TREESISTERS
Project GreenHands
WHO THEY ARE
TreeSisters, a United Kingdom charity with 501(c)(3) status in the United States, has focused on women's role in accelerating global reforestation and sustainable living, for over six years. With Treesisters in over 80 countries their:
-
Mission: To plant 1 billion trees per year, rapidly accelerating tropical reforestation while also channeling women's leadership into local and global action.
-
Purpose: To strengthen women's resilience and connection to nature and community so they, in turn, are empowered to protect themselves and their world.
-
Approach: Support and funding of the "outer work" of accelerated tropical reforestation while advancing the "inner work" of personal empowerment, leadership, and connection.
-
Achievements: In 2019 TreeSisters funded 4 partners to reach a milestone of 4 million trees planted across eight projects, in 30 countries.
WHAT THEY DO
Eighty (80%) percent of monthly donations go to reforestation partner programs, 15% to education, awareness, and community engagement targeted towards women, and 5% toward administration and fundraising. They:
-
Rigorously vet and fund tree planting partners through documented processes who increase the green cover mainly in the tropical forest belt.
-
Fund partners aligned with their primary environmental goals:
-
Protection and expansion of intact forest landscapes.
-
Restoration and protection of watersheds.
-
Controlling soil erosion (as extreme weather and deforestation cause runoff).
-
Restoring topsoil and land fertility.
-
-
Reached a milestone of 10 million trees planted in April 2020 working in eleven countries with their five reforestation partners: Eden Projects, WEForest, International Tree Foundation, Project GreenHands, and Aquaverde.
-
Focus in areas with the lowest performers on IUCN's gender and environment index (meaning the worst treatment of women).
HOW THEY ENSURE AND MONITOR SUCCESS
TreeSisters works with organizations who plant for maximum planting yield and long-term success rate. Their:
-
Work engages communities and partners to strategically plant a tree mix meeting both habitat reforestation as well as agroforestry (food, building, and revenue) needs. Thus, meeting community daily demands as well as sustainable global forestation requirements.
-
Partners monitor annual survival rate of seedlings for two to three years. They undertake tree replacement if needed, the costs presumed in the project based on average tree mortality rates for the region.
-
Partners assist local farmers ensuring proper maintenance of funded trees, two to ten years after planting depending on the project.
-
Online courses, events, and supportive TreeSisters circles connect a global force of activism, self-care and earth care.