Mission

One Cool Earth Mission Statement

One Cool Earth is a registered nonprofit devoted to planting as a means of creating a sustainable planet. Our activities currently focus on tree planting, since so many positive environmental, social, and economic benefits stem from this single, simple act. Environmental education, habitat restoration, climate change, energy and water savings, and practical day-to-day needs are all addressed, in part or wholly, when a tree is planted.  Over the years we’ve found that we’re not alone in our devotion–many people are eager to plant but don’t always know how, where or what to plant. Our cities, nations, and planet–now more than ever–need flora to sustain our health, livelihoods and spirit.  Approaching our projects holistically, we attempt to realized five goals in every one of our projects: Education, Restoration, Beautification, Human Utility, and Economy.  See below for more info.

Started as one man’s vision of planting a few oaks, the nonprofit itself has done a lot of growing. We currently plant over 1000 trees each year with the help of hundreds of volunteers, and both numbers continue to grow. We’re also taking on larger projects and find ourselves in need of financial support. Please contact us if you are interested becoming a co-sponsor.

Check out our Project Archive to read more about our past work in the area, or read on for more on our current projects.

If you’re interested with us volunteering with us or know of a good place to plant, check out our Calendar for weekly meetings and events.

OneCoolEarth strives to realize the following principles in all of its projects:

Education

Global warming is, literally, a huge problem and it needs many solutions.  Our projects give one direct solution.  But at the same time,  OneCoolEarth holds the philosophy that, given the right information, people will be inspired to discover solutions of their own.  Education, therefore is an indirect solution to global warming and is integrated through every step of our projects–from involving elementary schools in the growth of trees, to recruiting fraternities to help in planting, to notifying local politicians of our activities.  By involving and educating volunteers, school children, politicians, ranchers, farmers, business people, and college students, these individuals will go on to produce repurcussive changes of their own in an ever widening circle.

Beautification

Whether they include a stately oak along a boulevard, a row of Catalina cherries hiding a chain-link fence, or a majestic sycamore in the middle of nowhere, our projects aim to bring natural beauty to the landscape.  Aesthetics are never placed inferior to other more practical objectives–in the interest of the projects long-term survival and community acceptance, beauty is practical, and exists as a balanced part of our decision-making process.

Restoration

Replanting disturbed areas brings a range of improvements to wildlife, watersheds, grazing lands, and areas of human activity.  For many reasons, native species are our first choice for planting.  First, they are readily and cheaply available and our stock is often  grown from seed collected in the immediate area where a project is to take place.  Second, native plants best harbor and support native animals and insects.  Colatterally, they also happen to be the best choice for hearty, long-lived plants since they are well adapted to the soils, flora and fauna, and climate of our region.

Human Utility

Trees should coexist, not compete, with human needs.  Depending on its positioning, a tree can serve for any of the following services: wind-breaks that help shelter and protect people, crops and livestock; visual screens for privacy or to hide the unsightly; pollution buffer and sound barriers along highways; shade; source of food; sense of place; lumber; and many more.

Economy

Our projects seek to produce a monetary benefit.  For example, planting trees to restore an eroding slope is often far more cost effective than artificial remediation; native landscapes, adapted to local rainfall, helps save on the watering bill; and buildings shaded by deciduous trees that permit winter sunlight but block summer sun can shave dollars off heating and cooling costs.  Trees planted along a fence line provide shade and windbreak throughout their life and can suppliment a land-owner’s income in the long term when they are sustainable harvested for their lumber.