KERING FORREST BURN

Kering brands are banding together to donate a total of one million Australian dollars, or nearly $700,000, to local organizations in Australia working to fight the country’s wildfires, the group said in a statement Tuesday.

The group’s sustainability experts will select the organizations that will receive the funds, it added. In the longer term, the group, which owns fashion labels Gucci, Saint Laurent and Balenciaga as well as jewelry brands Boucheron and Qeelin, plans to take part in reforestation and biodiversity programs.

Wildfires ripping across Australia have killed dozens of people, destroyed homes and claimed the lives of thousands of animals, prompting an outpouring of support from around the world. The country’s entertainment and fashion industries are rallying behind relief efforts with over 50 fashion and beauty businesses, including David Jones, Country Road Group, Alex Perry, Dion Lee, Toni Maticevski and Elle Macpherson’s WelleCo pledging donations. The Australian government plans a 1.4 billion Australian dollar, bushfire recovery fund and has deployed thousands of defense force reservists as well as 14 million Australian dollars in additional funding for water-bombing aircraft.

Kering, which is spearheading the Fashion Pact, a pledge of fashion industry companies to commit to environmentally minded goals, last year climbed the ranks of most sustainable companies across industries, to reach number two of the Corporate Knights Global 100 Index.