I am an old member of this group. No, I haven't forgot about this group I have I have just been a very busy bee in RL I know you share something as I and that is the love of trees. So, I had to share with you what I found on Facebook. This is like clicking to donate only it is way more fun and lots more you can do with many causes to make a difference.

My Forest - Trees For Our Future - Plant For Free

My Forest on Facebook raises money to plant real trees. Part of the money we raise through advertisements and Green Coins is donated to the Trees for the Future, which helps communities around the world plant trees and restore tree cover to degraded lands. Donations are 100% transparent. The more people use My Forest, the more money we donate!

http://www.care2.com/news/member/577339509/1297082

Trees For The Future is on Facebook and you can plant trees for free!

http://apps.facebook.com/myforestgame

Trees for the Future

Since 1989, Trees for the Future has been helping communities around the world plant trees. Through seed distribution, agroforestry training, and our country programs, we have empowered rural groups to restore tree cover to their lands.

http://www.care2.com/news/member/577339509/1297077

Watch the video at Trees For The Future

http://www.plant-trees.org

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If you are on facebook plz add me I will send you seeds and you can send me seeds! I have 495 growing trees
Mari Basque forests have absorbed 24,405 pounds of CO2 negating carbon emissions of average person for one year
Plant your own forest

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Wow Mari, what a great idea!!   It is wonderful to know that so many trees are being planted and with such ease.    Tracy has been busy for a while but will be returning soon...so I will say 'welcome back' for her.      I would like to personally welcome you as well.   I'm heading to click the link now and plant some trees.  Thank you so much!

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Mari, I am quite new at those apps but I went and did some clicking, watering, sending 2 seeds (all I had) to friends.   It will take me a while to learn things so you may get bombarded with questions if I can't figure it out.  LOL   How do you buy stuff for 5 or 10 cents?   Not putting up a credit card I hope.  I am so leery of doing that.   Thanks! 

P.S.  You're right....Tracy will love this!  

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Mari, what an angel you are to take your time and explain everything for me (and others).   No, unfortunately I didn't read the FAQ's.       I guess I am lazy or else I don't always understand.  (sorry)  In addition to what you posted I think I did read somewhere that the green coins must be purchased.   However I will read carefully everything you wrote and then I will utilize the FAQ's too if I get stumped!   Thanks again for all your help. 

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It is wonderful Mari that you supplied us with many links to choose from to help save the planet by planting trees.   You have been so very helpful and I thank you for it.    I, too, usually don't like to play games for fun....I want to help a cause by doing so.   What better cause than saving trees or helping animals?  

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I hope that these apps really donate what they say they are.   I love helping but I want to make sure my efforts are actually helping and the causes benefitting from them.    I have a Goodsearch toolbar and another one that I can't remember where I got it but they both are supposed to contribute each time I use them for a search.   On one (the one I can't remember where I got it and maybe the same one you have, Mari shows how much money I have donated) and the other (Goodsearch) you can click and see how much has been collected by everyone.   I just hope it is all going to where it says. 

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RE: I just hope it is all going to where it says.

Exactly!!! Been a while but goodsearch from what I remember is good.

Something interesting I found.

http://www.charitywatch.org/azlist.html#t

I can't find Trees For Our Future on Charity Watch?

American Forests, Nature Conservancy, Rainforest Action Network, Rainforest Alliance is here and others, but I can't find trees for our future & I really trust Charity Watch. I hope they are helping as I got this link from someone I REALLY trust. If they are listed at charity watch they are an open book.

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Maybe they are too new and haven't made it there yet, Mari.   Perhaps you could email AIP and ask them to add them or if they know anything about them.    So I am assuming that all groups listed have been checked out by AIP and are what they say?    Great site!

Here is another awesome site that rates charities.    I use it whenever I need info and find it very helpful.

http://www.charitynavigator.org/

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You go girl!  Take the bull by the horns!     Tomorrow I will see what I can do as well unless you find out something today, Mari.

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Hi Mari and Vicky

Just thought I would add my two cents worth LOL

I think part of the problem yo0u are having is that you are looking for the wrong charity:

You are looking for: "Trees for OUR Future"

but should be looking for:  "Trees for THE Future"

here is their listing on Charity Navigator:

http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=11443

they get a 4 STAR rating

here is a nice video outlining their program:

http://www.treesftf.org/about.htm#tftfvideo

Now for the application... The application makes a donation of part of the advertising revenues genorated by the application - so each time you use it a small donation is made   Here is the donation tracking page:

http://apps.facebook.com/causes/activity/61649781?fb_page_id=74870948810&_fb_fromhash=3db82602b930d48398acf5bb3c89524d

It shows that the application has donated $855 so far - that is the REAL money donated...

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Oh, and the "green coins" thing...

You can buy or earn green coins (throught completing offers) which then can be exchanged for "seedlings"... these are NOT real seedlings but vertual ones for the game (the "goal" of the game is to plant as many of these "vertual seedlings" as you can to earn "vertual carbon credits" - the competition is to see who can earn the most "vertual carbon credits").  Wehn one buys green coins, part of the purchase price goes into the donation total - the REAL money going to the charity...

Buying green coins is totally optional - it is just a way to support the developers of the game and a quick way to aquire more seedlings. You can play for free and still help genorate REAL donations from the advertisers...

Clear as mud, right LOL!!!!

Bottom line, the more you play the game, the more donations of real money which goes to the charity

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Hi Chris and thank you so much for clarifying the real name for us.  Whew!   We were beginning to wonder if it was legit.   So PLEASE put your two cents worth in any time!

Also, thanks for explaining more about the green coins!   Still so much I don't know!  You and Mari have really taught me bunches today! 

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Chris and/or Mari....does Trees For Our Future plant trees in the U.S.A. or just in other countries?   I know, I know...it probably explains somewhere but as I said I'm lazy.  teehee!  I want to plant no matter or where but I am just curious. 

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Vicky - These folks work in 20 countries right now, including the US   Here is a complete list of the projects they are involved in presently:

Here is the donation tracking page:

http://www.plant-trees.org/projects.htm

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Hi Mari and Chris....thanks to both of you for the links...I will check them out in just a little bit.

What a good feeling that while clicking we are helping plants or doing away with emissions, etc.

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Great video, Mari!   One thing I have questions about though is if all these trees are being planted (millions) why is there still a shortage?   Also, in Chris' link it says some parks in Kenya may close and that only 3% of the trees are left.   I am just confused that millions of trees are being planted (which is awesome) yet we still hear about the depletion of forests, etc.   Maybe I am misunderstanding?

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Vicky -

While it is true that millions of trees have been planted (which as you point out is great) it really pales in light of the distruction which is going on in the tropical rainforets.  It is hard to comprehend exactly how massive the distruction is but here are a few stats to illustrate:

Tragically, the tropical rainforests are being destroyed at an alarming rate. According to Rainforest Action Network, more than an acre-and-a-half is lost every second of every day (refer to the entries below to see, quantitatively, what that translates into). That’s an area more than twice the size of Florida that goes up in smoke every year! "If present rates of destruction continue, half our remaining rainforests will be gone by the year 2025, and by 2060 there will be no rainforests remaining."
Every second . . we lose an area the size of two football fields!
Every minute . . we lose an area 29 times the size of the Pentagon!
Every hour . . . we lose an area 684 times larger than the New Orleans Superdome!
Every day . . . we lose an area larger than all five boroughs of New York City!
Every week . . . we lose an area twice the size of Rhode Island!
Every month . . .we lose an area the size of Belize!
Every year . . . we lose an area more than twice the size of Florida!
source: http://www.savetherainforest.org/savetherainforest_007.htm

So while we currently are planting millions of trees, the losses are being measured in the BILLIONS

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Hi Mari, Vicky, and Chris!  Wow, look at all I've missed out on!   I will have to play catch up and see if I can get things going with all you have been talking about on here.  I'm swamped and incredibly backlogged on Facebook, Vicky I know you have probably sent me an invite on there for the tree stuff...forgive me for not getting to it yet, hundreds of requests I've been going through little by little on there.....I get overwhelmed sometimes by the apps on there.  Just want to thank you all for the info you posted on this thread!! 

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Tracy!!!  You're back dear friend and so good to see you, too!   Yes, Mari opened this great thread and she, Chris and I have been having very interesting and informing posts!    And now you're here to join in, too! 

Chris, boy those statistics really make me sad....it's like we take 2 steps forward and a mile backwards.    All the education doesn't seem to be helping at all.   But we must trudge forward no matter what.    Maybe one day......

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Don't worry about responding to me on Facebook in a hurry, Tracy.   I know very little of what I am doing on there anyway so...LOL  I try (and hope) I am posting things on my profile that people can see and click on to participate.    As far as those apps, well children may understand them but I sure don't.  hahahahaha!

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dear treehugger friends, thanks to mari and chris for the tree seeds and planting sites on facebook. i became a tree warden for our street when i was 9 years old in primary school because no one else volunteered and i have truly loved trees since i can remember. fortunately, in the small coastal city of albany in western australia where i now live have protected a lot of trees and now have tree farms and wind farms to help generate power and to stop cutting down ancient growth forests hooray! god bless. peace and love from ildi p.

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Ildi....a tree warden at 9?!!  That's terrific!!  I'm so glad that when you were that young that you were into protecting trees.....if only more got involved like that!!  Awesome to hear that so many more trees are protected in your area too.....hope more follow suit in other areas.....trees need all the protection they can get! 

Vicky, I'm slowly working my way back into things on both FB and here on Care2.......I did find your invite though!  I'm getting there!! 

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By the way Vicky....that pic you posted a few posts up.....that is magnificent....absolutely beautiful!!   Do you know what area that is from?  What a gorgeous sight of those old trees and their sweeping branches and the moss....so pretty!

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Ildi, I wish all children would love trees like you did at that age.    You are definitely a friend to the trees and thank God for all that you did and still do to save them!

Tracy, not sure where I found that tree graphic on the internet but I loved it.   Doesn't the area look so peaceful and the trees so majestic?   Snag away.  

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Mari, thanks for stopping in...we all understand about being busy so we will just be grateful for whatever time we can spend together helping the trees! 

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Well doggone...my post just totally disappeared, so if you see this twice you'll know that it miraculously showed back up.  LOL

Anyway, Mari stop in as time allows...we understand perfectly.   Let's all just cherish the time we can meet up together to help save the forests/trees!

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This is amazing =] makes me wish i could actually use facebook on my computer..lol

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Hi everyone!  

Good thread.

I wish I had time to explore the game, but...

I grow trees from seed though, so hopefully that accounts for something.

Wanted to add this link here for Mari's News Article on Deforestation. It should fit nicely.
I activated the links for you!  

HUGZ ~ Electra

http://www.care2.com/news/member/577339509/1334274

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Mari, Vicky, Mandy, Electra.... Greetings!!  Mari & Vicky, it is nice to see you on Facebook so much!  I'm always trying to help the trees as much as I can on those apps, been visiting them daily. Mandy, I'm sorry you can't access FB on your computer.   Technology doesn't always work the best sometimes.  Electra, definitely noted Mari's article, thanks for activating the links too! 

's to all!

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