ONE TREE PLANTED MADE AN INCREDIBLE IMPACT FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND LOCAL COMMUNITIES IN 2023, ALL THANKS TO YOU!
WE PLANT TREES
4. A Letter From Our CEO
5. A Note From the Board
7. How We Operate
8. From Donations to Trees in the Ground
9. 2023 Budget Breakdown
13. Impact to Date
15. Celebrating 100 Million Trees
2023 IMPACT
19. A Year in Review
20. Reforesting the Globe
22. North America
23. Latin America
24. Africa
25. Asia & the Pacific
26. Europe
27. TerraFund for AFR100
30. Economic & Social Impacts
32. Biodiversity Benefits
34. Tree Species Planted
36. From Wildfires to Watersheds
37. Forest-Based Solutions
PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS
10. Thailand Hilltribes
17. High Andes Polylepis Forest
28. Uganda Albertine Rift
38. England Community Forests
44. Urban Forestry: Delhi Land Revival
45. Urban Forestry: Orlando Schools Project
47. Nazko Wildfire Restoration
54. Dominican Republic
62. Minnesota Restoring Resilient Forests
GLOBAL COMMUNITY, LOCAL IMPACT
41. Urban Forestry: 2023 Impact
42. Environmental Justice
43. Urban Forestry Action Fund: International
45. Urban Forestry Action Fund: U.S.
48. Community Forestry Events
49. School T.R.E.E.S. Program
50. Little Tree Hugger Program
51. Tree Ambassadors Program
52. Sports and Sustainability
56. Forest Fest 23
IMPACT ASSESSMENT & MONITORING
60. Global Site Visits
61. Monitoring With Drones
PARTNERSHIPS FOR IMPACT
64. Our Amazing Partners
65. Collaboration is Key
Making it simple for everyone to help the environment by planting trees is at the heart of One Tree Planted’s vision, strategy, and business model. As the recently appointed new PresidentandCEO,Iwantedtotakethisopportunitytointroduce myselfandexpressmyenthusiasmforleadingthisextraordinary organization.
I am joining One Tree Planted with nearly three decades of chief executive experience, including overseeing national and international non-profit entities dedicated to animal welfare, the environment,andwildlifehabitatprotection.Thisiscoupledwith education in horticulture and arboriculture at both graduate and undergraduate levels. I am truly delighted to be part of a robust, mission-driven environmental nonprofit that is committed to collaboration,innovation,andscalableimplementation.
With over 135 million trees planted to date, One Tree Planted has accomplished an incredible milestone in service to worldwidereforestation, biodiversity, and indigenous community development. Thanks to its solid foundation of success and a powerful network of partnerships, the organization is strategically positioned to further solidify its role and scale its impactasoneofthekeyglobalreforestationleaders.
As One Tree Planted embarks on its next growth phase, I am proud to work with our experienced team, enthusiastic Board, and exceptional partners to collectively enhance our recognized environmental impact. Our cooperative and coordinated efforts producemeasurableglobalreachandachievements.
As climate change intensifies, the act of planting trees becomes not just a symbol of hope, but rather a powerful, purposeproduced transformative act. I am grateful for your continued partnership, encouragement, and support. I look forward to workingtogethertoplanttrees,upliftcommunities,andcontinue sharingthebenefitsreforestationhasonourworld.
Sincerely,
HARRY P. LYNCH CEO & President
One Tree Planted
Two significant milestones in a row are cause for both celebration and reflection. Last year, we marked having planted 100 million trees around the world since our inception. This year, we are celebrating our 10th anniversary. Invigorated and encouraged by both milestones, the board is taking stock and looking at what it will take for us to assume an even greater role in reforestation over the next decade and beyond.
To this end, we have added three new members who together expand the board’s collective experience in governance and organizational development. Harry ‘Hank’ Lynch has joined as the new President and CEO, drawing on a background as both a horticulturistandarborist,aswellasleadershiprolesinseveralmajororganizations. Jim Massey is known for integrating sustainability into his successful role in business, leadership, and corporate governance. Hugh Locke has a background in reforestation that includes field experience with smallholders planting millions of treesinHaiti.
Weareconfidentthatourexpandedboard,incombinationwithanoutstandingteam, exceptional planting partners, and supportive corporate and individual donors, placesOneTreePlantedinauniquepositionforthenexttenyears.Together,wewill work hard to play a pivotal role in driving a mass reforestation movement that helps toaccelerateclimateactiononthisplanetwecallhome.
Simplicity, innovation, and positive impact are at the heart of how we implement quality reforestationprojects.
Trees and forests are essential for a healthy planet. Theycleanourairandwater,createhabitatforwildlife, and sequester carbon. Global reforestation also createsawealthofeconomicandsocialbenefits.
$60,439,281 83.2% $12,197,692 16.8%
$10,158,333 83% $327,517 3%
6% $365,728 3%
3%
THAILANDHILLTRIBES 878,500TREESTOBEPLANTED
In a remote region near the border of Myanmar, tucked away in northern Thailand'sruggedhillcountry,liveagroupofmarginalizedethnicminorities. Commonly referred to as the hilltribes, many are refugees of civil strife in Myanmar and have been in Thailand for generations — but often aren't recognizedascitizens.Thismulti-yearprojectworkstoempowerover1,000 members of the hill tribe communities by planting trees, educating local farmers on the benefits of agroforestry, and promoting watershed restoration.
Through the planting of 878,500 trees in this multi-phase project, our planting partner’s approach to watershed restoration engages local communities and results in environmental regeneration, economic empowerment, and spiritual renewal. The trees are being planted on common and private lands in partnership with local authorities to improve foodsecurity,enhancelivelihoods,andboostbiodiversity.
NATURE IS NOT A PLACE TO VISIT, IT IS HOME.
–GARY SNYDER
THE TRUE MEANING OF LIFE IS TO PLANT TREES, UNDER WHOSE SHADE YOU DO NOT EXPECT TO SIT.
High above the Amazon basin, shrouded in mist and nestled amongst the slopes of the longest mountain chain in the world live a community of gnarled, majestic trees: the High Andes Polylepis forest. Teeming with life and adapted to harsh alpine conditions, these forests are threaded tightly with the indigenous communities who have called this mountain range homeforgenerations.
One Tree Planted is partnered with Global Forest Generation to support Accion Andina, the first multi-country, large-scale, grassroots initiative to restorethehighaltitudenativeforestsofSouthAmerica'shighAndes.This phase of the project planted 1,200,000 Polylepis trees. Each tree will help restore wetlands, safeguard existing forest, and protect critical Amazon headwaters. Working with local and indigenous communities, trees were planted on designated lands to expand existing forests, or to seed new onesinhistoricallydeforestedareas.
5,817,903
CANADA UNITED STATES
12,289,007
3,537,830
HONDURAS 619,593 DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 850,000 PANAMA
PERU 1,644,311 BRAZIL 2,242,748
NIGERIA 4,000
310,000
755,600
10,000
KENYA
TANZANIA
INDIA 972,254
2,242,346
715,000
1,105,634
NEW ZEALAND 424,273
1,344,295 KENYA 573,176 TANZANIA 430,966 BENIN 223,810 136,500 13,547 ETHIOPIA 1,298,871
CÔTE D’IVOIRE 83,679
GHANA 1,031,977
UGANDAALBERTINERIFT 755,600TREESPLANTEDIN2023
TheAlbertineRift,stretchingacrosseast-centralAfrica,ishometotropical weather and high biodiversity, making the region a critical part of African biodiversity and climate. With our partner, the Jane Goodall Institute, this project planted 755,000 trees across the Budongo-Bugoma Corridor in the Albertine Rift region of Western Uganda. The planted trees will enhance biodiversity by providing habitat for chimpanzees while also regulating climateconditions.
LEARN CHARACTER FROM TREES, VALUES FROM ROOTS, AND CHANGE FROM LEAVES.
In England, our partner, The Community Forest Trust, is working with England’s Community Forests to restore community forests across England’s countryside. Green and recreational spaces are important to community health and resilience, and this project focused on protecting andenhancingthesespacesbyplantingtrees.
MostofEngland’sCommunityForestsarescatteredacrosslargecitiesand towns. These forests are home to many important species and provide benefits to local communities. By planting trees, climate resilience was improved through natural flood management, habitat for wildlife was restored, and many local community members were able to participate in therestorationoftheircommunityforest.
HE THAT PLANTS TREES, LOVES OTHERS BESIDES HIMSELF.
— THOMAS FULLER
ARGENTINA
AUSTRALIA
BANGLADESH
MALAYSIA
DELHILANDREVIVAL 8,787TREESPLANTEDIN2023
This urban forestry project in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi NCR, transformed a former landfill site into a biodiverse urban forest patch. The planted trees will directly impact the surrounding under-resourced communities, who have been extremely vulnerable to waste pollution as a resultofthelandfill.
Inanefforttorestorethesite,over8,500nativetreeswereplantedusingthe Miyawaki method of reforestation. This method is utilized to efficiently regenerate degraded soils, mimicking natural succession through the use of abiodiverseselectionofnativetreespecies.
Withonly14%ofthecitydesignatedasgreencover,thisprojectwillactively develop the natural resources needed to establish a healthier, more resilient environment for the community in Ghaziabad. This new urban forest patch will make significant impacts in purifying the air, restoring the soil, reducing urban heat, and creating new opportunities for youth and community engagementwithnature—whichmaynototherwisehavebeenaccessible.
IN NATURE, NOTHING IS PERFECT AND EVERYTHING IS PERFECT.
TREES CAN BE CONTORTED, BENT IN WEIRD WAYS, AND THEY’RE STILL BEAUTIFUL. –ALICE WALKER
NAZKOWILDFIRERESTORATION
1,160,000TREESPLANTEDIN2023
The objective of the British Columbia 2023 - Nazko Wildfire Restoration project wastoreforestareas thatwereimpactedbyalarge, severewildfire that occurred in 2017. A variety of conifer species, as well as one deciduous species, were planted in areas that were not found to be regenerating naturally. By replanting in this area, we are able to increase biodiversity by including native species that are not as well adapted to comingbackafterawildfire,suchashybridspruceandDouglasfir.
Replanting also ensures that all the benefits forests provide will return to the landscape much faster than if left to natural processes. These benefits include the provision of food sources, fuel, and medicinal plants; atmosphericcarbonsequestration;regulationofthehydrologicalcycle;and wildlife habitat. At least 40 other species associated with coniferous forests will benefit benefit from this project, including black and grizzly bears, moose, mule deer, cougars, grey wolves, snowshoe hares, sandhill cranes,andbaldeagles.
VOLUNTEERS ENGAGED 13,000+
TOTAL TREES PLANTED
TOTAL COMMUNITY FORESTRY EVENTS 46,000+ 162
DOMINICANREPUBLIC 800,000TREESPLANTEDIN2023
With pristine beaches, evergreen forests, and fertile valleys, the Dominican Republic contains the most diverse topography in the Caribbean. This project helped revitalize deforested land and empowered communities to plant trees and care for their local environment by restoring watersheds. Through this project, 800,000 trees were planted on hillsides to prevent erosion,decreasepollution,andincreasetheresilienceofcropstoweather events.
Our planting partner empowered volunteers with education as they learned to plant trees in forested areas and on smallholder farms. As part of the holisticPlantWithPurposeapproach,partneringfarmerswerenearlytwice as likely to plant native species, have higher crop yields, and benefit from improved economic stability. As local subsistence pressures decrease, competition for resources ease, and communities unite to improve and conservetheenvironmentintheirsubwatershed.
TOGETHER WE CAN PRESERVE THE FOREST, SECURING THIS IMMENSE TREASURE FOR THE FUTURE OF ALL OUR CHILDREN.
— CHICO MENDES
MINNESOTA: RESTORING RESILIENT FORESTS
1,000,000TREESPLANTEDIN2023
Over time, Northern Minnesota’s forests have become increasingly simplified due to past management practices, reduction in natural disturbances, and increased herbivory from deer. Because of this, forests here have fewer and shorter-lived tree species. This project has been working to restore important tree species while expanding the ranges of climate-adapted species. The aim of this project was to improve habitats across landscapes — including the headwaters of important watersheds, riparian forests along lake shores and trout streams, and degraded forests alongtheNorthShoreofLakeSuperior.
Our planting partner utilizes a scientific process to improve resilience by bringing in new tree species that will better withstand climate change impacts. With this project, 1 million trees were planted across Northern Minnesota.
IF WE LOSE THE FORESTS, WE LOSE OUR ONLY TEACHERS.
— BILL MOLLISON
UNITED STATES FOREST SERVICE
GLOBAL FOREST GENERATION
GRUPO DE ESTUDOS DE ORDENAMENTO DO TERRITÓRIO E AMBIENTE
KULA PROJECT
TO BE WITHOUT TREES WOULD, IN THE MOST LITERAL WAY, MEAN TO BE WITHOUT OUR ROOTS.
