Blog

Climate Emergency

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One small step for you, one giant impact for humankind

If you could only do one thing to minimise your ecological footprint, what would it be? There are so many options, and whilst it is good to have choice, we can find ourselves paralysed by the sheer amount of choice. We elect to use glass bottles instead of plastic, before hearing that this generates more emissions in transport; we buy products accredited as containing sustainable palm oil before discovering we have been<a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/big-business-has-a-new-scam-the-purpose-paradigm/"> deceived</a>; we recycle, before finding out that much of this is ending up in<a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/recycling-waste-uk-overseas-landfill-pollution-nao-environment-defra-a8458991.html"> landfill</a> on the other side of the world.
Whilst it is important to do our research and make the right decisions where we can, wouldn’t it be nice if there was a quick fix out there, where a one-off decision could outsource some of that eco-stress to the people with the time and expertise to see the bigger picture, ensuring maximum impact with minimum effort?
Well, it turns out there are, none more so than:

Since the Paris Climate accord in 2015, banks have invested <a href="https://www.ran.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Banking_on_Climate_Change__2020_vF.pdf">$2.7 trillion</a> in fossil fuel companies (to say nothing of tobacco, arms, gambling and other dubious investments). And unless you are explicitly invested in an environmental scheme, this likely includes<a href="https://www.greenpeace.org.uk/news/barclays-banks-climate-change-fossil-fuels/"> your money</a>. Conversely, it is estimated that it would cost about<a href="https://ourworldindata.org/how-much-will-it-cost-to-mitigate-climate-change"> $300 billion of investment</a> per year to prevent runaway climate change by the oft-cited cut off point of 2030 (so, about $1.5 trillion in total). Strange how we continue to damage our planet almost to the exact extent that we need to do just the opposite. But it at least makes the solution fairly obvious: reinvest the money currently supporting climate-damaging activities into those that support our planet’s health.
Despite being the driver behind so much destructive activity, finance often slips under the rug as a point of focus for those who care about the climate. Because we do not see what our finances are doing on a day to day basis, we do not associate them with the havoc they can cause. But just as factory farms were causing environmental (as well as animal) harm before the public had any idea, so too your finances. In fact, because of the relative wealth of the average western citizen, the choice you make regarding how your money is put to use is likely the most powerful one you can make in terms of your relative impact as an individual.
A common argument is that green investments are riskier, constituting a new and unpredictable market built around unproven, fledgling companies and technology. But this is not born out on the level of data or common sense. Traditionally, fossil fuels have been considered a safe investment because the industrial-era economy was based upon them. But this is beginning to change. As the connection between our economy and the broader ecology on which it is dependent becomes more and more stark, investors are waking up to the unsustainability and counterintuitiveness of deleterious investments and beginning to redivert finance in more positive ways. It is estimated for example that the $380 billion California state pension fund lost out on<a href="https://fossilfreeca.org/2019/11/11/study-ca-and-co-pension-funds-lost-billions-on-fossil-fuels/"> $12 billion dollars</a> because of its decision to uphold investments in fossil fuels over the last ten years. And there is growing evidence to suggest that ESG investments generally (those that look at environmental, social and governance  metrics of company performance, as opposed to merely financial) are<a href="http://www.apple.com/uk"> outperforming conventional investments</a>. 
Another common argument against shifting our finances is that it’s a lot of effort. But whilst the initial cognitive load of researching your options may seem large, the benefit is that, once we’ve made the switch, our finances do the work for us. For most of us, our interaction with our finances constitutes little more than an occasional balance check, so in terms of our day-to-day, investing our money for good requires very little from us. Moreover, with the migration to online (as opposed to high street) financial services, the process takes less time than ever before. No action for the climate comes without effort, but they don’t come much easier than this, especially considering how far that one action can go. 
Of course, the subject is vast and there is no substitute for doing your own research. Whilst this article makes no claim to offering any financial advice, here are a few places to get you started:

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The last year has seen a range of banks announcing new climate change related products, from Natwest offering the UK’s first <a href="https://personal.natwest.com/personal/mortgages/mortgage-types-and-rates/green-mortgages.html">‘Green Mortgage’ </a>to the recently licensed <a href="https://www.forestcarbon.co.uk/our-partners/oxbury-bank">Oxbury Bank</a> offering the first ‘carbon offset savings account’. But the bank which has always had the climate and ethics at its heart is <a href="https://www.triodos.co.uk/">Triodos</a>, an ethical bank which uses the UN’s sustainable development goals as a yardstick for which companies it invests in. Rather than just avoiding harmful investments (eg tobacco, arms) they actively invest in communities, renewable energy schemes, sustainable food production and social enterprises generally. Their Energy Transition fund alone removed 60,000 tonnes of CO2 from the atmosphere and powered 30,000 homes with renewable energy.
If none of those feel right, you can find other options <a href="https://www.curiouslyconscious.com/2020/02/best-ethical-banks-current-accounts-uk.html">here</a>

For many of us, our pensions are the largest investments we have. In the UK alone, pensions account for <a href="https://makemymoneymatter.co.uk/">£3 trillion</a>. But most of us are enrolled by our employers into a default fund, tending to invest in FTSE 100 companies without considering their carbon footprint. According to Good with Money’s Good Guide to Pensions, “nine times out of ten, pension savings are going into tobacco firms, oil and gas majors, mining, big pharma and big banks: social, climate and environmental breakdown, in other words.” This makes it essential that we take control of our pensions and redivert our investments to combat climate change. The easiest option is <a href="https://www.pensionbee.com/fossil-fuel-free-pension">Pension Bee</a>, who have a range of environmentally friendly pension funds and provide an automated service which allows you to pool all of your previous pensions under one green plan. One option is their Future World Fund seeks to engage with fossil fuel companies and pressure them into divestment, whilst another is their Fossil Fuel Free fund automatically screens such companies from the outset. Aviva has also set a target of 2050 for its own auto-enrollment pensions to be carbon neutral. Whichever feels right to you, It really can take just a matter of minutes to make an impact that could last for generations. (To understand more about how our pensions are invested and what options you have, take a look at <a href="https://makemymoneymatter.co.uk/">Make My Money Matter</a>)

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Whilst these low-effort, high impact solutions are addressed to individuals, they apply equally for businesses. Not only should any climate-conscious business seek to ensure their pension schemes are not harming the planet as indicated above. But simply by virtue of their size, finance isn’t the only easy win with significant consequences. Businesses account for <a href="https://www.moneysupermarket.com/gas-and-electricity/business-energy/a/renewable-business-energy/?__cf_chl_jschl_tk__=685a0262b7b872efb4b30d7fd88a14fa887b7e12-1609756959-0-AStc3cQp8rdo_zmmHfZoKzVefaR6yX8nrL0Br62FsqEHVJqTMc7zwvL69G7bkU4IGPu_fJ8FNhEdLs2dLHKC7DlZ_3SRQT0RuV3CsT5dkuAj0xn34tD15Mp3P6fZWI4gcwnqS1GZCxCzRtrJG5AnNngg3GXxS3rcHETyGXzHt5XA18DD9jAQ4Z1nZo0nT6d-XEiyz-gZLO4j8gEYPvw9F1-ergIV9z4QuXxhl4-UsNdq6sncz9d8sWjykuPe2-dJfVZT6m5EEs7a-UoS3jYjA0-vjIhJ2DrSvJL6Jp6VE97qOk2OvLzAwCV7JCuAoRWKRLmEPChKNqNQANsYVzeI6av4PrDqERRlGNjs6FuGFwS2zUfCmBVfD9dwLN0ypXHIhKNAw55mqNww881jfnbBamtI_vh9p5EhuAbjgVsGTHADFSwhv0mWBuUEd8VZZ725NQEE6UAl4ZCPuo3FXRgFmwU">56%</a> of the UK’s energy consumption, so switching to renewable energy companies such as <a href="https://bulb.co.uk/">Bulb</a> or <a href="https://www.ecotricity.co.uk/">Ecotricity</a> can make a massive difference. Similarly, businesses produce a huge amount of waste, so you might consider using sustainable waste management services such as <a href="https://thefirstmile.co.uk/">First Mile</a>, who recycle all possible waste and convert the remainder to be used for tarmac.

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Whether as individuals or businesses, every decision we make has an important part to play in the fight against climate change, from what we eat to how we shop and travel. But through our investments we can support all of these areas, from green infrastructure, to investment in the natural world and renewable energy. Through your finances you are not only the consumer but the investor, creating pressure from both sides. So take ten minutes out of your day today and see how your finances could start doing some of the heavy lifting for you.

Product

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Shopify + Ecologi

Did you know you can fund climate action straight from Shopify using <a href="https://apps.shopify.com/ecologi" target="_blank" rel="noopener">our app</a>?
<a href="https://www.shopify.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Shopify</a> is the biggest e-commerce platform on the internet and our plugin allows you to fund reforestation projects automatically for every sale you make.
With this plugin we hope to enable the 1 million shops running on Shopify to join our mission for <a title="View our Collective Action milestones" href="https://ecologi.com/collective-action">collective climate action</a>, and continue the trend towards <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethical_consumerism" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ethical consumerism</a>.

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Simple to install

The app only takes 2 minutes to install and set up. Simply visit the <a href="https://apps.shopify.com/offset-earth" target="_blank" rel="noopener">app page</a> on Shopify, click &#8220;Add app&#8221; and follow the instructions.

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Ecologi Shopify app

Configure to your needs

You can choose to plant a tree for each sale, every order or for every X dollars of revenue. You can also set a cap to the number of trees you purchase per month.

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Watch your forest grow

Trees will be automatically planted in your Ecologi forest, meaning your shoppers can see the impact their purchases have in real-time.

Get started in minutes

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The app is free to install and works with any existing <a href="https://ecologi.com/business">Climate Positive Workforce</a> subscription. Each tree is billed at $0.15 (USD) and costs are added to your monthly Shopify invoice.
<h2>One more thing</h2>
We&#8217;re on a mission to make collective climate action accessible to all businesses. That&#8217;s why we also offer <a href="https://ecologi.com/impact-only">impact-only Ecologi accounts</a>, where instead of a subscription, you can add climate impact whenever suits you.
These accounts are for organisations where a Climate Positive Workforce doesn&#8217;t make sense or for start-ups who are light on cash but still want to commit to climate positivity.
You can always start off with an impact-only account, and move to a Climate Positive Workforce one when you&#8217;re ready.
Thanks for reading, and happy planting 🌱
<img class="size-large wp-image-1137 alignleft" src="https://cms-assets.offset.earth/app/uploads/20200313115449/Blog-image-mountains-1024x476.png" alt="Ecologi Mountains" width="100%" />

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How does deforestation impact wildlife and biodiversity? What you need to know.

Forests cover <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/threats/deforestation-and-forest-degradation" target="_blank" rel="noopener">31% of the land</a> on our planet and they are critically important for stabilising the climate, taking in approximately <a href="https://www.iucn.org/resources/issues-briefs/forests-and-climate-change#:~:text=Approximately%202.6%20billion%20tonnes%20of,America%20%E2%80%93%20offer%20opportunities%20for%20restoration." target="_blank" rel="noopener">2.6 billion tonnes of CO2</a> each year. They also provide more than <a href="http://www.fao.org/state-of-forests/en/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">86 million</a> green jobs and support the livelihoods of many more. An estimated<a href="http://www.fao.org/state-of-forests/en/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> 880 million people</a> spend part of their time collecting fuel wood or producing charcoal, and of people living in extreme poverty, over <a href="http://www.fao.org/state-of-forests/en/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">90%</a> are dependent on forests for at least part of their livelihoods. 
However, forests aren’t just important to us, they are also important to the wildlife that live, feed and breed within them. 80% of the world&#8217;s land-based species live in forests, and animals ranging from insects to elephants rely on these ecosystems to survive. From the boreal forests in the far North to the famously biodiverse rainforests of the tropics, forests provide habitats for <a href="http://www.fao.org/3/ca8642en/CA8642EN.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">80%</a> of amphibian species, <a href="http://www.fao.org/3/ca8642en/CA8642EN.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">75%</a> of bird species and <a href="http://www.fao.org/3/ca8642en/CA8642EN.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">68% </a>of mammal species. 
But these forests are being destroyed and degraded at an alarming rate. Since 1990, it is estimated that <a href="https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/CA8642EN.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">420 million hectares</a> of forest have been lost through conversion to other land uses. In addition, more than <a href="https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/CA8642EN.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">100 million hectares</a> of forest are adversely affected by forest fires, pests, diseases, invasive species, drought, and other events that are exacerbated by human activity. The main driver of deforestation and associated loss of biodiversity continues to be agricultural expansion, particularly large-scale commercial agriculture including cattle ranching and cultivation of soy bean and oil palm. You can read more about the sectors driving deforestation <a href="https://ecologi.com/articles/blog/industries-and-sectors-driving-deforestation-what-you-need-to-know" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
At Ecologi we love all animals, whatever shape and size, and were anxious about how this deforestation is affecting our furry friends. We decided to explore how deforestation affects the wildlife that lives in and around the world’s forests.

Wildlife is increasingly becoming threatened by human activities and changing climates. The <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">IUCN Red List of Threatened species</a> is the world’s most comprehensive information source of the global extinction risk of animals, fungi, and plant species. It lists species and classifies how threatened they are in terms of extinction according to the following categories: Extinct, Extinct in the Wild, Critically Endangered, Endangered, Vulnerable, Near threatened and Least Concern.
<a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/threats/deforestation-and-forest-degradation" target="_blank" rel="noopener">80%</a> of the world&#8217;s land-based species live in forests. When these forests are destroyed, animals lose their homes and are often unable to survive in the small fragments of forests left behind. The destruction and fragmentation of forests is the biggest driver of extinctions across the world. <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/nature23285" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A recent study</a> of more than 19,000 species of birds, amphibians, and mammals found that deforestation substantially increased the odds of species being listed on the IUCN red list as threatened and exhibiting declining populations. Even localised or small-scale deforestation can result in extinctions, as many unique species exist in small geographic locations around the world.
There are a number of ways in which deforestation can impact the animals living within and around forests.
Habitat loss &#8211; Habitat loss is probably the biggest threat to the variety of life on Earth today. It is identified as a main threat to <a href="https://wwf.panda.org/discover/our_focus/wildlife_practice/problems/habitat_loss_degradation/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">85% of all species </a>described in the IUCN’s Red List. Deforestation can lead to a direct loss of wildlife habitat, with the removal of trees and other types of vegetation reducing the available food, shelter, and breeding habitat for animals. For example, tigers have lost an estimated <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/species/tiger" target="_blank" rel="noopener">95% of their historic range</a> as their habitat has been destroyed, degraded, and fragmented by human activities.
Habitat fragmentation &#8211; While evidently interlinked, habitat loss and fragmentation are distinct concepts. Habitat loss refers to a reduction in the area of forests, whilst habitat fragmentation involves the division of a once continuous area, into multiple patches. Smaller fragments of forest can support fewer animals and smaller populations are more at <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5182433/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">risk of extinction</a>. For example, <a href="https://www.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2012/108752/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">giant pandas are particularly affected by habitat fragmentation</a>, and many giant panda populations are small and isolated, resulting in limited gene flow and risks from inbreeding.
Human interaction &#8211; The destruction of forests and the splitting up into smaller areas makes them more accessible to humans. This increases the occurrence of human-wildlife conflict, where the needs and behaviour of wildlife impacts negatively on humans, or when humans negatively affect the needs of wildlife. For example, it can include increased hunting and poaching of animals as they become more accessible to hunters; increased occurrence of roadkill and road traffic accidents; as well as wildlife causing destruction of property, crops, livestock, and even human lives. Increased contact with humans can cause species numbers to dwindle, and even go extinct.  <a href="https://wwf.panda.org/discover/our_focus/wildlife_practice/problems/habitat_loss_degradation/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">An example </a>is in the palm oil plantations of Africa, Latin America and Asia where large areas of rainforest are cleared to grow palm crops. Orangutans, tigers, elephants, rhinos and many other species are increasingly isolated, and their sources of food and shelter are in decline. The fragmentation of their habitat has also resulted in increased human-wildlife conflict, and when these species encounter humans they are often killed or captured.
Change in canopy structure &#8211; The forest canopy plays an important role blocking the sun’s rays during the day and retaining heat at night. Removing trees deprives the forest of portions of its canopy, and this disruption leads to <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/deforestation/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">more extreme temperature swings </a>which can be harmful to animals.  
These are some of the general effects that deforestation is having on species that reside in the world&#8217;s forests. But what about the areas that Ecologi works in? What animals are being affected by deforestation &#8211; and how are we helping?

The island of Madagascar split from Africa over 160 million years ago, and since then it has developed its own distinct ecosystems and extraordinary wildlife. An estimated <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/places/madagascar" target="_blank" rel="noopener">95%</a> of Madagascar’s reptiles, <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/places/madagascar" target="_blank" rel="noopener">89%</a> of its plants and <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/places/madagascar" target="_blank" rel="noopener">92%</a> of its mammals are endemic, meaning they exist nowhere else on Earth. 
However, more than <a href="https://www.lcluc.umd.edu/hotspot/deforestation-madagascar" target="_blank" rel="noopener">90%</a> of Madagascar’s original forests have been destroyed, displacing entire animal species. The small-scale but widespread clearance of forests, through slash and burn agriculture and logging for firewood and charcoal production is jeopardizing the island&#8217;s habitats. As a result, several species such as lemurs and chameleons that evolved here over millions of years may become extinct before the end of the century. Almost a third (<a href="https://www.iucn.org/news/species/202007/almost-a-third-lemurs-and-north-atlantic-right-whale-now-critically-endangered-iucn-red-list">31%</a>) of all lemur species in Madagascar are now Critically Endangered &#8211; just one step away from extinction &#8211; with <a href="https://www.iucn.org/news/species/202007/almost-a-third-lemurs-and-north-atlantic-right-whale-now-critically-endangered-iucn-red-list" target="_blank" rel="noopener">98%</a> of them threatened. Among those recently listed as critically endangered in 2020 include the <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/18354/115572044" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Verreaux’s Sifaka lemur</a> and the <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/41573/115579496" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Madame Berthe’s Mouse Lemur</a>, the smallest primate in the world.
Particularly of concern in Madagascar are the mangrove forests. Madagascar contains <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/8/2/106/pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2% of the world’s mangroves</a>, accounting for 20% of African mangrove forests. However these are being deforested at alarming rates, and entire mangrove estuaries are gone, leaving the bare earth to wash away the sea. Mangroves, as well as storing massive amounts of carbon, are really important for wildlife. They provide breeding grounds and nurseries for numerous fish species and shellfish, and help trap sediments that might otherwise adversely affect habitats for marine life such as seagrass beds and coral reefs. 
The mangroves in Madagascar have critical importance for numerous endemic species (species that are only found in Madagascar and nowhere else) that are listed on the IUCN Red List. These includes the bird species that use the mangroves for nesting and roosting: the <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22680252/92852755" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Madagascar Teal</a> listed as Endangered; the <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22695121/125395004" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Madagascan Fish-Eagle</a> listed as Critically Endangered; the <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22697012/93598644" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Madagascar Heron </a>listed as Endangered; and <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22731855/95038024" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Malagasy Sacred Ibis</a> listed as Endangered.
This is why our <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/mangrove-planting-in-madagascar" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mangrove planting project</a> in the north west of the island is so important. We will be planting two million trees there, before moving along the coast as our contributions continue to grow.

Mozambique – protection of elephant habitats

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This Eastern African country has a rich and unique ecosystem including 236 species of mammal, 740 species of bird and 5,692 species of vascular plant. Additionally, Mozambique is the home to 200 endemic mammal species like the African elephant.
Poaching for ivory and meat has traditionally been the major cause of decline for <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/12392/3339343" target="_blank" rel="noopener">African elephants </a>however currently the most important perceived threat is the loss and fragmentation of habitat caused by ongoing human population expansion and rapid land conversion. This has increased the amounts of human-elephant conflict, which further aggravates the threat to elephant populations.
In <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/reforesting-changalane-mozambique" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mozambique</a> we are working to plant 100,000 dry deciduous trees, helping to bring back a thriving ecosystem and prevent further deforestation by alleviating poverty and creating a long term maintenance and protection plan.

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Our <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/reforestation-in-bosawas-nicaragua" target="_blank" rel="noopener">tree planting site in Nicaragua</a> is within the Bosawas Biosphere Reserve which forms part of the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor. This is a corridor that stretches between South and North America, connecting habitats and areas of tropical forest together to allow the movement of animals between them.
This is especially important for <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/15953/123791436" target="_blank" rel="noopener">jaguars</a>, which are endangered by habitat loss and fragmentation. Jaguars are the largest cat in the Americas, and have large round heads, short legs and a beautiful coat that is dotted with dark spots. These are truly incredible, majestic animals, however they are under serious pressure as their forest homes are increasingly being destroyed. Deforestation rates in Latin America are the highest in the world together with tropical Africa. Fragmentation and displacement frequently lead to<a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/spcies/15953/123791436#threats" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> lowering of density</a> of jaguars in forest patches. Their range has also contracted significantly: you used to find jaguars all the way from south-western USA down to central Argentina, but they now occupy less than half of their historical range.
Jaguars are a single species, with no subspecies, meaning that all populations are connected throughout their range. Therefore, connectivity is vital to these animals and ensuring links throughout the Americas is critical to maintaining populations. If the corridor is cut up by roads and development, then this leads to isolated populations with fewer animals. These have a lower genetic diversity and are more <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/2019/08/protecting-jaguars-wildlife-corridor-belize/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">vulnerable to extinction.</a> Many jaguar populations require connectivity between core sites to survive the long term and these connectivity corridors are critically important.
At Ecologi, not only are we <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/reforestation-in-bosawas-nicaragua" target="_blank" rel="noopener">planting trees in Nicaragua</a> to help maintain this corridor, but we also funded a project to <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/preserving-the-mesoamerican-biological-corridor-in-guatemala" target="_blank" rel="noopener">protect existing rainforest</a> in the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor within Guatemala, thus helping to facilitate the movement of jaguars between different areas.

Scotland – wildlife is returning to our Dalry site

Deforestation is not just a just a tropical phenomenon, vast amounts of Scottish forests have also been cleared. Without human intervention it is likely that much of Scotland would be covered by trees, however ever since the first foresters entered Scotland’s ancient woodlands over 6000 years ago, its trees and forests have been felled and harvested to make space for agriculture, homes and infrastructure. By the early 20th century, forest cover in Scotland, as well as in the rest of the UK, was reduced to around <a href="https://www.gov.scot/binaries/content/documents/govscot/publications/strategy-plan/2019/02/scotlands-forestry-strategy-20192029/documents/scotlands-forestry-strategy-2019-2029/scotlands-forestry-strategy-2019-2029/govscot%3Adocument/scotlands-forestry-strategy-2019-2029.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">5%</a>. This has since increased to around <a href="https://www.gov.scot/binaries/content/documents/govscot/publications/strategy-plan/2019/02/scotlands-forestry-strategy-20192029/documents/scotlands-forestry-strategy-2019-2029/scotlands-forestry-strategy-2019-2029/govscot%3Adocument/scotlands-forestry-strategy-2019-2029.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">18.5%</a>; this percentage is higher than the rest of the UK, but still well below the EUs average of <a href="https://www.gov.scot/binaries/content/documents/govscot/publications/strategy-plan/2019/02/scotlands-forestry-strategy-20192029/documents/scotlands-forestry-strategy-2019-2029/scotlands-forestry-strategy-2019-2029/govscot%3Adocument/scotlands-forestry-strategy-2019-2029.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">43%</a>.
Scottish forests and woodlands support a diverse range of species and are rich in biodiversity, with over 1000 associated species. These include <a href="https://www.gov.scot/binaries/content/documents/govscot/publications/strategy-plan/2019/02/scotlands-forestry-strategy-20192029/documents/scotlands-forestry-strategy-2019-2029/scotlands-forestry-strategy-2019-2029/govscot%3Adocument/scotlands-forestry-strategy-2019-2029.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">172 protected species</a>, including the pine marten, twinflower, crested tit, scottish crossbill, black grouse and the capercaillie, as well as an estimated 75% of the UK’s red squirrel population.
Our reforestation project in Scotland is at a site in Dalry, once home to native Scottish wildlife; however, the land had since become barren. This <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/reforesting-dalry-scotland" target="_blank" rel="noopener">project</a> is allowing the wildlife to come back to this area. Jim from the Future Forest Company, our tree planting partners, says ‘you now see hen harriers, an endangered species, regularly on site, when before the sighting of a bird of prey was rare’. This is yet another sign that the land is starting to recover.

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The WWF estimates that more than <a href="https://www.wwf.org.au/what-we-do/species/tree-clearing#gs.q5456g" target="_blank" rel="noopener">80% of global deforestation</a> between 2015-30 will take place in 11 deforestation ‘fronts’. One of these is eastern Australia in the states of Queensland and New South Wales (NSW). In Australia, tree-clearing is largely undertaken to create pasture for livestock, particularly for beef cattle production.
The impact of deforestation on wildlife is significant with <a href="https://www.wwf.org.au/what-we-do/species/tree-clearing#gs.q5456g" target="_blank" rel="noopener">964 of the 1250</a> Australian terrestrial animals’ species listed as threatened having habitat fragmentation identified as a threat. These include <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22684733/93044196#threats" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Carnaby’s cockatoo</a>, the <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22678108/131902050" target="_blank" rel="noopener">southern cassowary</a>, <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/6426/21957127" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bennet’s tree kangaroo</a>, and the <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/16752/21955261" target="_blank" rel="noopener">cape York rock wallaby</a>, as well as the iconic <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/16892/166496779#threats" target="_blank" rel="noopener">koala</a>. It is also estimated that in NSW between<a href="https://www.wwf.org.au/ArticleDocuments/353/AnimalWelfareImpacts_Summary_March19.pdf.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> 4.9-10 million</a> native wild animals are killed in the processes of tree-clearing each year.
Koalas are currently classified as<a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/16892/166496779#threats" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> vulnerable</a> with the key threat being continued habitat destruction, fragmentation, and modification, as the forests they live in are being rapidly cleared. Small populations of koalas in isolated sections of habitat are at the greatest risk of extinction. 
Our <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/wildlife-corridors-koalas-australia" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reforestation project in NSW </a>was established to try and protect the local koala population in the Northern rivers of NSW. The main goal is to establish a wildlife corridor by planting 50,000 trees to allow koalas to move between habitat fragments and their populations to bounce back.

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More than <a href="https://www.rainforest-alliance.org/articles/sustainable-forestry-in-appalachia" target="_blank" rel="noopener">150 tree species</a> can be found in Appalachia, making it one of the most diverse ecological regions in North America. The Appalachians are home to more than <a href="https://www.rainforest-alliance.org/articles/sustainable-forestry-in-appalachia" target="_blank" rel="noopener">200 globally rare plants and animals</a> and more than <a href="https://www.rainforest-alliance.org/articles/sustainable-forestry-in-appalachia" target="_blank" rel="noopener">15,000 documented wildlife species</a>, including the caribou, moose, black bear, wild boar, fox, and numerous small mammals, thrive there.
Appalachia’s forests are of particular importance as a breeding ground for migratory birds that spend the breeding season within this region, before flying south to overwinter in Mexico and Central and South America. These species include the Baltimore oriole, broad-winged hawk, red-eyed vireo, ruby-throated hummingbird, scarlet tanager, Tennessee warbler, and the cerulean warbler. 
However, the resource wealth of the region has meant that much of the forest has been deforested and degraded by mining and timber operations, with an estimated <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/ecoregions/na0403" target="_blank" rel="noopener">83% </a>of the original habitat having been lost. Approximately <a href="https://www.rainforest-alliance.org/articles/sustainable-forestry-in-appalachia" target="_blank" rel="noopener">80%</a> of the cerulean warbler population breeds within the Appalachian forests. This species is <a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22721740/153691320" target="_blank" rel="noopener">threatened </a>by the conversion of its forest habitat for agricultural or urban use and the fragmentation of habitat left behind. 
Our <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/rewilding-the-appalachia-usa" target="_blank" rel="noopener">planting project in Appalachia</a> plants native tree species to help the entire ecosystem recover. This will help preserve the unique biodiversity of the Appalachian region. Songbirds such as the cerulean warbler, salamanders, and copperhead snakes are just a few of the animals you can help.

We couldn’t talk about deforestation without mentioning the Amazon rainforest. This is the world&#8217;s largest rainforest and river system, which contains nearly a third of all the tropical rainforests left on Earth. Despite covering only <a href="https://www.wwf.org.uk/where-we-work/amazon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">1%</a> of the planet’s surface, the Amazon is home to <a href="https://www.wwf.org.uk/where-we-work/amazon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">10%</a> of all known wildlife species, with many more being described each year.
However, as a result of the major pressures being exerted on the Amazon (large-scale agriculture and cattle ranching, small-scale agriculture, road and hydropower infrastructure, mining and logging), it is being deforested on a massive scale. <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/threats/deforestation-and-forest-degradation">17%</a> has already been lost.
As well as releasing vast amounts of carbon into the atmosphere, this destruction and deforestation has numerous, complex impacts on the wildlife that lives within the forests. One example of an animal under threat from deforestation in the Amazon is the <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/species/black-spider-monkey" target="_blank" rel="noopener">black spider monkey.</a> This is one of seven species of spider monkey found in Latin America and is one of the largest primates in South America. They are an essential part of the tropical rainforest ecosystem, playing a key role in seed dispersal and thus allowing the forest environment to continue to grow and thrive. However, these monkeys are threatened by the destruction of forests. They prefer mature tropical forests and seldom venture into disturbed habitats. This means that these monkeys are especially vulnerable to the effects of forest fragmentation.
Black spider monkeys don’t do so well in newly reforested areas, and that’s why our projects  (see <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/preserving-untouched-brazilian-rainforest" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>, <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/protecting-the-amazon-from-deforestation-in-brazil" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a> and<a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/peruvian-protection-of-the-amazon" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> here</a>) to protect existing rainforests in the Amazon are so important. Our projects to avoid deforestation in Brazil help to preserve the habitats of the black spider monkey and many other creatures.
In fact, one project is designed partly with an animal species in mind. Our <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/protecting-the-amazon-from-deforestation-in-brazil" target="_blank" rel="noopener">avoiding deforestation project in Almeirim, Brazil</a>, has objectives to protect the critically endangered Black bearded Saki (Chiropotes satanas). This species has decreased by at least 80% in the last 30 years and this trend is predicted to continue. In a scenario without the project we are helping to fund, the population trend of this species within this area is decreasing and becoming more threatened, mainly due to the loss of habitat caused by deforestation. However, in the scenario with this project, it is predicted there will be <a href="https://registry.verra.org/mymodule/ProjectDoc/Project_ViewFile.asp?FileID=45326&amp;IDKEY=a0e98hfalksuf098fnsdalfkjfoijmn4309JLKJFjlaksjfla9062504554" target="_blank" rel="noopener">improvements</a> in the trend of the population of Chiropotes satanas.

A note on deforestation and climate change 

Deforestation is also impacting the ability of species to adapt to future climate change. For millennia, wildlife around the world has moved up and down mountains, and towards and away from the equator in order to cope with changes in the world’s temperature. However, the deforestation of tropical forests is creating a patchwork landscape where natural habitat is fragmented. <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-019-0529-2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Recent research</a> has found that most tropical forest habitat is currently too disconnected to provide pathways to cooler climates, meaning that wildlife will struggle to escape the impacts of climate change.

Most of the world’s creatures rely on forests for their food, shelter, and nesting sites. Worldwide, animals are being threatened as their homes are torn down at alarming rates to make way for agriculture and infrastructure. It’s really important that we do our best to combat deforestation, not only for our sake, but for the sake of the animals. There are lots of organisations that are doing great work in this field. Head to <a href="https://www.wwf.org.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WWF</a> to find out more or <a href="https://ecologi.com/plan">sign up to Ecologi</a> to support projects both to protect existing forests and to plant new ones!

Updates

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Ecologi Impact Report 2020

In 2020, the coronavirus pandemic brought about a seismic shift across all industries, as well as in individuals’ personal, professional and social lives.
Aided by the global shutdown in response to COVID-19, we saw a reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, of <a href="https://essd.copernicus.org/articles/12/3269/2020/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">around 7% globally</a>. For the first time, humanity has been able to reduce emissions year-on-year, and if that trend were to continue, we could write down in the history books that 2019 was the year that global emissions peaked. We also now have a clear idea of what exactly is required to solve the climate emergency &#8211; the kinds of large scale collective action that will help us to mitigate the crisis.
On the other hand, considering the psychological and economic damage the global shutdown has caused, the pandemic has also produced a huge amount of climate anxiety &#8211; all this, for just a 7% drop in emissions?
As well as the pandemic shutdown, 2020 also saw other important developments in climate &#8211; from the <a href="https://www.unglobalcompact.org/take-action/20th-anniversary-campaign">20th anniversary of the UN Global Compact</a>, to the <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cop26-postponement">postponement of COP26</a> here in the UK. Within climate, as within all industries, 2020 was a strange and challenging year.
At Ecologi, we are taking all of this to heart, and have been working tirelessly to develop our climate positive subscription products to have more impact. Luckily, we were able to adapt to online working: our in-house operations are fully remote at the present time, and thankfully our tree-planting and offset projects have been able to continue operating throughout the pandemic.
Our Impact Report for 2020 shows a breakdown of the ways we have used our subscriber and B2B income to fund climate solutions, and how we have contributed to solving this most challenging of problems, in our first full-year of operation.
Despite the challenges of 2020, we are extremely proud of the massive impact we have had so far, and are optimistic and excited for 2021 to be a year of impactful and effective climate action.
If you have any questions about our impact, please contact <a href="mailto:hq@ecologi.com">hq@ecologi.com</a>.

Over 6 million trees now funded by our subscribers

On 22nd December 2020, we funded our 6 millionth tree, ready to be planted in our planting sites around the world.
We had noted toward the end of the year that our tree count was accelerating, reaching a pace of approximately one million trees per month funded by our customers, in the run up to the festive period. The graph in Figure 1 shows the rate of growth in this regard, which we hope will continue into 2021.

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Figure 1

To put this in perspective, funding our first million trees took 9 months (surpassing the one million trees mark on 2nd March 2020). By the end of the year, it took our community of climate positive people 36 days to go from 4 million to 5 million trees, and it took only 19 days to go from 5 million to 6 million.
At the beginning of 1st January 2021, we had funded the planting of 6,419,515 trees.
Some of the end-of-year increase might be attributable to a festive bump, especially with the introduction of <a href="https://ecologi.com/gifting">our new gifting product</a>, which we launched in November. We don’t have the data on this yet, as we haven’t been through enough Christmases(!) but we anticipate that it’s likely we will see a slight slowdown in the early weeks of 2021 as the festive excitement quietens down.

Due to operational constraints, there is a time lag between trees being funded and trees being purchased; we operate on a grace period of around 60 days between trees being funded by our subscribers and being purchased from our partners.
Toward the end of 2020 this time lag extended slightly, as we are making some internal banking changes to allow us to move more quickly from funding to purchasing. We anticipate catching up with our trees due for purchasing in early January 2021, ready to start a more streamlined process in the year ahead.
By the end of 2020, we had purchased (and recorded on our <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1dACvzjE5nBE1cKZBAhYzsUa7rIiLJqCWXVgY4bNS8_Q/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Public Impact and Operations Ledger</a>) 3,471,589 trees from our partners, accounting for trees funded by subscribers up to the end of September 2020.
The graph in Figure 1 shows our accelerating rate of growth: we are currently near the bottom of an exponential curve, with our tree-funding pace approximately doubling each month. Factoring in the anticipated slowdown at the start of 2021, we can expect to reach 10 million trees funded in around March or early April 2021, with our 10 millionth tree purchased and planted well before the Summer.
Looking to the future, we are really excited for our subscriber base to continue growing, so that we can fund more and more trees around the world. With our tree count remaining on an exponential growth curve, we would expect to see around 46 million trees funded by 31st December 2021. A flatter curve would see around 17 million trees funded by then, and the reality is likely to fall somewhere in between these two.
As we are still only a young company, forecasts and projections for trees funded will become easier over time as we have more data points to look back on.

To accommodate the rapidly growing number of trees funded by our subscribers, we’ve also expanded our portfolio of planting sites. At the start of 2020, we were very small, primarily planting trees <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/mangrove-planting-in-madagascar">in one plot of land at Marotaola, Madagascar</a>, and also as part of a fledgling project <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/reforesting-kijabe-kenya">in partnership with the Intrepid Foundation in Kijabe, Kenya</a>.
That first Marotaola plot has a dedicated capacity for 3 million trees, which toward the end of September 2020 was getting full, meaning we needed to expand our planting locations. That particular plot is currently 95.3% full, with 2,858,345 of our subscribers’ mangroves being planted there. 
At the end of 2020, we now fund 9 tree planting projects based in 7 countries. Our original plot (which is now known as Marotaola 1) was joined in October by neighbouring Marotaola 2, and plots in <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/reforestation-in-bosawas-nicaragua" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bosawas Biosphere Reserve, Nicaragua</a> and <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/reforesting-changalane-mozambique" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Changalane, Mozambique</a>.
Our main tree-planting partner for these projects is <a href="https://edenprojects.org/">Eden Reforestation Projects</a> (‘Eden’), who we work with closely to plant the trees in our dedicated planting sites. The team at Eden provide the expert care, ecological knowledge and local support to make the planting happen in-country. Through our current planting sites, Eden offers steady employment and income to over 80 local people, providing sustainable and fulfilling job roles as planters, forest guards and site managers.  This is really important to us, as (as we will see in the following section), part of Ecologi’s ethos is to ensure that the effective climate solutions that we fund also generate co-benefits in other spheres &#8211; helping to establish self-sufficient sustainable local economies, and provide fulfilling and stable jobs to those that we and our partners employ.
Whilst the vast majority of our tree-planting takes place in locations in the Global South, in May 2020 we took on new tree-planting partners and began offering the opportunity for subscribers from the UK, USA and Australia to fund our much smaller tree-planting projects local to them.

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Figure 2

Since we started planting in our additional sites in October, we have already made a significant start on filling those plots too &#8211; with around 18% of each of Marotaola 2 and Changalane already planted, and 25% of the Bosawas plot also on its way. As above, these figures only take into account those trees already purchased from our partners, and therefore not those trees funded by our subscribers but not yet purchased.

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Figure 3

In 2021, we are looking forward to taking some more time to visit some of our planting sites, bringing back stories and progress reports that we can share with our supporters. We’re also looking forward to working with new tree-planting partners, opening up new planting sites in the UK and around the world, and planting many more millions of trees in more locations across the world.

This year, our UK team were sadly unable to visit our overseas planting sites as planned, due to the coronavirus pandemic. However, we were able to receive photographs and progress updates from some of our sites around the world, and our company founders were able to scope out some of our new UK sites.
Receiving our first full-year update report from our Marotaola 1 planting site in Madagascar, documenting the period up to September 2020, our partners Eden Reforestation Projects update that: “with generous support from Ecologi, Eden Reforestation Projects planted 1,888,483 mangrove trees and employed 35 full-time staff resulting in a tremendous impact on local livelihoods and the environment.”
Over the past year, the team at Marotaola 1 have been filling our plot with multiple species of mangrove trees, including avicennia marina, rhizophora mucronata, ceriops tagal and bruguiera gymnorrhiza. In the photos below, you can see how our little trees are thriving. This amazing progress in our original planting site was boosted further by the millions of trees funded by our subscribers in October through December, and by the addition of our new planting sites at Marotaola 2 and elsewhere around the world.

Our mangrove trees are growing majestically in <a href="https://ecologi.com/articles/updates/update-our-offset-earth-members-forest-is-growing-%F0%9F%8C%B1">Marataola, Madagascar</a>.

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First trees going in <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/reforesting-changalane-mozambique">Changalane, Mozambique</a>.

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Our latest site in Dyrham, England is prepared for this planting season.

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Over 10,000 trees are now in the ground at our site in <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/reforesting-dalry-scotland">Dalry, Scotland</a>.

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Photos

Carbon reductions through our tree-planting projects

At Ecologi, we believe that trees are a little bit magic.
Their carbon-sucking powers are quietly phenomenal &#8211; not to mention the enormous benefits of tree-planting and forest protection to global biodiversity and wildlife habitats. However, unlike with our offset projects &#8211; which are operated with a global system of verified units of carbon reduction which can be ‘retired’ at any time &#8211; it can be a challenge to calculate an exact, quantified measure of the carbon emissions that our trees will reduce over their lifetime.
This is because different species of trees remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere at different rates, and within species, individual trees store carbon at different rates over their lifetime. In addition, factors such as success rates (the percentage of the trees which survive and grow to reach the designated lifespan) are also at play and have an effect on the amount of carbon reduced.
If we were to assume that all of our trees planted were species of mangrove (which 89.8% of them are), we could get at an approximate figure, however. Since we know that individual mangrove trees <a href="https://ecologi.com/articles/in-depth/growing-trees-responsible-reforestation" target="_blank" rel="noopener">remove ~0.3083 tonnes of CO2e over a 25-year lifespan</a>, we can calculate that (if the remaining 10.2% of our trees planted to date were also mangroves) our trees would remove ~1,849,800 tCO2e from the atmosphere over those 25 years.
According to <a href="https://www.epa.gov/energy/greenhouse-gas-equivalencies-calculator" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the US Environmental Protection Agency</a>, this is equivalent to the greenhouse gas emissions from 4,590,074,442 miles driven in an average passenger vehicle, or the amount of carbon dioxide released from the consumption of 4,282,678 barrels of oil. Whilst only an estimate, this gives us a benchmark for the sort of impact we have had so far, and illustrates the immense scope of our potential for what we can achieve in the future. In 2021, we are hoping to collect and report more sophisticated data from our planting sites about the amount of carbon reductions our trees are making over their lifetime, and we will share this with our supporters in due course.

Almost 250,000 tonnes of verified emissions reductions

Parallel to our tree-planting projects, our subscribers have funded the reduction of 249,464 tonnes of CO2e emissions through our verified carbon offset projects, up to the end of 2020. Each and every tonne is certified by an industry-leading formal standard (usually <a href="https://www.goldstandard.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gold Standard</a> or <a href="https://verra.org/project/vcs-program/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Verified Carbon Standard</a>).
Only purchasing carbon offsets which meet these rigorous standards is crucial to our aim of funding the most effective climate solutions, as they provide security in the measurement, additionality, permanence and (lack of) leakage of the projects that we fund. Research carried out on behalf of WWF Germany by the Stockholm Environment Institute <a href="https://www.sei.org/publications/making-sense-voluntary-carbon-market-comparison-carbon-offset-standards/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">goes into great detail</a> on how different carbon standards track these criteria, and supports the notion that Gold Standard and VCS (alongside the Kyoto Protocol’s Clean Development Mechanism) are the most effective, successful and appropriate standards available for carbon offset projects.

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Figure 4

We recognise Gold Standard and VCS as the top international standards for the voluntary carbon market in terms of carbon reductions, but another key reason that we select projects that meet these standards is due to their verified and documented co-benefits relating to the <a href="https://sdgs.un.org/goals" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sustainable Development Goals</a> (SDGs). As well as this, we use the expert knowledge of our Climate Committee and resources such as <a href="https://drawdown.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Project Drawdown</a> to carefully select which offset projects to fund, to ensure that our subscribers’ money is being used to support the most effective climate solutions there are.
As standard, we only fund offset projects that provide a verified benefit to SDG 13 &#8211; Climate Action. In 2020, on average, our carbon offset projects this year had 3.67 SDG co-benefits, meaning that, of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, our projects provided a verified and documented benefit to an average of 2.67 other SDGs (in addition to SDG 13). Our most prolific project in terms of verified SDG co-benefits was our <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/biomass-power-project-raipur-india" target="_blank" rel="noopener">biopower project in India</a>, which had a whopping eight SDG co-benefits! Going forward, by tracking additional SDG co-benefits, we can target those projects which provide much more than just their tonnage of carbon reductions, and meet verified standards in other important areas.
The breakdown of each SDG co-benefit as a proportion of all SDG co-benefits is shown in Figure 5.

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Figure 5

Aside from SDG 13 (Climate Action), the most common SDG co-benefit among our projects this year was <a href="https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal7">SDG 7 &#8211; Affordable &amp; Clean Energy</a> (verified in 14.9% of our projects), followed by <a href="https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal8">SDG 8 &#8211; Decent Work &amp; Economic Growth</a> (13.2%) and <a href="https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal3">SDG 3 &#8211; Good Health &amp; Wellbeing</a> (11.6%). 
Going into 2021, as well as selecting projects with a higher average number of co-benefits, we aim to seek out and select projects which will balance out the relevant co-benefits to ensure that as well as the climate impact that we have through the carbon standards and SDG 13, our impact will also be felt in other vital areas within the remit of the Sustainable Development Goals.

As of 31st December 2020, our supporters have funded 33 offset projects in 20 countries around the world.
Subscriber funding was spread out among projects in a broad geographical range. Predominantly, the countries where we funded offset projects in 2020 were in South and Central America, East Africa and Southeast Asia. This said, the countries which featured the most of our projects this year were India (7 projects), followed by Turkey (6 projects), followed by Brazil (3 projects).
This phenomenon occurred in 2020 because projects were selected based on individual merit (per the criteria and standards described above), which meant that in some regions (such as South America) we were funding a few projects in many countries, whereas in other regions (such as Western Asia) we were funding many projects in just one country.

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Figure 6

In terms of scale, our offset projects tend to fall into one of two categories at either end of the spectrum: either small-to-micro scale community-based projects (such as cookstoves, or local water distribution projects) or large-scale wind or solar energy projects.
As before, the selection of projects was broadly based on the individual merit of the project itself, according to the measures in our criteria (above), which meant that any trends to do with the scale of projects funded were mostly byproducts.
The mixture does however reflect our strategic aims to fund the most effective climate solutions and projects which will promote meaningful change for the climate and for local communities, and is guided by how the projects individually map onto the most effective solutions as ranked by <a href="https://drawdown.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Project Drawdown</a>.
In terms of the types of projects we funded in 2020, this varied, and the full breakdown is displayed in Figure 9. What this chart shows is that our most frequently funded project types pertain to higher ranked solutions on the Project Drawdown table of solutions.
For example, wind energy (<a href="https://drawdown.org/solutions/onshore-wind-turbines" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Drawdown solution #2</a>) made up 24% of projects funded, and fuel-efficient cookstoves (<a href="https://drawdown.org/solutions/improved-clean-cookstoves" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Drawdown solution #21</a>) made up 12%. Other popular project types this year included avoided deforestation (15% of projects; <a href="https://drawdown.org/solutions/forest-protection" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Drawdown solution #38</a>) and landfill gas capture (15% of projects; <a href="https://drawdown.org/solutions/landfill-methane-capture" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Drawdown solution #58</a>).

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Figure 7

We also focused a lot this year on protecting the Amazon (including through avoided deforestation), which is why South America was our most popular region for offset projects, with projects funded in 5 countries there this year &#8211; in Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Peru and Uruguay. Afforestation tends not to be very prominent in the count in Figure 7 (3% of projects), because the vast majority of our afforestation work takes place as part of our tree-planting projects portfolio, and the offsets projects are instead focused on other areas, such as renewables (or in the case of forestry, avoided deforestation). 
This year, we also updated the way that we calculate subscriber carbon footprints to a more robust methodology, and using the latest data available from the UNFCCC and CAIT. The new calculations will contribute to a slight change in the cost of subscriptions for some of our users, but will give us a much more accurate and robust mechanism for tracking carbon footprints offset going forward. You can read all about this update <a href="https://ecologi.com/articles/product/carbon-footprinting-at-ecologi">on the blog</a>.

Virtual climate festival reaches 24,000 views

In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, the UK government announced its intention to cancel the 2020 iteration of the Conference of the Parties (COP 26) which was due to take place in Glasgow, in November.
We were disappointed by the cancellation of the COP for two main reasons: because much of global governance and business had gone online without issue (including other intergovernmental summits) and often, even when the UN climate conferences do go ahead, tangible outcomes from the COPs are so bureaucratically dense as to be indecipherable for many people.
Motivated by these frustrations and the knowledge that the climate clock <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/sr15/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">would remain ticking</a>, we decided to run our own global virtual festival of climate action. We called it <a href="https://itstime.earth">It’s Time</a>, and it took place on 17-18th November 2020.

its-time-2

It's Time

With just three months to plan and organise the event from start to finish, we put together a small team and brought together <a href="https://itstime.earth/speakers">162 speakers from all over the world</a> to inspire our virtual attendees to climate action, through both pre-recorded and live talks, activities, performances, panel discussions, documentary screenings and more.
The event was broadcast over two days from a television studio, with hosts Cel Spellman and Basma Khalifa, with content segregated into five virtual stages, streamed via Vimeo. Broadcasting over 65 hours of content, our It’s Time line-up included speakers and representatives of WWF UK, Project Drawdown, Project Everyone, Rainforest Trust UK, OLIO, Green Is The New Black, Extinction Rebellion, Intrepid Travel and many more.
The event was opened by His Royal Highness, The Prince of Wales, received a video endorsement from Sir Keir Starmer, received 205 pieces of press coverage, and reached 24,481 views from attendees in 80 countries.
As part of our commitment to plant a tree for every email sign-up to It’s Time, we funded the planting of 9,011 trees for the event. Feedback from the event was sparkling, and we were extremely proud of the positive, upbeat impact that the event had managed to deliver for so many people around the world, in an extremely challenging year for all.

Factoring in the anticipated slowdown at the start of 2021 (our Christmas gifts were a big hit), we are expecting to reach an incredible 10 million trees funded by April 2021. 
At the end of 2021, on our current trajectory we’re expecting to have planted between 17 and 46 million trees. Where our year-end total will fall, between these two figures, will become clearer as the first few months of the year take shape.
Quite frankly, whether we plant 17 million trees by the end of 2021, or 46 (or more!), we hope you’ll join us in relishing the prospect of these incredible numbers. 
On top of this, we are aiming for an anticipated 1.5 million verified tonnes of carbon dioxide prevented from entering the atmosphere from funding our other climate action projects, such as from <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/supporting-new-hydropower-plant-uganda">micro scale hydropower</a>, <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/landfill-gas-in-brazil">landfill gas capture</a>, and <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/preserving-the-mesoamerican-biological-corridor-in-guatemala">preventing deforestation</a>.
This is epic climate action funded principally by small amounts of disposable cash from individuals, families and businesses. And excitingly, there’s so much further to go. This amount of impact will be achieved by around 30,000 subscribers, nowhere near 150 million subscribers that the likes of Spotify and Netflix enjoy.
Thank you to our subscribers, partners and to all who have supported Ecologi in 2020. We cannot wait to see what 2021 brings.

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