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.
Their vision is to help others understand and use trees as a solution to many of the global restoration challenges we face today, including air quality, water quality, climate change, deforestation, poverty and hunger.
Now, on October 25, 2019, the Arbor Day Foundation and International Paper announced the renewal of their partnership to plant trees in forests and communities across the country.
International Paper—one of the world’s largest producers of renewable, fiber-based packaging, pulp and paper—is one of 17 founding members of the Foundation’s Evergreen Alliance, a group of corporate partners committed to helping the Foundation plant 100 million trees in forests and communities worldwide by 2022 as part of the Time for Trees®.
The Time for Trees initiative was launched by the Arbor Day Foundation in early 2019. It leverages trees as a simple, natural climate crisis solution, while improving community resilience and helping to restore clean air, water and food for all.
“We are thankful for partners like International Paper that help us carry out our mission to plant trees and expand our reach,” said Dan Lambe, president, Arbor Day Foundation. “International Paper’s ongoing support of our programs and its commitment to our Time for Trees initiative is a testament of their environmental stewardship and commitment to improving communities across the country.”
In addition to its support of the Time for Trees initiative, International Paper has also committed to planting 46,000 trees through the Arbor Day Foundation’s Community Tree Recovery program. This is a public-private partnership aimed at distributing free trees to residents in communities affected by natural disaster. International Paper’s support of this program also promotes community resilience, a focus of their community engagement strategy.
International Paper will plant 1,507 trees in Orange and Sealy, Texas this fall through Community Tree Recovery. Many of International Paper’s employees were devastated by Hurricane Harvey in 2017. These planting projects will help revitalize and rebuild the communities where its people live and work.
“When disaster strikes, communities no longer have the trees they need. The benefits trees provide us – clean air, clean water, shade, beauty and well-being – are critical to a city’s resilience,” said James McDonald, director of global citizenship, International Paper. “We are honored to support Arbor Day Foundation’s Community Tree Recovery program to ensure that everyone has access to the benefits trees provide.”
As one of the world’s largest operating conservation and restoration foundations, the Arbor Day Foundation educates and engages stakeholders and communities across the globe to involve themselves in its mission of planting, nurturing and celebrating trees.
Photos courtesy of Arbor Day Foundation.