Treebytree is a social enterprise on a mission to accelerate the regeneration of nature. We enable companies to gift trees that are brought back in the heart of Africa. Easily, at scale, and with an epic customizable gifting experience. By empowering thousands of companies, their employees, customers and other stakeholders, we use the power of the collective to bring back one billion trees before 2050. Together. 

We've teamed up with distributors in the corporate gifting industry. We call them our 'Regreening Partners' as they're the ones spreading the message and inspiring companies to gift trees. We enable them to add trees as a 100% sustainable gift to their portfolio. They handle all the logistics when a company wants to gift trees, to make sure the gifted trees reach the right people.

Launched in 2022, we’re a digital ‘for-purpose’ startup with our headquarters in The Hague, The Netherlands.

We enable your company to gift trees to employees, customers and other stakeholders. 

We have developed an epic way to gift trees that are being regenerated in the heart of Africa. Every tree is geocoded, allowing the recipients to virtually travel to the location of their tree.

Our digital tree gifting experience can be given to recipients in many ways. Our Regreening Partners (distributors in the corporate gifting industry) can help you choose the way that suits you best. All you have to do is give them your branding elements and tell them how many trees to gift and to whom - by email, printed gift cards or QR codes printed on products -  and they'll take care of the logistics. They can even add a personalized message from you!

You can track, and share, the positive impact of your gifts on your personal dashboard on our platform. This includes the number of trees gifted, the estimated CO₂ sequestered, the estimated water retention, how you’ve contributed to local communities and much more.

At the moment, we’re focusing on a business-to-business approach. If you’d like to give trees to family or friends, follow us on social media and we’ll let you know as soon as we’re ready for that next step!

Once you’ve decided trees are the perfect sustainable gift for you and your company, this is how it works.

1. Get in touch

For companies

If you’re a company wanting to gift trees, press that ‘start gifting trees’ button, right up there on our top navigation bar. You can leave your contact details and the number of trees you’d like to gift in the form. Step one done! Next up you’ll get a phone call or email from one of our Regreening Partners (within 1 working day) to walk you through our concept and customize your gifts.

For distributors

If you’re a distributor that wants to become a Regreening Partner and add trees to your portfolio, send an email to info@treebytree.earth and we’ll get back to you in a jiffy. 

2. Let’s create your gift

After registering with your company details, your assigned Regreening Partner will use our platform to create and send gifts on your behalf. Yup, they handle all the logistics!

All you have to do is let them know how many trees you’d like to gift, how and to whom, send them your branding elements and the personal message you might want to add. And they’ll take care of the rest. 

After customizing, your gifts can be delivered by email directly from our platform, by a downloadable printable treebytree gift card, or QR code you can print on any (sustainable) design or product you want.

3. Follow & Share

Recipients will be treated to an immersive experience, where they unwrap their gift, find the exact geolocation and access cool metrics such as CO₂ captured, tree species and much more. 

Through their personal dashboard and quarterly tree updates, recipients stay connected to their gifted tree AND to your company.

Besides the obvious (wanting to be part of a collective that contributes to the regeneration of nature), there’s a big shift in demand for corporate gifting. Receivers are getting more and more critical about where corporate gifts come from, while purpose-driven strategies and sustainability are major factors in how Millennials and Gen Z perceive brands. Surveys even show that 58% of all corporate gifts are not used by the recipients. So why not gift something 100% sustainable AND 100% epic?

We’ve created an extraordinary digital experience to make gifting trees something special. Now you can turn corporate gifting into giving back.

Trees are the absolute champions in cooling down the planet. They absorb CO₂, retain water, boost biodiversity and support local communities. And people love them!

By giving a tree you:

·      Offer your stakeholders a great brand experience

·      Create a lasting connection between your company, the recipient and the tree

·      Connect corporate gifting to your sustainability strategy 

·      Follow worldwide momentum. Now is the time for sustainable and meaningful gifts!

Treebytree is a social enterprise. Our reason for existence is all about making a positive impact. This, for us, will always be our compass in the choices we make. 

We have the ambition to become a B-corp as soon as possible to join this international movement of like-minded companies. We have integrated all necessary definitions into our company by-laws and can't wait to jump on the bandwagon and make our membership official. 

B-Corp Certification is an international designation recognizing businesses that excel in verified performance, accountability, sustainability and transparency.

Justdiggit uses your funding to train and motivate farmers in the heart of Africa to look after the trees and to inspire more farmers to recover their own trees. The farmer that regenerated the tree and takes care of it will remain the legal owner. Your funding also allows the farmers to reap the benefits that the trees may offer to their families and their communities.

1 billion trees = a more stable climate

Trees don't only produce oxygen, they absorb carbon dioxide. This helps reduce the impacts of global warming and stabilize the climate. If one tree absorbs approximately 10-40kg of C0₂ per year, 1 billion trees would absorb at least 10 million tons of C0₂ per year. That’s the same as taking 2 million cars off the road each year!

1 billion trees = much needed rain

Trees act as natural air conditioners and ‘create rain’ by cooling the surrounding air through the release of water vapor. Their canopies also provide shade, cooling down the soil and their root systems retain water, increasing soil fertility and decreasing erosion. 

1 billion trees = crucial support for biodiversity

Roughly 30% of species have been threatened globally or driven to extinction since the year 1500. And approximately 80% of terrestrial species rely on forests and trees for food, shelter and other necessities. So, just imagine how many animals would benefit from 1 billion trees.

1 billion trees = 2 million acres of forest

Every 2 seconds we lose about 1 football field worth of forest due to deforestation. Gaining 2 million acres of forest would be equivalent to more than 1 million football fields! 

1 billion trees = healthy food for communities

The treecovery projects bring back a wide variety of trees. Among these are trees that have fruits and nuts, providing healthy, nutrient-dense foods to communities in need. 1 billion trees would produce a substantial amount of food!

1 billion trees = oxygen for 2 billion people

Everyone knows that trees produce oxygen, but did you know that the average fully grown tree produces a day’s supply of oxygen for you and a friend? So, 1 billion fully grown trees would produce enough oxygen for 2 billion people to breathe!

1 billion trees = only 10% of the trees we lose on an annual basis

It’s our moonshot ambition but not nearly enough from a global perspective. Luckily we’re not alone. Together with global initiatives we need to do everything we can to bring back trees and restore our ecosystems. 

Justdiggit

We’re proud to have the superheroes at Justdiggit as our partner in regreening the planet. They are on a mission to regreen Africa within the next decade and have inspired and empowered people all over the world to join in. Justdiggit works closely with local farmers and communities in the heart of Africa to restore degraded land with proven regreening techniques. They are the ones who recover the trees you gift on treebytree.

We work with Justdiggit because they have scientifically-backed programs, a long track record and support from local communities. Since 2009, they have helped restore more than 400,000 hectares of land, brought back over 14 million trees and built a grassroots movement that keeps growing every day!

Justdiggit applies multiple techniques to bring back vegetation and boost biodiversity in degraded areas. In Tanzania farmers use a technique called Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR), also known as Kisiki Hai in Swahili. It helps the farmers to regrow trees that were previously cut down. Justdiggit made two beautiful documentaries showing you exactly how it works: Kiski Hai I & Kisiki Hai II. 

Visit www.justdiggit.org to learn more about their incredible work!

We're all about bringing back as many trees as possible. To do this at scale, and as fast as possible, we've teamed up with distributors in the corporate gifting industry. All over Europe. They have acces to many international companies who are regularly looking for gifts to reward or engage stakeholders. So image the impact!

That’s why, we call them our 'Regreening Partners' as they're the ones spreading the message, coming up with creative ideas and inspiring companies to gift trees. They also handle all the logistics to make sure the gifts reach the right people. Having them on our side is an essential part of our mission to accelerate the regeneration of nature.

Climate change, overuse of farmlands, deforestation and overgrazing cause the soil to dry out. Especially in vulnerable areas like the Sub-Saharan Africa. This drought leads to desertification and degradation of the land, making it hard to obtain food, crops, fresh water and natural resources, such as firewood, from the land. 

Yet, there’s a solution: regreening! Recent studies show that nature-based solutions can contribute up to 37% of the carbon emission intake required to keep global warming below 2 degrees Celsius.

Vegetation absorbs carbon, decreasing the amount of CO₂ in the atmosphere and subsequently reduces the effect of global warming.

Healthy forests retain water and provide shade, ultimately cooling the soil. They also provide fruit and medicine for communities, and food and shelter for wildlife. Truly boosting biodiversity and accelerating the regeneration of nature.

Our partner, Justdiggit, focuses its operations on Africa as 65% of the land in Africa is affected by degradation. This leaves a lot of space for regreening and Justdiggit’s knowledge of specific regreening techniques fits the complex local circumstances. The urgency of regreening in Africa is also high. Drought and degradation of the land lead to crop failure, causing hunger and poverty within these areas.  

So, regreening in Africa not only positively impacts nature, but also local communities and wildlife. 

Trees capture carbon and emit oxygen; they are the lungs of the Earth.

Our partner, Justdiggit, estimates that the average Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR) tree absorbs 240kg of CO₂ over a period of 20 years. 

Trees reduce topsoil erosion by catching precipitation with their leaf canopies. This slows down the water runoff which, in turn, ensures that water can percolate into the soil and replenish groundwater supplies.

To estimate water retention by Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR) trees, Justdiggit uses calculations and data from field and scientific research, in combination with local real time data. 

Even though water retention is somewhat lower in the first years after the trees have been brought back and higher in the later years, the estimated average is 1371 liters per tree, per year. 

Bringing back vegetation has a positive effect on local communities and their livelihoods. Farmers benefit from the positive effects of recovering the trees on their farms, including healthier soil, better yield and less vulnerability to drought. This contributes to better food security and a higher income.

Promoting and implementing Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR) starts with the training of champion farmers and is ultimately done by the farmers on their land. Each farmer has an average of 60 trees. The average household size in the project regions is 5.6 persons. 

This means that for every 60 trees that are brought back, an average of 5 people are positively impacted!

Even though we don’t measure the exact effect on this metric, it’s worth mentioning that regreening projects also have a positive impact on local biodiversity. 

By bringing back trees and restoring ecosystems, the living environment for many different animal and plant species is improved. 

With more water and food available, there’s an increase in the biodiversity of plants, insects, birds and wildlife in the areas that have been regreened.

The United Nations created seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a framework to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all. At treebytree, we impact the following SDGs:

SDG 2: Zero Hunger

Bringing back trees provides fruits, nuts and food for both animals and people. The trees also retain water and refertilize the soil, increasing crop yield and ultimately positively affecting food security. 

SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
The treecovery projects are carried out in collaboration with local partners and farmers. They benefit from healthier soil, better yield and less vulnerability to drought. This contributes to better food security and a higher income.

SDG 13: Climate Action
Trees absorb CO₂, retain water, boost biodiversity and ultimately cool down the planet. 

SDG 15: Life on Land

Bringing back trees combats desertification, reverses land degradation and has a positive effect on biodiversity.

It’s good to know that treebytree does not formally ‘directly’ compensate for carbon. However, by bringing back trees, we do support the sequestration of carbon. 

To compensate carbon in a formal way, specific certification of the sequestrated carbon is needed. The set up of such a certification project takes many years and is relatively expensive - think several million dollars! As we want to make a huge impact in a short amount of time, we’ve decided to stay focused on our mission: accelerating the regeneration of nature so that we can bring back 1 billion trees before 2050.