The world is deep into the green revolution. What was once a concern only for scientists and environmentalists is quickly spreading to the inner reaches of society. With threats of mass global warming and extinctions knocking on the world’s door, more and more people are doing their part to re-secure the planet as a hospitable habitat for its citizens.
In any way they can, people are lodging in effort to make the world clean again. Just at conclusion of the year’s first month, a search engine that offers everyone with an Internet connection to chip in towards greener pastures has been making the waves around the web.
This is Ecosia, the search engine that plants trees every time you search with its engine. Its income is generated by ad revenue. Ecosia promises to donate a whopping 80% of that revenue to the reforestation of denuded areas across Central Africa. The site even has a counter so you know how many trees you’ve helped plant.
At the time of this writing, Ecosia has planted over three million trees. More recently, Ecosia has forested the country of Burkina Faso.
Established in 2009 by Christian Knoll, Ecosia set a target of planting a tree every 26 seconds. Six years after, Ecosia is now able to plant trees every 16 seconds. The search engine is now targeting a total of one billion trees planted towards a “Great Green Wall” that runs across Africa from left to right.
Besides environmentalism, Ecosia aims to improve health and economy for the people of Africa.
Well aware of the skepticism that users might have towards their model, Ecosia is perfectly transparent when it does business. They provide links to their donation receipts and business models every month on their site. Anyone can have access to their numbers.
In 2014, the company has been certified as a B Corporation. This accreditation is reserved for for-profit organizations that dedicates effort towards social and environmental issues.
