One Day’s Wages
is excited to launch a new partner project with Eden Reforestation Projects
(ERP) to help with their ongoing project in Ethiopia. This partner project of
$20,000 (USD) will help rejuvenate the land that has been rendered virtually barren,
through years of total deforestation. The reforestation process will help provide
jobs for local residents; providing economic security for their families for
years to come.
This partnership
will help plant 200,000 trees in the 2011-2012 planting season, and provide
a total of 2000 days of employment to eco-workers serving with ERP. The
revenue earned by the local residents will help provide an avenue out of
poverty, allowing them to obtain a level of security for their families. Many
of the people who have gone through ERP’s program can now send their children
to school, and have started their own micro-enterprises. Most of the people can
now afford to have their family visit a doctor when they get sick, and are able
to purchase a balanced diet.
Who is Eden Reforestation Projects?
ERP is a non-profit organization that recreates healthy forest systems
that restore hope, alleviate suffering, empower people, and build local
economies in impoverished communities. ERP employs local workers at wages that
are consistent with their economy. These workers are almost always from
the ranks of the unemployed. In this way, they are also helping to break
the cycle of poverty.
Why Reforestation Matters
In 2002 the WORLD
BANK communicated the urgent need to replant 15 million hectares [1 hectare =
2.47 acres] of deforested land, per year, for ten years. Each hectare of
reforested land typically requires a minimum of 2,000 trees. You can do
the math yourself, but our calculators say this means the world needs to find a
way to plant 30 BILLION – yes, BILLION – trees each year, for the next ten
years. That’s a pretty staggering statistic!
The global
deforestation problem is not a “casual emergency.” There is an urgent
need to plant BILLIONS of TREES – and finding the most cost-effective means to
do it is a big deal to the people involved with Eden Reforestation Projects.
The UN studies
regarding Ethiopia (along with many other African nations) basically declare
that the country will be in essence ecologically destroyed in the next 15-20
years if reforestation on a massive level fails to take place. The water tables
are dropping, the soil is eroding, the soil is degrading, and subsequently the
small plot farms are failing.
In Ethiopia, like
much of the developing world, the local economies are heavily agriculture
based, and therefore are highly vulnerable to environmental degradation. Restoring the land is a critical element to revitalizing the local economies and empowering the people.
How You Can Help
- Calculate your one day's wages or invest any amount to fund this project.
- Start a birthday campaign and raise funds directly for this partnership!
- Form a group campaign (family, school, church, etc.) or share other ideas with us.
- Help spread the word. Email, Tweet, Share on FB, Like, etc.
GIVE TO THIS PARTNER PROJECT
Our Pledge To You
100% of your donations (minus credit card costs) will go directly to this project. As usual, we'll report back to our community about the progress of the funding and once funded, will report back with pictures, videos, and stories to convey the impact of this project.
Ethiopia Update 2010 from Eden Reforestation Projects on Vimeo.