As the title of this blog post states, we plant a tree with every order. Our partner, Forest Planet, works to support tree planting projects, mainly in Morocco & Tanzania at the low cost of 15 cents a tree.
Taftchna Nursery, Morocco - Feb 2023
This year, Forest Planet has partnered with the new Taftchna Nursery in Morocco, which has the capacity to start 135,000 new seedlings of fig, pomegranate, cherry, and carob trees each year. These seedlings can then be funneled into surrounding communities and be a source of income for decades and generations to come.
In December 2023, 700 families will receive the first batch of seedlings from Taftchna. The variety of trees selected will begin to fruit in as little as 3 years. Because the roots of a tree hold moisture, this will also allow the companion planting of vegetables in the soil which would have otherwise been difficult to farm in, which will also have the benefit of increasing food and economic security.
Taftchna Nursery, April 2023
Eventually you'll hear me say variations of this this a lot, but it is equally important to support sustainable, ethical development locally and overseas. In terms of mileage, supporting locally is the most sustainable choice.
But we need to consider more than just the mileage if we're considering long-term effects. The Western world cannot turn a blind eye to the developing world now that we are invested in local, sustainable industries and ethically paying people for their work, locally. For so long we (sometimes knowingly, sometimes unknowingly) contributed to exploiting people and their lands overseas and it only makes sense that we should help to restore it. Though the Age of Colonialism is largely over, the effects of Western control linger.
If we are to truly become sustainable, it has to happen on a global level, and a huge part of this is working to restore equilibrium in the developing world. To me, this means supporting sustainable development and industries wherever that may be, and I do tend to actively pursue certain products overseas because of this ~ namely textiles, spices & coffee, but I digress.
The best place to plant a tree is anywhere, and the best time to do it is right now. While I hope to diversify our efforts in giving back ~ both local and abroad ~ I'm so glad we chose to work with Forest Planet first. It's more than planting trees, it's giving the tools for families to flourish while giving back to and caring for the land... via planting trees.
Being able to see such immediate change and know how much it changes not just individual lives but the entire foundation of a community is truly incredible.
For Q2 2023 we planted 700 trees! At the end of each quarter we'll share our progress, and put a little graphic together at the end of the year to sum up. We plant 1 tree per order + 1 tree per candle.
