The Planet Company – Mangrove forest for our community
It’s time to create our own first Planet Act! As our own CO2 footprint is already close to zero due to home offices and restricted travel, we decided to innovate something impactful for the whole community – a growing Planet Company Mangrove forest as a gift and reward program.
This Planet Act is good for climate, biodiversity, local community as well as a good motivational factor for the community. Traceability and transparency of the process are vital.
With our first own Planet Act, we wanted to do something very impactful with limited startup company resources. After a long evaluation of options, we decided to invest in expanding and protecting the vital Mangrove forests in the coastal areas of the Philippines, on behalf of our whole community.
Purpose
The purpose of our first Planet Act is to enable our growing community to protect and expand the vital Mangrove forests in the coastal areas of the Philippines, which is regarded as one of the most powerful carbon sinks on our planet.
We want to reward and appreciate our amazing Planet Company community for participating in our mission to create change through concrete actions everywhere in the world.
Results
Mangroves have a huge positive impact on the climate. Although they’re only found in tropical areas and cover an estimated 140,000 square kilometers – less than 3 percent the extent of the Amazon rainforest – mangroves are powerhouses when it comes to carbon storage. Studies indicate that mangroves can sequester four times more carbon than rainforests can. Most of this carbon is stored in the soil beneath mangrove trees.
Mangroves also provide other benefits for coastal human communities. They act as storm barriers, protecting inland areas from flooding and erosion by dissipating the energy of big waves. They help filter river water of pollutants and trap excess sediment before it reaches the ocean. Their role as fish nurseries can have a big impact on local economies and food production.
In 2020, we decided to plant and caretake 500 Mangroves as a community action to fight climate change. In 2021, we plan to at least double that amount.
Implementation
The provider of this Planet Act is a Finnish company Treebuddy. Their organization uses its networks to plant trees all over the world. Each planted tree is documented and placed as an icon on the Treebuddy map. The planter receives information about both the planted tree and the person who planted it. The Treebuddy organization takes care of the planted trees with the help of the local community. In this way, the growth of the tree is really taken care of, and the planting does not remain a single act.
Locals in the Philippines receive income every time they make a status update of a Mangrove tree with a new photo (after 1 year, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 years) – encouraging locals for stable long-term tree care. Local tree care communities, businesses, and individual customers meet each other regularly in joint meetings or webinars. This gives a very empowering motivation boost to act for the planet.
In our reward and gift program, we decided to plant Mangroves for our experts, based on the number of expert reviews they have given. Also, we’ll give Mangroves as impactful Christmas gifts for all our members.
The People's Voice