35,000 Trees Planted

Our One Set, One Tree Program means that forevery skincare set, argan oil or item of FRÉWear you buy, FRÉ plants an argan "Tree of Life", to help replenish the endangered argan forests and support women who harvest argan oil in Morocco. Thanks to you, our amazing community, we have planted a total of 33,000 argan trees in Morocco since FRÉ was born 4 and a half years ago.

In addition to the argan trees planted, this year we also planted a total of 2,000 trees in Australia and the US in response to the wildfires that have devastated wildlife this year. Thank you to our partners at One Tree Planted for making this possible!

Thanks to you, our amazing community, we have planted a total of 33,000 argan trees in Morocco since FRÉ was born

 

The High Atlas Foundation

In Morocco, we work with the High Atlas Foundation(HAF), an NGO that promotes organic agriculture, women’s empowerment, youth development, education, and health. HAF’s efforts focus on sustainable agriculture, education, health, women’s and youth empowerment, and capacity-building. 

All of the 33,000 saplings planted with HAF are alive, with an average length of 20cm, which is great. Once they reach half a meter in height they will be transplanted to different locations. We expect this to happen around January. One transplanted, it can take six to eight years for a tree to bear nuts at quantities that are harvested for sale. 

 

Trees alter a region by moderating its climate, improving its air quality, conserving water, and encouraging biodiversity

 

Monitoring and tracking growth

HAF has two offices in charge of monitoring and tracking the growth of the trees. Since June 2020, HAF has planted a total of 150,000 trees throughout Morocco. ClickHEREfor more information on their efforts. 

With Covid-19, there have been some delays in monitoring, however, the overall survival rates of trees are excellent.  HAF is also considering planting carob trees in some of the cooperatives, which are planted in tree nurseries and fields in a similar way to argan. HAF has also distributed $60,000 of food and clothes over the past few months, in response to shortages brought about by the pandemic.

The impact of a tree

Trees alter a region by moderating its climate, improving its air quality, conserving water, and encouraging biodiversity, all of which are important for our ecosystems and as such our livelihoods on this planet. “On average, one acre of new forest can sequester about 2.5 tons of carbon annually. Young trees absorb CO2 at a rate of 13 pounds per tree each year. Trees reach their most productive stage of carbon storage at about 10 years at which point they are estimated to absorb 48 pounds of CO2 per year. At that rate, they release enough oxygen back into the atmosphere to support two human beings.”

Argan trees and women’s empowerment
Argan trees provide the ability for women in Morocco’s cooperatives to financially support their communities and families, and to provide a better education for their children through harvesting Argan oil. Argan oil is an important economy for locals and according to theInternational Development Research Centre (IDRC), argan trees support the livelihoods of 3 million Moroccans, about 10% of the country’s population, who use the husks as firewood, the fruit for animal fodder and the seeds  to make precious oil. 

Thank you for being a part of our journey to plant and positively impact the Earth, the forests and our communities!