A Year of Climate Positivity

September 2021 marks the first anniversary of our membership of the Ecologi climate positivity initiative. Our headline figures for the year show a 353 tonne reduction in CO₂ and over 13,000 trees planted. To put these numbers in perspective this is the equivalent of 271 long haul flights or over 870,000 miles driven in a car. To cap off a successful first year we made the Top 50 Tree Planting leaderboard.

The Ecologi project started when the founders realised that contributing to climate solutions is hard, beyond making some lifestyle choices, there is little that ordinary people can do. But with a little planning and working together they could make an incredible impact with just small amounts of money each month.

Over the course of the year the projects Aabyss have helped to fund through Ecologi include a wide variety of initiatives all over the world. From tree planting/reforestation to providing clean energy with hydro and geo-thermal power, Ecologi have worked on an incredible range of projects over the last 12 months. Some highlights of the work done include:

• Restoring the Pacific Coast of Columbia - This REDD+ anti-deforestation project is based within the biologically diverse Chocó-Darién bioregion. It sets out to address the issue of deforestation and illegal logging at a local level, and to protect and restore 83,452 hectares of land. 
• Wind Energy in Andhra Pradesh, India - This Wind Power Project in Andhra Pradesh, developed by Orange Anantapur Wind Power Pvt Ltd, involves the installation and running of 50 wind turbines. The total installed capacity of the project activity is 100 MW
• Preserving Prime Brazilian Rainforest - The primary objective of this Agrocortex REDD+ project is to avoid the unplanned deforestation of the 186,389.66 ha project area, consisting of 100% Amazon rainforest. 
• Providing Clean Energy Through Hydropower in Kanungu, Uganda - The Ishasha Small Hydropower project supports a 6.6 MW hydropower station which is located 500 meters below the border of Bwindi Forest National Park on the Ishasha river.
• Preserving the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor in Guatemala - This REDD+ avoided unplanned deforestation project is located in the Department of Izabal in the Caribbean coast region of Guatemala. It sets out to address the issue of deforestation in Guatemala at a local level and protect and restore 54,157 hectares of forest. 

As well as the international work it's important to note Ecologi also invest in projects closer to home with tree planting in the Scottish lowlands, Wales and the South West of England. This is done in partnership with Protect Earth,  a charity dedicated to planting as many trees as possible around the UK.

We are now all looking forward to the next year where, for a small commitment, more can be done to combat environmental issues facing us at home and abroad.