Welcome...
For almost fifteen years, Tree Canada has been a leader in protecting and nurturing trees across Canada. Today, with help from Natural Resource Canada's Canadian Forest Service, we begin a new era with our first edition of Mistik - our first electronic newsletter. Named after the Cree word for tree, we created this to keep our supporters informed on the news, issues and upcoming events surrounding Tree Canada. Happy Reading!
Michael Rosen, Editor
If you don't already know us, you should!
We're like you — we love our trees, we love our communities and we see trees as a part of healthy communities. Established in 1992, the Tree Canada Foundation is a non-profit organization that provides education, technical assistance, resources and financial support through working partnerships. We encourage Canadians to plant and care for trees in an effort to help reduce the harmful effects of carbon dioxide emissions under our Grow Clean Air program. As well, we are a leader in promoting the value of urban and community forests in Canada under our Green Streets program.
We are led by our Chair John Gaudet and our 12 volunteer Board Members, our Community Advisers, President Jeff Monty, dedicated staff and community partners. Together we are working towards a future where trees are recognized in Canada as an invaluable community resource. We encourage you to learn more about Tree Canada's vision, history, awards and much more!
Canadian Urban Forest Network: Increasing Awareness of Urban Forest Issues
Tree Canada is proud to be the secretariat of the Canadian Urban Forest Network (CUFN). The CUFN works as an advocacy group whose mission is to "increase the awareness of the urgent issues facing Canada's urban forests and to stimulate action to address those issues". Click here to learn more about the CUFN.
Have You Picked Up the Latest Edition of Canadian Trees Yet?
Across the country, tree lovers of all species are enjoying our affiliated magazine, Canadian Trees. The new issue, available through Pegasus Publishing, features articles on tree species at risk, Sudbury's re-greening and the Mountain Pine Beetle epidemic. Click here to subscribe to this provocative publication.
Tree Canada - at Globe 2006 and the World Urban Forum!
Besides offsetting the emissions attributed to the attendance of these two international conferences, Tree Canada was present to explain its programs related to green infrastructure, carbon neutrality and urban forests. Read here for more.
Interested in Donating, Volunteering or Supporting Tree Canada?
When you give to Tree Canada you will be guaranteed that:
- Your gift is going towards your choice of Tree Canada's programs including: education, Canada's School Grounds, Grow Clean Air, Urban Forests including Green Streets Canada and our ReLeaf Projects
- Your donation is going towards planting trees for non-commercial purposes - for the environmental benefits that the trees provide
- 70% of your donation is going into the ground and not into administration
CleanAirPass: Helping You Become Part of the Solution
Are you looking for a way to offset the emissions of your vehicle? Purchasing a CleanAirPass is a great way to start! With CleanAirPass, you can take responsibility for your own environmental impact by funding clean energy projects that directly offset the carbon emissions from your vehicle. The funds generated by the sale of a CleanAirPass go to Tree Canada where we will do the required work to acquire, site, plant and monitor the trees required to offset emissions. Click here to calculate your vehicles emissions (and to do something about it)!
Oaks in Need: Saving Trees in Oakville
What puts the "Oak" in Oakville and the "Belle" in Belleville? Trees! Tree Canada responds to communities' cries for help with letters of support, information and good community connections. Read here about the struggles to save our arboreal heritage.
The 7th Canadian Urban Forest Conference: October 11-13 in Québec City
Is development affecting the quality of your community's trees? Is the repairing of your city's "grey" infrastructure laying waste to its "green" infrastructure? There is something you can do about it! Attend this years Canadian Urban Forest Conference which addresses the theme "Trees... at the Core of Urban Development". The program will include lectures, discussions, workshops and field excursions. Click here to register.
Developing Arboreal Power: Best Management Practices Compendium Launched
Canada's first web-based urban forest guide is ready! Along with the help from the Canadian Urban Forest Network and the Canadian Forest Service, Tree Canada has created the Compendium of Best Management Practices for Canadian Urban Forests to ensure that urban and community forests flourish making Canada's cities that much more livable and an even greater envy of the world. Spread the word — tell your municipal staff, your community, and your politicians that, with this information, arboreal power is at their finger tips! Click here to learn more.
Grow Clean Air: Planting Trees to Become Carbon Neutral
Did you know that, on average, 98 trees capture and store one tonne of harmful airborne CO2! Through Tree Canada's Grow Clean Air program, Canadian individuals and companies are planting trees as a way to participate in the fight against global warming. This Spring, over 35,000 trees were planted from carbon neutral activities across Canada! Congratulations to the over 50 events and the many companies, including Thrifty Foods, Monterey Inn, Ideum.ca, and Stratos, for being the first to become carbon neutral. Click to find a full list of carbon neutral events, carbon neutral companies, plantings and to learn how you and your organization can go carbon neutral.
Maple Leaf Day: A Day for Canada to Celebrate its Roots
With the help from Home Hardware and others, Tree Canada is establishing a special day to celebrate Canada's greatest natural asset — its trees! On September 27th, thirty communities across Canada will celebrate Maple Leaf Day; a day to reflect on how important trees are to our lives. Participants will have the opportunity to learn about the maple tree's historical, economical, ecological and social significance to both rural and urban Canada. The celebration will include a number of activities including: tree dedications and plantings, educational workshops, outdoor education, interpretive days and schoolyard plantings. Want to join in the celebration? Click here to find out more and to download promotional materials to help you celebrate this important day.
Green Streets Canada: Congratulations to the 2006-07 Winners!
Twenty-four communities across Canada were rewarded for leadership and innovative approaches to urban forest management. The successful communities received a total of $293,000 in funding under the Green Streets Canada Program; a program supported by Natural Resources Canada (NRCan), BC Hydro and TransCanada. The funds will be used for projects that develop tools and practices to sustain and promote the health of urban forests, including state-of-the-art municipal planning guidelines, community tree stewardship, outreach and awareness, and plant inventory programs. Click here to find out who this year's winners were and to learn more about this unique program.
TD Bank: Planting 160,000 Trees to Show Customer Appreciation
On June 2nd, TD Bank announced that they would be partnering with Tree Canada to plant 160,000 trees across Canada as part of their TD Client Appreciation Effort. Sites have been identified across Canada, focusing on communities that have lost large stands of trees to natural disasters. Plantings will take place in Kelowna, British Columbia, where fire destroyed large areas of forest; Sudbury, Ontario, which is restoring forests adjacent to mining sites; Gatineau, Quebec, where a large municipal program is underway to re-green the city; and in the Halifax area, Nova Scotia, where a major watershed rehabilitation project will take place. Click here to find out more.
IKEA: Nine Years of Pick a Tree, Plant a Tree Success
On June 6th, IKEA employees and community volunteers planted over 1000 trees, shrubs and seedlings in urban neighborhoods across Canada. The Pick a Tree, Plant a Tree program, which began nine years ago, involves IKEA donating the cost of replanting a tree for every Christmas tree it sold in December. In the spring, the money raised goes to the planting and maintenance of trees in community parks, schools and riverside areas across Canada by volunteers and IKEA employees. Since the conception of the program, the Pick a Tree, Plant a Tree program has led to the planting of over 12,000 trees.
The GAP: Continuing their Support by "Greening" Schoolyards
The GAP has had a long history with Tree Canada beginning with the "Let's Root for Canada Tour" in 1998 and continuing their support through various tree plantings and youth projects. The Gap continues their support this year by regreening five schoolyards across Canada with funding and on-site help from GAP employees. Click here for more information on the Greening Canada's Schoolyard Program.
Saving Endangered Ecosystems: The Garry Oak and Butternut Thank You!
Thank you to the donors and community volunteers who helped us plant and maintain over 5,000 trees to help endangered ecosystems in the Rideau Valley and throughout the Vancouver Island Ranges. Through generous donations of time and money, we were able to plant the trees needed to replace butternut trees lost to butternut canker, a fungus that usually kills a tree within months or a year of infection, through the Rideau Valley Conservation Authority.
As well, through the Garry Oak Ecosystems Recovery Team, we were able to replace the Garry Oak lost to development on Vancouver Island. Click here to learn more about the Butternut Canker or here for the Garry Oaks.
Lillooet Replanting: Helping to Rebuild a Community
In 2004 several lightning caused fires burned significant portions of the Bridge River Indian Band and the T'ÍT'Q'ET Administration Reserve Lands near Lillooet BC. The fire also burned over 50% of the main community watershed. Currently, BC Hydro and Tree Canada is seeking tree planting partners from municipalities, electoral areas, regional districts, the Islands Trust, community and local resident groups, stewardship and conservation organizations and First Nations communities across British Columbia to assist in the replanting and maintenance of trees in the area.
eTree Computershare: Turning Shareholder Reports into Trees
Converting shareholder reports from paper to email has provided thousands of trees for communities from coast to coast to coast. Since 2004, Computershare's eTree program has been encouraging stakeholders to receive their annual reports and proxy materials online. The participating company will have a tree planted by the Tree Canada Foundation as a thank you for receiving reports online. To date, Tree Canada has planted over 14,000 trees on behalf of shareholders and is hoping to reach it's goal of 200,000 by the end of this year. Click here to learn how eTree is turning annual reports into trees.
COP11 in Montreal: Planting Trees to Offset Conference Emissions
Did you know that the Tree Canada Foundation helped plant the 12,800 trees to offset the 10 kilo tones of CO2 produced by the 10,000 international participants to Kyoto linked COP11 conference in Montreal? Click here for more information on the conference and Tree Canada's role in making it carbon neutral.
Thank You
Thank you for taking the time to learn more about Tree Canada. Please visit our website for more information on us and our associated programs and services and keep supporting our programs!
Nous sommes comme vous — nous aimons nos arbres et nos communautés et nous pensons que les arbres font partie d'une collectivité saine. Fondée en 1992, Arbres Canada est un organisme à but non lucratif qui fournit des connaissances, de l'aide technique, des ressources et un appui financier dans le cadre de partenariats de travail. Nous encourageons les Canadiens à planter et à prendre soin des arbres afin d'essayer de réduire les effets nocifs des émissions de gaz carbonique dans le cadre de notre programme 
