The world is losing billions of trees every year, endangering the lives of over 3 billion people. Fewer trees mean less food and water for people living in vulnerable communities. And when they are cut down and burned, trees release planet-warming carbon dioxide, intensifying climate change and the effects of extreme weather events like droughts and landslides.
But people are now fighting to reverse that damage. Communities, companies, and governments across Africa are already investing in growing the right trees in the right places through AFR100. And in January, the Trillion Trees initiative and Mastercard’s Priceless Planet Coalition led the private sector into new, ambitious commitments. But much of that funding is not yet reaching the ground. Why? Funders are eager to invest, but they have trouble finding the projects that are best equipped to receive funding, scale up, and do it right.
To fill that gap, WRI has developed TerraMatch, a new online platform that connects people who know how to grow trees with funders. TerraMatch will help countries, communities, and businesses across Africa act on their commitments to restore over 125 million hectares of degraded land.
TerraMatch will channel funding from corporate leaders to high-quality work on the ground. And the team has already started. Through the TerraMatch technique, funders have already been connected with tree-growing projects in AFR100 member countries Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, and Rwanda.
Please join us for the beta launch of this exciting new platform and to hear from some of the leaders in this global fight against land degradation and climate change.
For more information on this exciting new platform, consult this short summary.