Updates

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Update – Dividend #2, July 2020
We’ve issued the second Tree Dividend to all our subscribers. 275,523 additional trees have been purchased and distributed equally to everyone’s forests.
Dividend #1, March 2020
It’s with great pleasure that today we’ll be issuing our first ‘Tree Dividend’ to all our subscribers.
But why? Mostly, when for-profit companies have surplus cash, they issue dividends to their shareholders, so we’ll be issuing trees to all our subscribers instead.
We’ve purchased an extra 369,764 trees to be planted in <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/mangrove-planting-in-madagascar">Madagascar</a>. That means all our subscribers will have an extra 115 trees on their profile.
<img style="width: 100%;" src="https://cms-assets.offset.earth/app/uploads/20200302161829/Blog-intext-image-tree-dividend.png" />
If you’re an Ecologi subscriber, check out your <a href="http://ecologi.com/profile">profile now</a>.
Where does the money come from?
The short answer is the cost of things we spend your money on varies over time, but we wanted to ensure a minimum percentage is always going to climate action. So there will always be a gap, and a Tree Dividend is our way of closing it. Read on if you want to get into the weeds.
Last year we drew a line in the sand to having a minimum commitment to spending a percentage of your money on climate action. For individual subscriptions, and one-off purchases of tree and carbon offsets our platform fee is 12.5%. For our business customers we add a further 10% to handle covering the extra features and management (22.5%).
When any account signs up to Ecologi, we purchase the stated amount of climate action within 60 days, e.g. 12 trees and 1.5 tonnes of carbon offsets per month. The cost of this is near to, but not entirely, the full amount of our percentage commitment to you e.g. 87.5%.
There’s a few reasons it’s not bang on: The projects we support are subject to market price fluctuations; we recently got confirmation from our tax office we won’t need to add extra tax (VAT); international currency fluctuations; and lower than expected fees.
The Tree Dividend today encapsulates our first six months of trading (March ’19 – November ’19). And in another three months we’ll have our accounts sorted for the next quarter’s Tree Dividend.
And one last thing, everyone should have 115.5 trees in their forests but we can’t split the trees. So we have 2,454 trees looking for a home. Retweet this <a href="https://twitter.com/OffsetEarth/status/1234738084572516352">Twitter post</a> or share this <a href="https://www.facebook.com/offsetearth/posts/795830837568517">Facebook post</a> for your chance to win the trees 🌲
<a href="https://ecologi.com/business/overview">Sign up</a> to Ecologi today to start taking real climate action.

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We are supporting a new project site in Dundori, Kenya, with Internati

We’ve got some fantastic news! We’ve recently teamed up with <a href="https://www.internationaltreefoundation.org/">International Tree Foundation</a> (ITF) to support a new project in Dundori, Kenya. Since July 2022, some of the trees funded for planting by our community have been planted by ITF in Dundori.
We’re very proud to have begun this exciting new collaboration with the team at ITF to support their impactful projects. Read on to find out more about this incredible organisation and the project we’re supporting.

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International Tree Foundation (ITF) is an environmental organisation, founded in Kenya in 1922, that is dedicated to planting and growing trees, restoring and conserving forests, and strengthening community and ecosystem resilience. 
What makes ITF unique is their commitment to forest stewardship. Key to ITF’s operation is their commitment to capacity-building within local communities to optimise forest planting and conservation efforts, and to improve livelihoods within the local community. Gender empowerment and education are also core elements of their community engagement.
ITF works in partnership with the <a href="http://www.kenyaforestservice.org/">Kenya Forest Service</a>, <a href="http://kefri">Kenya Forest &amp; Research Institute </a>and with Community Forest Associations to ensure that all planting is appropriate for local ecology, as well as working with their long-standing partner <a href="https://www.bgci.org/">Botanic Gardens Conservation International</a>.

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The aim of the Dundori project is to restore 200 hectares of highly degraded forests through sustainable, community-led reforestation. Additionally, the project will involve planting of trees in schools, engaging young environmental stewards in forest and school-based tree growing in 15 learning institutions. 
The project will also integrate and mainstream the conservation of four threatened tree species (Ocotea kenyensis, Polyscias kikuyuensis, Prunus africana and Vangueria gillettii (<a href="https://www.iucnredlist.org">IUCN Red list of 2020</a>)) in Nakuru County. 
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<iframe title="Celebrating 100 years of tree planting" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/qwSCwx5I55I?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
To read more on what International Tree Foundation is all about, see <a href="https://www.internationaltreefoundation.org/">here</a>.
<a href="https://ecologi.com/plan">Sign up</a> to Ecologi today to start taking real climate action 🌿

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Fantastic news &#8211; we’ve recently teamed up with the <a href="https://highatlasfoundation.org/">High Atlas Foundation</a> (HAF) to support a new project in Ouezzane, Morocco! Since July 2022, this project has already made some great progress, with a new nursery being constructed with an irrigation system powered by solar power to keep all the saplings healthy.
We’re really proud to have begun this exciting new collaboration with the team at HAF to support their impactful projects. Read on to find out more about HAF and the first project we’re supporting with this incredible organisation.

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The High Atlas Foundation (HAF) is a Moroccan association and a U.S. 501(c)(3) non-profit organisation founded in 2000 by former Peace Corps Volunteers committed to furthering sustainable development. HAF supports Moroccan communities to take action in implementing human development initiatives. HAF promotes organic agriculture, women’s empowerment, youth development, education, and health. 
It’s imperative to us that we partner with organisations that promote inclusion and gender equality, which are at the core of HAF’s business model. Their participatory approach to projects begins with dialogue including all community members from a range of age, gender, education, income, land ownership, religious, and ethnic groups representative of the project location.

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Starting in November 2023, 400,000 tree saplings raised in the project’s nursery will be distributed throughout the Tangier-Tétouan-Al Hoceima (TTA) region. This region was specifically chosen to improve farming practices near the spring of the Oued Loukkos river, which feeds downstream protected wetlands that are currently suffering from eutrophication. 
Importantly, 120,000 of the trees will be planted on 600 hectares of public domain granted by Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) to the 19 villages of Zefrioune. The trees will be provided to farming families (7,000 people) and education centres in TTA, who will be the sole beneficiaries of the yields of these trees. 
This project’s nursery area will be the heart of the project and dedicated to providing improvements in biodiversity and economic stability for farmers of the TTA region. By planting keystone species, such as threatened endemic fig species, which enrich the soil with nutrients, retain water, and attract unique local pollinators, this project will provide local farmers with the stability and independence needed to withstand future crises. 
The nursery will serve as a scientific teaching garden containing all ten regionally endemic fig varieties, which will enable local farmers to be trained in production and value-adding processing techniques, and initiate the development of a fig growers’ cooperative to further explore opportunities in cultivation and marketing. 
The below video provides an example of HAF’s approach to its agroforestry projects.
<iframe title="Visiting the Women-led Tassa Ouirgane Fruit Tree Nursery" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/uSsqq6jQ0pU?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
To read more on what High Atlas Foundation is all about, see <a href="https://highatlasfoundation.org/">here</a>.
<a href="https://ecologi.com/plan">Sign up</a> to Ecologi today to start taking real climate action 🌿

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Exciting news! We’ve recently teamed up with <a href="https://www.globalforestgeneration.org/">Global Forest Generation</a> (GFG) to support new projects in four countries in South America. From June 2022 onwards, some of the trees funded for planting by our community will be planted by GFG and their local partners across Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru.
We’re really proud to have begun this exciting new collaboration with GFG to support these impactful projects. Read on to find out more about our new reforestation partner, and the projects we’re supporting through their forest restoration initiative, Acción Andina.

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Global Forest Generation (GFG) was founded in 2018 by seasoned conservationists and is a non-profit organisation that’s dedicated to protecting and restoring forest ecosystems across South America. It achieves this aim by building large-scale, multi-country forest ecosystem initiatives with grassroots leaders and communities, and equips them with the resources, capacities and partnerships needed to sustain and scale their impact over time. 
GFG regards the lack of ecosystem restoration capacity and leadership on the ground as the most significant obstacle to achieving global climate, conservation and sustainable development targets through nature-based solutions (see their 2022 report <a href="https://assets.speakcdn.com/assets/2645/2022-05-_gfg_final_report_to_all_supporters.pdf">here</a>). As a result, GFG prioritises the importance of long-term, high-quality projects through holistic initiatives such as Acción Andina.

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Acción Andina, is a GFG-led initiative involving multi-stakeholder engagement to restore critically important native ecosystems in South America. To date, 3.7 million native trees have been planted across five countries (Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, Argentina, and Chile) through this initiative. Dozens of local communities have been involved, helping to ensure the restoration and protection of native ecosystems for generations to come.
Acción Andina delivers on a range of national and international climate, conservation, restoration and sustainable development priorities. Through this initiative, GFG  engages with and supports developing partnerships with local, provincial and national government institutions, universities, private sector organisations, regional and international donors, and strategic partners to scale impact and results.
The golden thread connecting all Acción Andina projects is the focus on a 20-year old community-led reforestation model developed by Peru-based conservation organisation <a href="https://www.ecoanperu.org/">ECOAN</a>, and a dedication to restoring the Polylepis ecosystem, which grows along the spine of South America’s 3,000 mile Andean mountain range. Over the next 25 years, Acción Andina aims to restore one million hectares (approx. 2.5 million acres) of the high-Andean forest ecosystem characterised by Polylepis forests.

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Polylepis is a genus of hardy, evergreen shrubs and trees, which are found in the higher elevations of the Andean mountains &#8211; it’s the highest altitude tree in the world! Despite having once covered large parts of the Andes mountain range, its ground cover is now severely fragmented and in dire need of both protection and restoration. 
Polylepis forests are vital for protecting the water security of millions of people. The trees and their root systems slow the movement of glacial meltwater, ensuring its slow release into rivers and streams throughout the year. Their branches also effectively comb and harvest mists and precipitation from the clouds. As a result, permanent streams are created. This is vital for agriculture in mountainous areas, but also for lowland towns and villages where glacial meltwater is a key source of water. The trees also prevent soil erosion and flooding, protecting homes and livelihoods. 
The forests also help to buffer the local climate from the impacts of climate change, through evapotranspiration, keeping the local climate cooler and wetter than it would be without the trees, meaning biodiversity that relies on this climate can still survive there. Not only that, but the trees and the healthy soils associated with the trees are an important carbon store, playing a crucial role in the global fight against climate change.
Unfortunately, Polylepis forests in the Andes have been threatened for some time now by deforestation. Indigenous and local communities who live close to the remaining forests are working with local conservation organisations to protect the remaining native forests and restore areas that have been deforested, planting a range of native species, including Polylepis.

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The reforestation projects we will be supporting through GFG are part of a project currently spanning 5 countries in South America (Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador, and Peru) called Acción Andina, which is restoring the high-Andean forest ecosystem of Polylepis forests. Ecologi will be funding the planting of 300,000 trees in four South American countries in the Andes mountains over the next 2 years. These trees will be planted across 16 different project sites, three in <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/restoring-andean-forests-argentina">Argentina</a>, two in <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/restoring-andean-forests-in-bolivia">Bolivia</a>, five in <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/restoring-andean-forests-in-ecuador">Ecuador</a>, and six in <a href="https://ecologi.com/projects/restoring-andean-forests-in-peru">Peru</a>.
We’ll be receiving quarterly reports on the progress of our projects with GFG, including regular photo updates to show our community the progress of the trees they’ve funded &#8211; watch this space!
<iframe title="Festival of Trees" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/v_Q8g0ezOkc?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
To read more on what Global Forest Generation is all about, see <a href="https://www.globalforestgeneration.org/">here</a>.
<a href="https://ecologi.com/plan">Sign up</a> to Ecologi today to start taking real climate action 🌿

Tree Dividend (updated July 2020)

More posts

We are supporting a new project site in Dundori, Kenya, with International Tree Foundation

Supporting our first tree planting project in Morocco with the High Atlas Foundation

We’re now supporting reforestation projects in South America with Global Forest Generation

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