Think Global, Act Global: Our Work in International Forestry

They are hard-working forces of nature, bringing our global community countless benefits. Trees cool our cities and clean our air. They help us solve issues that cross borders, like climate change and biodiversity collapse.

The Arbor Day Foundation, together with our global network of tree planting partners, is positioned to face these challenges head-on. Through our partners, we have shovels in the dirt of the world’s most critical ecosystems. We prioritize engaging local leaders to take ownership of their own forest lands and get involved in our planting projects. We’ve been able to foster relationships with indigenous communities and forestry leaders in more than 50 countries.

That work has not gone unnoticed. The Arbor Day Foundation was recently named a supporting partner of the U.N. Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. The one-of-a-kind campaign rallies some of the world’s most influential environmental leaders in a period of great urgency. As a proud supporting partner of the U.N. Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, we’re dedicated to using trees and forests as nature-based solutions to the planet’s most pressing issues. But to deliver on that commitment, we can’t solely focus on getting huge numbers of trees into the ground. We understand it’s about knowing what kind of trees to plant, where they’ll do the most good, and who to activate for impact.

We utilize data and technology to help us determine the key regions where trees are needed most. This priority index measurement tool assigns a ranking to forests and neighborhoods based on land classifications and socioeconomic factors like income, education and housing quality. The multiple layers of data allow us to quantify how trees might impact climate, community, and biodiversity in specific areas. Equipped with this knowledge, we can target global forests and neighborhoods of greatest need and amplify the magnitude of trees.

The Arbor Day Foundation has a longstanding legacy in meaningful tree planting. In our first 50 years, we planted nearly 500 million trees. Now, we’re hoping to do it again in the next five years. To accelerate the impact of trees, we need to move faster than we ever have before.

When it comes to addressing the world’s most pressing problems, trees are one of the most scalable and affordable solutions we have available now. The Arbor Day Foundation knows there has never been a more important time for trees and we’re determined to put these tools of nature to work. Because every tree in the ground brings our global community closer to realizing the dream of a healthier and more resilient planet.