Earth Day 2023: Planting Trees and Growing Partnerships 

Planting Trees: The Ultimate Act Of Thinking Globally & Acting Locally

Every year, we celebrate Earth Month the best way we know how: by working together with our amazing planting partners + brand partners to empower thousands of volunteers around the world to improve their local communities. In celebration of Earth Day 2023, volunteers planted trees, removed Invasive species, cleaned up trash, helped restore shorelines and wetlands, planted shrubs, supported pollinators, planted urban gardens, worked in nurseries, maintained trails, and more!

This year, an estimated 8,187 volunteers got their hands in the dirt and planted over 44,427 trees and 8,395 shrubs at 131 events in 34 countries around the world to celebrate Earth Day and Earth Month! In addition to planting trees, those that volunteered in nurseries propagated a combined 500,500 seeds!

Special thanks to our amazing reforestation partners, and to our Earth Month sponsors YACHAK, Hyundai, and Visa. Our Earth Month events wouldn't have been possible without you!

Here's Where We Planted Trees This Earth Month!

From Colorado to Indonesia,Australia to Bolivia, in forest reserves, community parks and watersheds big and small — everywhere we looked, we found affirmation of why we do the work we do. Volunteers from all walks of life picked up planting shovels and worked together to restore their local environments, one tree at a time. In a changing climate, much is uncertain but some things never change, like the dedication showed by volunteers, the satisfaction of planting trees, and the shared drive to leave this planet a little better than we found it. 

The One Tree Planted Team Got Our Hands In The Dirt

Never shy about getting our hands in the dirt, the One Tree Planted team, Forest Fest attendees, and over 300 local volunteers came together on Earth Day to plant over 3,000 trees at the Yellow Barn Farm in Loveland, Colorado! We braved cold temperatures and a fresh blanket of snow to plant a mix of trees and shrubs along swales that are designed to retain water in the landscape. Our day concluded with live music, food and vendors to celebrate this hard work.

While in Colorado, we couldn't resist visiting our friends and One Canopy Nursery, where Forest Fest attendees got to learn about this crucial first step of the reforestation process, attend a drone flying workshop, and learn more about seed collection and why it is important.

Our Fleet Grew!

That's right! We're proud to grow our fleet two all-electric ioniq6's generously donated by Hyundai. The ioniq6 is the winner of the prestigious World Car of the Year, World Electric Vehicle and World Car Design of the Year awards. Our two new Hyundai ioniq6's will be strategically located in the Northeast and Southwest of North America and will allow us to travel to reforestation sites, meet with partners and more!  We are so grateful to Hyundai for their generous donation, which will help us jump the curve on reforestation for the benefit of nature and communities across North America!

And PRT Planted Their 5 Billionth Tree With Us!

We were honored to help PRT celebrate planting their 5th BILLIONTH tree on Earth Day at Yellow Barn Farm. The planting was blessed during an opening ceremony led by Nawang Khechog, a Tibetan flute player and student of the Dalai Lama. PeaceJam donated a Peace Pole to commemorate the planting, and the planting was followed by an Action Day orientation.

Here Are Just a Few Individual Event Highlights:

South Salem, New York

In New York State, our partner, a local garden club, distributed 2,850 seedlings that were grown at a local nursery to town residents to create "National Parks" on their properties. Volunteers sorted, packaged and distributed the seedings, and offered guidance for planting and maintenance. The species that were distributed included Blue Spruce, Douglas Fir, White Spruce, American Hazelnut, American Sweetgum, Black Cherry, Black Oak, Black Walnut, “Copper” Chinquapin, Red Maple, River Birch, Sycamore, White Oak, Black Chokeberry, Northern Bayberry, Northern White Cedar, Pussy Willow, Dwarf Sand Cherry, Silky Dogwood, Virginia Rose, Winged Sumac, and Winterberry.

Bananal, Brazil

In Bananal, Brazil, 300 trees were planted by the local  community as part of a larger effort to empower local children and youth to tackle the environmental crisis head on. Additionally, 200 native tree saplings were distributed to local landowners, and 500 seeds were propagated for future reforestation efforts.  Over 20 tree species that are native to Brazil's Atlantic Forest were planted or distributed, including Myrsine ferruginea, Jacaranda sp., Allophylus edulis, Sparattosperma leucanthum, and Joanesia princeps. In addition to tree planting, this event had a focus on environmental education, where local children taught adults about forest conservation and reforestation. They also had the opportunity to present their personal ideas about environmental protection through an art show. 

Preaek Tnaot, Cambodia

Along the southern coast of Cambodia, 2,000 trees were planted to support vital mangrove ecosystems. The day kicked off with a welcome from our planting partner and community leaders, and a celebration of mangrove forests and all that they do for marine biodiversity and fisheries. Before planting commenced, a refresher training was conducted for local volunteers, many of whom had planted trees in previous years.  The species planted included Rhizophora (R. mucronata, R. apiculata) Avicennia, Lumnitzera, Bruguiera, and Ceriops.

Special thanks to all of the awesome volunteers that got their hands in the dirt this month, and to our partners on the ground, who made these plantings happen!

Partnership Announcements

In addition to having 131 successful tree planting events, several of our tree-loving business partners shared initiatives, milestones and commitments, and we couldn't be more proud of what we're accomplishing, together! YACHAK shared their commitment to plant 500,000 trees by 2024 to help reforest the Amazon Rainforest! Hyundai talked about our growing partnership, sharing that they are planting 200,000 trees across the United States, Canada and Mexico this year as part of their global IONIQ Forest.  The one and only Ellen Degeneres shared that her skincare brand KindScience is planting trees to celebrate Earth Day. For every purchase made, they will plant one tree! Oliver Wyman shared our partnership, through which they are supporting 7 reforestation projects around the world!  Juventus celebrated their reforestation impact through planting trees for goals scored, noting that since our partnership began in 2020, they have planted 55,000 trees! Stingray announced, for the fourth year, that they would donate all proceeds of the Stingray Naturescape channel on Earth Day to One Tree Planted. House of Marley celebrated our continued partnership! Tarte Cosmeticsannounced that in honor of Earth Day, all heart to tarte donations would go to One Tree Planted.  In celebration of Earth Day, joie planted one tree for every purchase made.  Bellissima Prosecco shared that for every bottle sold they would plant one tree! While we couldn't possibly list them all, we wanted to share a few highlights from the month of April.  Thank you to all of our amazing business partners who help us get trees in the ground on Earth Day and every day. We're proud to work together with you to restore forests across the globe, one tree at a time!Missed your chance to participate this Earth Month? Not to worry! You can sign up at any time to become a business partner, and in the meantime, you can still help us get trees in the ground! 🌿