How it Works

When you buy from a One Tribe partner you automatically save rainforest. This helps fight the climate crisis by reducing Co2 in our atmosphere and instantly improving the carbon footprint of your purchase.

One Tribe connects online businesses and their customers to rainforest protection projects and tracks the climate impact in real-time.

1. You Purchase

When your purchase from a One Tribe partner store, they make a donation on your behalf.

2. We Protect Trees

All donations are certified by One Tribe and transferred to the conservation partners.

3. We All Reduce Co2

Funds are allocated to rainforest projects that help reduce and store Co2 from our atmosphere.

HOW IT WORKS

Let's deep dive into how this actually works!

We’ve brought together loads of information here about how you can protect rainforest when you shop, how it actually works, and why its so important!

According to the UN we have until 2030 to avoid a climate meltdown

Planting a tree in 2021 costs around $1 absorb 53.1 kilos of carbon by 2030

You can protect 400 square metres of rainforest for less money, which will absorb 3900 kilos of carbon (3.9 Metric Tonnes) of carbon in the same period

One Tribe works by connecting websites with rainforest protection charities through our platform.  The rainforest charities we work with then fund on-the-ground projects to save endangered rainforest.  Our rainforest protection partners use 3 key strategies to protect rainforest:

Land Titling
Indigenous people often live on land their ancestral land but have no legal rights to it.  This leaves the land at risk from logging, mining, oil and gas extraction and agriculture.  Creating land titles for indigenous people in these areas gives them the legal rights to live on their land, so that they can continue living there in a sustainable way, and protecting them, and the plants and animals there from these threats.

Designation
Our partners also protect rainforest through the creation of National Parks or other officially recognised protection areas.  Scientific research data is used to demonstrate the value of an area based on the plants and animals that live there, particularly when those animals are endangered.  It is a tried and tested method to protect large areas of rainforest and the species that live there.

Purchase
This is by far the most expensive way to protect rainforest and so is used generally for smaller areas of rainforest that have critically endangered species that would go extinct if the land was not purchased and protected.  Once the land is purchased the land is monitored and managed to ensure its protection long term. 

If you want to find out more about the project we support then you can click here: Rainforest Projects

Protecting rainforest protects the animals within it, but also crucially the trees.  Scientific research has calculated how many trees there are in an acre of rainforest and from there we have worked out that there are 1,012 medium and large trees in an acre. 

This means that 100 square metres (which you could protect with your online purchase) contain 5 trees on average.

Every month One Tribe makes payments to the projects we support via Rainforest Trust UK.  These funds are then distributed by Rainforest Trust to the relevant projects to get the money to the on-the-ground activities as quickly as possible.

The methods used – land purchase, designation and land titling – all protect rainforest on a permanent basis.

Our partners the Rainforest Trust just launched a survey of all the rainforest across the projects they have funded to date, and they found that 92% of the project areas have had less than 5% deforestation since their creation.  Many of the projects go all the way back to 1988!

Reduce Carbon save trees

£1

Planting 1 tree will absorb 53.1 kilos of Carbon by 2030

VS

Reduce Carbon save trees

< £1

Protecting 20 trees will absorb 3900 kilos of Carbon by 2030

We have to recognise that every breath of air we take, every mouthful of food we take comes from the natural world. And that if we damage the natural world, we damage ourselves… We have the power. We have the knowledge to actually live in harmony with nature

Sir David Attenborough
Natural Historian

HOW IT WORKS

Carbon, the final frontier!

Trees store a huge amount of carbon to prevent it from being released into the atmosphere. The rainforest One Tribe protects actually stores 99.4 tonnes of CO2 per acre!

According to Nate Stephenson, a scientist with the U.S. Geological Survey’s Western Ecological Research Center in Three Rivers, Calif, that 97% of trees from more than 400 species studied grew more quickly as they aged, thus absorbing more carbon.

William Moomaw of the Center for International Environment and Resource Policy at Tufts University’s Fletcher School and serving as lead author on five reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, also says “In multi-aged forests around the world of all types, that half of the carbon is stored in the largest one-percent diameter trees.”

In addition to this, when old trees are cut down, the carbon they are storing is released into the atmosphere. As a result it vital that we protect our ancient forests from destruction. We fully support the planting of new trees, but the science shows that the protection of our existing forests and rainforest is much more urgent and much more impactful from a CO2 perspective.

Carbon is a greenhouse gas and human activity has massively increased the amount of carbon being put into our atmosphere. This is causing our planet to overheat

If we don’t change the way we are operating, temperatures are due to increase by 3 to 5 degrees Celsius by the end of the century. According to the UN, “Tackling climate change is critical to ensure that people around the world are healthy, prosperous, have food, clean air and water.” These are basic requirements for human existence and they are in serious threat.

471 billion tonnes of carbon stored in tropical forests and tropical deforestation accounts for up to 15% of net global carbon emissions each year because carbon is released when the tree are cut down (and even more so when they are burned). Keeping our forests intact are essential for us to stay on track with the UN targets for net zero by 2050.

A typical tree can absorb (or sequester) around 21 kilograms of carbon dioxide (CO2) per year, however this figure is only achieved when the tree is fully grown – saplings will absorb significantly less than this. Over a lifetime of 100 years, one tree could absorb around a tonne of CO2. This is why protecting mature rainforest is far more impactful than planting new trees.

If we focus on planting trees and neglect to protect our rainforests, we will miss our 2050 target by the time the new trees start to be really impactful in terms of the carbon they can sequester.

Our conservation partners have just launched a survey of all the rainforest across the projects they have funded to date, and they found that 92% of the project areas have had less than 5% deforestation since their creation over a 30 year period. Validating that tribal land protection and land purchase is the most effective way to protect the rainforest that reduces and stores Co2 from our atmosphere.

Ric Porteus
CEO One Tribe

JOIN THE TRIBE

How can you get involved?

Buy Sustainably

When you’re shopping online, look out for the One Tribe tree counter to see where you can protect the rainforest when you shop. Checking our home page for some of our top brands is a great place to start!

Sell Sustainably

If you work for or own an eCommerce brand you can join the tribe. We integrate with any eCommerce site and you can be protected the rainforest with every sale in a matter of hours from no, to learn more click below.

Eric currently works as an independent consultant at the intersection of nature and climate, focused on catalysing market and non-market solutions to drive the just transition.

He previously was Head of Product at Earthshot Labs, supporting nature conservation and restoration projects across the global south secure project finance. Prior to Earthshot Labs, Eric led nature-based carbon project development for Gorongosa National Park in Mozambique and founded the Carbon Cooperative, a global alliance of leading nature conservation and restoration practitioners exploring carbon finance. After serving in the Peace Corps in Mozambique out of university, he spent much of his 20s working in community-based conservation and ecosystem restoration efforts in Sub-Saharan Africa interspersed with two startup ventures as co-founder and CEO of a mental health tech startup and COO of a sustainable coffee company. Eric has a dual Masters in Environmental Engineering and Environmental Policy from Stanford University where he was a NSF Graduate Research Fellow and a BS in Environmental Engineering from Tufts University.

Alan is a risk management thought-leader, superconnector, and FinTech pioneer. His mission is to enable an Earth Positive economy which includes nature in global accounting systems.

Alan is Founder of Generation Blue, a venture studio dedicated to planetary game changers powered by exponential technologies. Previously, Alan established Natural Capital Markets at Lykke AG, pioneering blockchain based forestry and carbon backed tokens. Alan has over two decades of risk management experience advising global financial institutions, and was a founding member of the RiskMetrics Group, a JPMorgan spin-off. Alan is an investor and advisor to regenerative impact ventures, including TreeBuddy.Earth, Regenativ, and Vlinder Climate.

Lori Whitecalf made history when she became the first woman to be elected Chief of Sweetgrass First Nation in 2011. She served three terms of office from 2011-2017.  

Lori took a two-year hiatus from leadership to expand the family ranch and serve as the FSIN Senior Industry Liaison. She was re-elected on November 29. 2019 and again on November 30, 2021, as Chief of Sweetgrass. Chief Whitecalf practises a traditional lifestyle of hunting, fishing and gathering. She currently sits on the following boards: Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technology, FSIN Lands and Resource Commission, Battle River Treaty 6 Health Centre and Battleford Agency Tribal Chiefs Executive Council, FSIN Women’s Commission.

Tina is the Chief Business Officer for MLTC Industrial Investments, the Economic Development arm of the Meadow Lake Tribal Council. She has a diverse background of experience. Having spent 15 years as a municipal Chief Operating Officer, 20 years involved in Saskatchewan’s Health Authority Board Keewatin Yatthe and 9 years with Northern Lights Board of Education. 

 

She continues as a Board Member with Beaver River Community Futures supporting small business development in her home region. Tina brings a wealth of experience in a variety of fields and many connections to the Indigenous communities of Northern Saskatchewan. In addition Tina holds a BA Advanced from the U of S, a Certificate in Local Government Authority from the U of R and is certified as a Professional Economic Developer for Saskatchewan and a certified Technician Aboriginal Economic Developer (TAED).

Tootoosis’ career spans 40+ years in HRM, political leadership, and Indigenous economic development, as a dedicated bridge builder and advocate for Indigenous causes.
As a key member of the Saskatoon Regional Economic Development Authority (SREDA) team since 2021, he develops strategies for the Truth and Reconciliation Commission final report and Call to Action #92.

He is a graduate of the First Nations University of Canada and a certified Professional Aboriginal Economic Developer. Spearheading various community initiatives while serving as a Chair of the SIEDN while directing ILDII and WIBF. Founder of MGT Consulting Tootoosis is based in Saskatoon, Treaty Six Territory.

Cy Standing (Wakanya Najin in Dakota) has a long and distinguished career including serving overseas as an Electronics Technician in the Royal Canadian Air Force, former Chief of Wahpeton Dakota Nation, former Vice Chief of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indigenous Nations (FSIN), past Executive Director of Community Development Branch of the Department of Northern Saskatchewan as well as an Order in Council appointment to the Federal Parole Board.  

Mr. Standing has served as a Director on many Profit and Non-Profit Corporate Boards, including serving as a Director for Affinity Credit Union with assets of over six billion dollars as well as IMI Brokerage and Wanuskewin and is currently a member of the One Tribe Indigenous Carbon Board.