The Arbor Day Foundation and Furniture Startup Branch Partner to Plant Trees in Forests of Need

LINCOLN, Nebraska (March 1, 2022) – Now in the second year of their partnership, the Arbor Day Foundation and office furniture company Branch are working together to plant trees in the United States and Canada. The projects were funded by Branch’s Black Friday-Cyber Monday campaigns in both 2020 and 2021, with 10+ trees being allocated for planting for every order placed on their website. This year’s campaign exceeded expectations and an additional 10,000 trees beyond the initial goal were funded, bringing the grand total to 60,000 trees for 2021. 

In addition to their tree planting efforts, Branch is working to integrate other sustainability measures into their business. The brand is currently exploring how to bring responsibly sourced materials, recycling efforts, and buy-back programs into their business model to decrease their environmental impact.

“We love working with partners who demonstrate an extraordinary amount of environmental care through their work,” said Dan Lambe, Chief Executive of the Arbor Day Foundation. “Branch truly understands the responsibility we all have to the planet, and their support gives us the boost we need to create high-level impact in forests that are in great need of trees.”

In 2020, Branch raised enough funds through their Black Friday-Cyber Monday campaign to plant 10,000 trees around Econfina Creek Water Management Areas in Florida. This year, the company was able to provide 60,000 additional trees that will go towards two reforestation projects in North Carolina and one in British Columbia, Canada.

“At Branch, we care deeply about the products we put out into the world, as well as what it takes to bring them into the world and stay in use,” said Greg Hayes, CEO and Co-Founder of Branch. “Sustainability has been a core part of our mission since our founding, and we are so thrilled to actively take part in creating change in our environments that need it most with help from the Arbor Day Foundation team.”

In Hoke County, North Carolina, the Hoke Community Forest – a forest managed by local residents, nonprofits, and county officials – is in need of longleaf pine trees to restore the area’s native ecosystem. To the northeast, the Chowan Swamp Game Land is also in need of longleaf pine trees after the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission expanded the area’s boundaries to include land that was formerly used for commercial timber production. Longleaf pines once dominated the Southeastern United States, but rapid deforestation has caused a massive decline in its populations, which provides habitat for many endemic wildlife species.

Up in British Columbia, Canada, the 2017 Hanceville wildfire burned approximately 590,000 acres of forest, leaving much of the area severely damaged and unable to naturally regenerate. A combination of Douglas-fir and lodgepole pine trees are needed to increase the pace of reforestation and restore the ecological benefits the surrounding communities had previously enjoyed.

Thanks to partners like Branch, the Arbor Day Foundation can deliver additional reforestation efforts to areas and ecosystems in desperate need of trees around the world.

About the Arbor Day Foundation

Founded in 1972, the Arbor Day Foundation has grown to become the largest nonprofit membership organization dedicated to planting trees, with more than one million members, supporters and valued partners. Since 1972, almost 500 million Arbor Day Foundation trees have been planted in neighborhoods, communities, cities and forests throughout the world. Our vision is to lead toward a world where trees are used to solve issues critical to survival.  

As one of the world's largest operating conservation foundations, the Arbor Day Foundation, through its members, partners and programs, educates and engages stakeholders and communities across the globe to involve themselves in its mission of planting, nurturing and celebrating trees. More information is available at arborday.org.

About Branch

Founded in 2019, Branch makes it easy for people and teams to build a beautiful workspace where everyone can feel and work their best. Along with a curated line of thoughtful essentials, we offer end-to-end services so customers can design their dream office, purchase furniture, and handle delivery and installation all in one place. By removing furniture dealer middlemen and selling directly to customers online, our collection costs half as much as premium furniture of comparable quality. We are on a mission to help foster a better day’s work for everyone, matter where or how they work. For more information on Branch, visit branchfurniture.com

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