NEUTRAL IS NOT ENOUGH.
Climate+ is the action of going beyond net zero. It means doing more than just offsetting your carbon footprint - by creating an environmental benefit by removing additional carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
We know that one of the most sustainable and cost-effective ways to accomplish this is by planting trees. Climate+ is a community of tree planters, rehabilitating our Earth, and having fun while we’re at it.
How can we do better?
There’s no such thing as a perfect environmentalist, don’t be discouraged by your ability to make meaningful changes. Big change can start as as small as:
- Turning your thermostat down by 2 degrees.
- Wearing clothes more than once before washing them.
- Bike, walk or ride the bus to work!
- Switch over to LED bulbs and smart appliances.
- Try buying local, seasonal fruits and vegetables.
- Use waxed cloth instead of plastic wrap for food.
- Remember your reusable bags, mugs and cutlery for all outings.
The impact of trees
Did you know that trees combat climate change? We have tonnes (literally) of excess carbon dioxide in our air. Trees do something called ‘sequestering carbon’, it’s their way of cleaning our air, and eliminating harmful elements from the earth. They do that by absorbing the C02, and storing the carbon. Not only do trees sequester carbon, they also produce oxygen. Next time you’re outside, take a nice deep breath of fresh air, and thank the nearest tree.
As we work to fight global warming, we can also thank the trees for cooling our earth. They provide shade, and their leaves release water vapor, cooling the planet even more. Just ten trees can offset the impact of a weekend road trip, a lifetime of iphones or even your drunken 2am hamburger habit.
Why trees
Tree planting has a meaningful impact that reaches far beyond carbon sequestration. They provide homes for wildlife, and in areas like Madagascar, the crab and fish populations provide additional food sources and income for the locals. In addition to the environmental benefits, we employ people from local communities. This extends our impact far beyond environmentalism. These are the building blocks of a long lasting and sustainable restoration project.
We recognize that there are lots of ways to offset carbon, but are confident that our tree planting initiatives provide the most meaningful, holistic and verified impact on our Earth.
What does offsetting mean to tentree?
To tentree, neutrality isn’t change, so ‘offsetting’ means going beyond neutral and doing something positive for our planet. We don’t agree with the idea that simply doing no harm will equate to change, we’re here on this beautiful earth, ready to do some good.
We want to make offsetting easy, understandable, accessible, fun, and impactful. Our climate+ packages aim to do just that.
Where do we plant your trees?
Our Earth Day Climate+ packages will allow us to work with our partners to plant many species of trees including mangroves in the coastal regions of Madagascar and Indonesia. Mangrove trees are one of the most efficient carbon sequestering trees in the world and planting them provides much more than a carbon impact for our planet. We are incredibly grateful for our planting partners, like Eden Reforestation Projects who are on the ground making things happen.
The Math
This climate+ package includes your little ones food, diapers, clothes, books, toys and their stroller for a year.
| Baby Food | 3.285 MT CO2 |
| Diapers | 0.22 MT CO2 |
| Clothes | 7.2MT CO2 |
| Stroller | 0.321 MT CO2 |
| Books | 0.054 MT CO2 |
| Toys | 0.0108 MT CO2 |
| Total | 11.09 MT CO2 |
Baby Food
The average baby drinks 750ml of milk per day, in order to convert this number into kilograms we use the conversion factor 0.001 and get 0.75kg 750ml of milk x 0.001 = 0.75 kg of milk In order to calculate the total amount of milk over one year we multiple 0.75kg per day by 365 days. 0.75kg x 365days = 273.75 kg of milk per year Each kg of milk generates 12 kilograms of CO2, so when we multiply 273.75 kilograms of milk by 12 kg we get the total CO2 emissions from milk. 273.75 kg of milk x 12 kg CO2 =3,285 kg CO2 In order to convert kg CO2 into metric tons CO2 we will use the conversion factor 0.001 which gives us 3.285 MT CO2. 3,285 kg CO2 x 0.001 = 3.285 MT CO2
Diapers
Over 2.5 years diapers emit 550kg of carbon emissions. This means over a year's time diapers would emit 220 kg CO2. 550 kg / 2.5 years =220 kg per year In order to convert kilograms of CO2 into metric tons CO2 we will use the conversion factor 0.001which gives us 0.22 MT CO2 over a year. 220kg CO2 x 0.001 = 0.22 MT CO2
Clothes
Let’s assume all of your shopping for your children's clothing requires shipping, and on average is coming from 8000 kilometers away We know planes emit 115g CO2 per kilometer. We use the conversion factor 0.000001 to go from grams to metric tons and we get 0.000115 MT of CO2 per kilometer of air travel. 115grams x 0.000001 = 0.000115 MT Carbon Let’s assume you are buying new clothing every two months This means you get 6 shipments a year, from 8000 km away, and each kilometer of flight emmits 0.00015MT CO2. In this case we multiply kilometres traveled by emissions per kilometer times the amount of shipments per year and total emissions would equal 7.2 MT CO2 8000km x 0.000115 MT CO2 x 6= 7.2 MT CO2 Stroller The carbon emissions of a stroller is 321 kg CO2 , in order to convert kg CO2 into metric tons CO2 we will use the conversion factor 0.001, and we get a total of 0.321 MT CO2 321 kg CO2 x 0.001 = 0.321 MT CO2
Books
The carbon footprint of an individual book is 2.7kg CO2. Let's assume the average baby has 20 books at home. If we multiple 20 books by 2.7kg CO2 per book, we get 54kg CO2. 2.7kg x 20 books = 54 kg CO2 In order to convert kg CO2 into metric tons CO2 we will use the conversion factor 0.001 which gives us 0.054 MT CO2 54kg CO2 x 0.001 = 0.054MT CO2
Toys
Regular stuffed animals emit 0.8kg CO2 each and stuffed animals with a battery emit 1.4kg CO2 each. Assuming a baby has 10 regular stuffed animals, and two stuffed animals with batteries, we would get a total of 10.8kg CO2. (0.8kg CO2 x 10) + (1.4kg CO2 x 2) = 10.8 kg of CO2 In order to convert kg CO2 into metric tons CO2 we will use the conversion factor 0.001which gives us 0.0108 MT CO2. 10.8kg CO2 x 0.001 = 0.0108 MT CO2 If we add all these components together we get a total of 11.0908 MT CO2 3.285 MT + 0.22 MT + 7.2 MT + 0.321 MT + 0.054MT + 0.0108 MT = 11.0908 MT CO2
Link - Formula Emissions - https://internationalbreastfeedingjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13006-019-0243-8
Link - Amount Formula Per Day - https://www.momjunction.com/breast-milk-calculator/#gref
Link - Diaper Emissions - https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-45732371
Link - Shipping Emissions - https://www.carbonindependent.org/22.html
Link - Stroller Emissions - https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10042857.2012.10685103
Link - Book Emissions - https://www.researchgate.net/publication/255699164_Carbon_Footprint_Assessment_of_a_Paperback_Book
Link - Amount of Books - https://curiosity.com/topics/having-books-in-the-home-is-as-important-to-your-child-as-your-own-education-curiosity/
Link - Stuffed Animal Emissions - https://via.library.depaul.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1141&context=depaul-disc
