long time that the generation of newspaper readers who loved the smell of ink in a freshly published newspaper that they held in their hands are fading out and we must serve younger generations on the platforms that they hang out.

Our decision was informed by our history, a tradition that has always placed the people, and the public interest, at the centre of our journalism.

Founded in 1992 as a weekly newspaper before transforming into a daily in 1998, People Daily has been instrumental in the agitation for the people’s interests. We have boldly stood for democracy, good governance, the rule of law and constitutionalism.

We also note with pride that People Daily became free in 2004 to advance the public interest. Getting the product to consumers at no cost removed the cost barrier for accessing information for thousands of people who could not otherwise afford it.

In the course of our journey, we have been pragmatic and agile in a manner that responds to the needs of our evolving audiences.

This is one such moment. We are alive to our purpose to generate and distribute useful content in a model that is sensitive to preserving the environment and responds to climate action wherever members of our audience live.

That is why we have decided to deploy a greener and cleaner distribution model that packages news in an elegant and readable manner. As we turn a new leaf on digital media platforms, we will continue to serve our customers with content on how politics affects their lives, current affairs, personal finance, health, lifestyle, sports, culture, science, technology and innovation, education, environment, mental health and awareness.

Ours is a realistic, reasonable response to a bold, new future in a fast-changing content consumption sphere guided by the audience.

We hear that younger people, for example, say that rather than staying neutral on the most important issues of the day – such as human rights, education financing, decent jobs, climate change and police brutality – news organisations need to be bold and declare where they stand. We will not be sit on the fence on matters of life and death, and right and wrong, and this will be reflected in the way we cover and present the news.

We will drive bold conversations that cover issues effecting you, the consumer, wherever you are. We will remain committed servants of the news communities that we serve.

In our new life, we endervour to listen more and give our audiences news that they Can Move With on the desired aspects of their lives and sustain a symbiotic and respectful relationship.

At People Daily we will not practise the brand of journalism that has traditionally been built around elites talking down at audiences. As a text product, were are not an ivory tower, we listen to the People Daily.

We hear the people saying that we must conserve our environment and protect lives from the deadly effects of climate change. People Daily recognises that the impact of paper consumption on the environment is significant. The effects of producing paper include air pollution, waste problems, deforestation, and the use of large amounts of energy and water.

By distributing our content exclusively on digital platforms, not only will we help conserve millions of trees in the long term, we will also reduce our contribution to waste and air pollution. This objective aligns with three of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals – Goal 12: ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns; Goal 13: take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts; Goal 15: protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss.

Today we have decided, that we will no longer cut trees. We will plant trees. We also ask you to inspire others with your green journey and together, let us shape a more sustainable tomorrow.

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