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It’s the most wonderful time of the year....at least, for us it is. It is Earth Week once again, and the countdown to Earth Day continues! Already this month we have seen some wonderful Earth Month events and promotions, and more are on the way. Here’s a quick recap of some Earth Month festivities you won’t want to miss:

Rock Out
April 20: Once again our friends at Origins are hosting the Origins Rocks Earth Month concert! This year’s concert will feature the three-time Grammy Award-winning group Train. Origins gave away many tickets to this now sold-out event when people went to Origins locations and signed a pledge to go green. But don’t worry; even if you weren’t able to score tickets, you can still get a front row seat to the concert! Just visit http://www.origins.com/liveconcert to see the concert streaming LIVE on April 20 at 8pm EST.
Origins has also pledged to plant a tree for every person who attends the concert AND everyone who watches online, so spread the word and help make a great event even better by helping plant as many trees as possible!

Snag Free Stuff
We’re teaming up with Lowe’s this year to make planting a tree for Earth Day even easier. This Saturday, April 23, Lowe’s Garden Centers across the country will be giving away 1 million free tree seedlings for Earth Day! Each one will come with a unique barcode that you can enter on their website at http://www.Lowes.com/earthday to learn more. Visit www.Lowes.com to find a Lowe’s Garden Center near you.

Shop Till You Drop (or plant)
When you shop at Uncommon Goods (http://www.uncommongoods.com) for unique gifts this week, use the code “AMFOR” at checkout and they will donate $5 to American Forests’ Global ReLeaf program. That’s 5 trees planted with the click of a mouse! 

Toast the Town
Our friends at Woodchuck Cider are celebrating Earth Day this year by planting a tree through Global ReLeaf for every new Like on their Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/WoodchuckCider
Help them plant as many trees as possible by logging on and liking their page. And don’t forget to tell your friends about this free, easy way to have a tree planted in your honor this Earth Day!

Give Us Your Best Shot
Do you have some great photos of you, your friends, or family enjoying trees and forests this spring? How about photos of the Earth Day, Week, or Month events you’ve attended? Enter them in our Earth Month 2011 photo contest at http://www.flickr.com/groups/1664537@N23/ and your photo could be featured on our website. One lucky winner will also receive a stylish, eco-friendly watch from our friends at WeWOOD (http://we-wood.us )

Plant Trees
Don’t forget the best thing that you can do to celebrate Earth Day: plant trees! Through our Global ReLeaf program, you can make sure that degraded forests around the world are protected and restored. Just $1 plants a tree! Visit http://www.americanforests.org/planttrees/ to make your Earth Day contribution today.

Do you like the group Train? Want to attend their April 20th concert in New York for FREE? Then you'll love the latest promotion by our partners at Origins. As part of Origins Rocks Earth Month, the skin care company is giving away free concert tickets at select locations when you take a pledge to be more green. And as a bonus, for every ticket they give away, Origins will plant a tree with us through our Global ReLeaf program! There is absolutely no way to lose on this great deal, so visithttp://www.origins.com/liveconcert/index.tmpl to learn where you can get your free tickets today!

Hello everyone! The winter issue of the magazine is now available online, and here's a preview of some of what you can find there:

Every Tree Tells a Story

Forests For Fish

by Sheila Pell

Alien Invasion

by Carrie Madren

Edible Landscapes

by Miranda Spencer

What's green and can feed an entire neighborhood? Urban orchards. Read about the newest trend that's combining the "live green" and "eat local" movements in Philadelphia and other cities. 

Hungarian Global ReLeaf

by Gyorgy Pal Gado

Did you know that American Forests has been planting trees in forests around the world for 20 years now? Learn more about the first Global ReLeaf International projects, and how they paved the way for conservation trends and programs in Hungary.

You can read all these articles and more in the Winter 2011 issue of American Forests magazine at http://www.americanforests.org/productsandpubs/magazine/archives/2011_Winter/index.php

A recent study, released to coincide with today's official kickoff of the International Year of the Forests, shows the planet's 10 most endangered forests. It may surprise you to learn where some of them are (hint: one is here in the US!), what threatens them, and how much we stand to lose if they are lost. 

Read more about these forests at http://www.peopleandplanet.net/?lid=29608&section=32&topic=23

Help us to plant more trees than ever this year in forests like these by visiting www.americanforests.org and doing your part to support global reforestation! 

In East Africa, most people go on adventures to see rare and unusual animals. They don't usually care much about the vegetation. But when Pakistani botanist Najma Dharani arrived in East Africa, she fell in love with its unusual and underappreciated trees. Read about how Dharani came to discover new species and bring new attention to old ones, as well as learn about her many books, in this article in The East African. 

The devastating Carmel Fire killed more than 40 people and ravaged thousands of acres of forest in a nation whose forested lands were already limited. But since that disaster, Israel has seen thousands of volunteers flowing in from local areas and around the world, all eager to play a part in the recovery and restoration of its forests. These volunteers have pulled weeds, pruned trees, hauled charred stumps and branches away, mulched, fertilized, and already planted some trees. They've been hard at work, and the result is that Israel's forests may still have a green future. 

Read more about the volunteers and their work at http://www.jpost.com/GreenIsrael/MountCarmelForestFires/Article.aspx?id=206049

Last spring, we reported on the startling decline of the whitebark pine, a high-elevation tree species that is vital to the survival of its ecosystem. More than anything else, the decline of the whitebark pine is affecting grizzly bears, who need the tree's high-nutrition nuts to survive the winter. 

Citizens of the southeast unite! A new report shows 10 of the most endangered places in the southeast. These are national natural treasures, all of which bring massive amounts of ecological, economic, and aesthetic benefits to the region: 

We need your help! You've all done a great job supporting us in Lowe's Charity Contest, and we appreciate it so much! But the work isn't done yet. We need you to keep voting for us through the run of the contest! You can vote every day, once per email account (and let's be honest, most of us have more than one). The contest ends on Friday, so vote, vote, vote, and get your friends to vote as well! The more votes we get, the more trees we can plant to restore forests this year! 

Do your weekend plans include saving the planet? Ours do! Every day between now and January 21 is a chance for you to vote for American Forests in Lowe's Charity Contest and help us plant more trees this year than any year before.