News & Commentary
Large-Scale Landscape Restoration: Spades and the African Union Development Agency–NEPAD announce partnerships with Cote d’Ivoire and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Minneapolis, Minnesota / December 11, 2023 – Spades and the African Union Development Agency (NEPAD/AFR100) are proud to announce landscape restoration agreements with Democratic Republic of the Congo and Cote d’Ivoire. Each agreement calls for partnerships in the development of large-scale landscape restoration. Combined, the projects plan to span around 10 million hectares, plant 1.5 billion trees, and generate more than 3 billion MtCO2e over 50 years. Each project has shared ownership and governance with benefits accruing to all stakeholders.
The projects propose to restore natural areas, develop plantations, and restore coastal mangroves. Most importantly, smallholder farmers and communities are prioritized with regenerative agroforestry in rural areas and increased income. These developments follow each nation’s ambitious strategies to improve climate resilience, biodiversity, reforestation, and food security. Economic development is expected to be significant, delivering thousands of jobs in each country.
The projects will align with UNFCCC protocols and are designed to help meet Nationally Determined Contributions. These collaborations demonstrate the opportunity for sustainable development structured to serve the communities and nations where they are implemented.
Spades.Life
Spades’ distinctive approach spans landscapes, seeking long-term, verified sustainability. Although existing natural areas are to be stabilized, the primary effort is focused on large-scale planting of indigenous species. “The leadership of these countries demonstrates a pathway for large-scale landscape restoration. It is time to get moving and not just talk about it,” says Raymond Menard, CEO and Founder of Spades.
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) a Key Player in Climate Action
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is recognized as a “climate solutions country.” With its vast natural resources, including the second largest tropical forest in the world, measuring 155.5 million hectares and sequestering 160 million tons of carbon per year, and extensive peat bogs that store 30 gigatons of carbon, the DRC is poised to lead the charge in environmental conservation and sustainable development. Professor Isaac Kalonda, National Designated Authority and Focal Point for the Green Climate Fund and CDM and Article 6.4 of the Paris Agreement, notes, “The Spades initiative builds on the President’s billion trees initiative, and engages our communities so they benefit from our country’s rich resources.”
Cote d’Ivoire’s Ambitious Forest Cover Initiative
Cote d’Ivoire has set an ambitious national initiative to achieve 20% forest cover by 2030, in line with its environmental and climate objectives. The country’s dedication to sustainable development is evident in its leading role as an agricultural and agroforestry producer. As the world’s top producer of cacao, cashew nuts, and kola nuts, it has made significant contributions to advancing sustainable farming practices. This initiative underscores Cote d’Ivoire’s commitment to environmental preservation and its pivotal role in addressing climate change on both national and global scales. Minister of Water and Forests Laurent TCHAGBA says, “The large-scale Spades initiative will have a significant impact on our reforestation and climate goals and support rural communities.”
African Union Development Agency – New Partnership for African Development (AUDA-NEPAD)
Their program, AFR100 – The African Forest Landscape Restoration Initiative – is a country-led effort to restore Africa’s degraded and deforested land. Their goals include accelerating restoration to enhance food security, increasing climate change resilience and mitigation, and combating rural poverty. Mamadou DIAKHITE, Acting Head of Environmental Sustainability for AUDA-NEPAD says, “The Spades effort leverages almost a decade of our successful work to engage 34 countries across Africa committed to restore 130 million hectares.” For more information visit AFR100.org.
Spades is a Public Benefit Corporation committed to developing profitable projects to reforest the world. Our vision is to sustain the world by integrating thriving human, environmental, and economic solutions. For more information, visit www.spades.life.
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Restauration de paysages à grande échelle : Spades et l’Agence de développement de l’Union africaine (NEPAD) annoncent des partenariats avec la Côte d’Ivoire et la République Démocratique du Congo.
Spades et l’Agence de développement de l’Union africaine (NEPAD/AFR100) sont fiers d’annoncer des accords de restauration des paysages avec la Côte d’Ivoire et la République Démocratique du Congo. Chaque accord prévoit des partenariats pour le développement de la restauration des paysages à grande échelle. Ensemble, les projets comptent couvrir environ 10 millions d’hectares, planter 1,5 milliard d’arbres et générer plus de 3 milliards de MtCO2e sur une période de 50 ans. Chaque projet fait l’objet d’une propriété et d’une gouvernance partagées, et toutes les parties prenantes en tirent des avantages.
Les projets proposent de restaurer les zones naturelles, de développer des plantations et de restaurer les mangroves littoraux. Plus important encore, les petits exploitants agricoles et les communautés sont prioritaires avec une agroforesterie régénératrice dans les zones rurales et une augmentation des revenus. Ces développements suivent les stratégies ambitieuses de chaque nation pour améliorer la résilience climatique, la biodiversité, la reforestation, et la sécurité alimentaire. Le développement économique devrait être important, avec la création de milliers d’emplois dans chaque pays.
Les projets s’aligneront sur les protocoles de la CCNUCC et sont conçus pour aider à atteindre les Contributions Déterminées au niveau National (CDN). Ces collaborations démontrent l’opportunité d’un développement durable structuré pour servir les communautés et les nations où elles sont mises en œuvre.
Spades.Life
L’approche distinctive de Spades s’étend aux paysages, en recherchant une durabilité vérifiée à long terme. Bien que les zones naturelles existantes doivent être stabilisées, l’effort principal se concentre sur la plantation à grande échelle d’espèces indigènes. “Le leadership de ces pays montre la voie à suivre pour la restauration des paysages à grande échelle. Il est temps de passer à l’action et de ne pas se contenter d’en parler”, déclare Raymond Ménard, PDG et fondateur de Spades.
La République démocratique du Congo (RDC), un acteur clé de l’action climatique
La République démocratique du Congo (RDC) est reconnue comme un « pays solution » pour la crise climatique. Avec ses vastes ressources naturelles, dont la deuxième plus grande forêt tropicale du monde, qui s’étend sur 155,5 millions d’hectares et séquestre 160 millions de tonnes de carbone par an, et ses vastes tourbières qui stockent 30 gigatonnes de carbone, la RDC est prête à jouer un rôle de premier plan dans la conservation de l’environnement et le développement durable. Le Professeur Isaac Kalonda, Autorité Nationale Désignée et Point Focal pour les Fonds Vert et MDP et Article 6.4 de l’Accord de Paris, a déclaré : “L’initiative Spades suit l’initiative du milliard d’arbres lancée par le président, et engage nos communautés afin qu’elles bénéficient des riches ressources de notre pays.”
L’ambitieuse initiative de la Côte d’Ivoire en matière de couverture forestière
La Côte d’Ivoire a mis en place une initiative nationale ambitieuse visant à atteindre une couverture forestière de 20 % d’ici 2030, conformément à ses objectifs en matière d’environnement et de climat. L’engagement du pays en faveur du développement durable est évident dans son rôle de premier plan en tant que producteur agricole et agroforestier. En tant que premier producteur mondial de cacao, de noix de cajou, et de noix de cola, il a contribué de manière significative à l’avancement des pratiques agricoles durables. Cette initiative souligne l’engagement de la Côte d’Ivoire en faveur de la préservation de l’environnement et son rôle central dans la lutte contre le changement climatique à l’échelle nationale et mondiale. Le ministre des Eaux et Forêts, Laurent TCHAGBA, a déclaré : “L’initiative à grande échelle de Spades aura un impact significatif sur nos objectifs de reboisement et de lutte contre le changement climatique, et soutiendra les communautés rurales.”
Agence de développement de l’Union africaine – Nouveau partenariat pour le développement de l’Afrique (AUDA-NEPAD).
Leur programme, AFR100 – Initiative de restauration des paysages forestiers africains – est un effort mené par les pays pour restaurer les terres dégradées et déboisées de l’Afrique. Ses objectifs sont notamment d’accélérer la restauration afin d’améliorer la sécurité alimentaire, d’accroître la résilience au changement climatique et l’atténuation de ses effets, et de lutter contre la pauvreté rurale. Mamadou DIAKHITE, chef intérimaire de la durabilité environnementale pour l’AUDA-NEPAD, déclare : “L’effort de Spades tire parti de près d’une décennie de notre travail fructueux pour engager 34 pays à travers l’Afrique à restaurer 130 millions d’hectares.” Pour plus information, visitez le site AFR100.org.
Spades est une société d’intérêt public qui s’engage à développer des projets rentables pour reboiser le monde. Notre vision est de soutenir le monde en intégrant des solutions humaines, environnementales et économiques prospères. Pour plus d’informations, visitez le site www.spades.life.
New Tree Tech: AI, drones, satellites and sensors give reforestation a boost
- This four-part Mongabay mini-series examines the latest technological solutions to help tree-planting projects achieve scale and long-term efficiency. Using these innovative approaches could be vital for meeting international targets to repair degraded ecosystems, sequester carbon, and restore biodiversity.
- Current forest restoration efforts fall far short of international goals, and behind the hype lies a string of failed projects and unintended environmental consequences that have left a bad taste in the mouths of many investors, politicians and conservationists. Projects are often expensive and labor-intensive.
- Applying cutting-edge technology to the problem is helping: Advanced computer modeling and machine learning can aid tree-planting initiatives in identifying a diverse set of native species best able to thrive in unique local conditions, today and in a warming future.
- Drones are revolutionizing large-scale tree planting, especially in remote and inaccessible locations. Once trees are planted, satellite-based and on-site sensors can help monitor young forests — offering long-term scrutiny and protection often missing from traditional reforestation initiatives, and at a lower cost.
This story is the first article of a four-part Mongabay mini-series exploring the latest technological solutions to support reforestation. Read Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four.
New Tree Tech: Data-driven reforestation methods match trees to habitats
- This four-part Mongabay mini-series examines the latest technological solutions to help tree-planting projects achieve scale and long-term efficiency. Using these innovative approaches could be vital for meeting international targets to repair degraded ecosystems, sequester carbon, and restore biodiversity.
- To create healthy, diverse ecosystems, native tree species need to be identified that will thrive at each unique site within a habitat. But with more than 70,000 tree species worldwide, gathering and analyzing the data needed to understand species’ needs, habitat preferences and limitations is no small feat.
- Environmental niche models use data on climate, soil conditions and other characteristics within a species’ range to calculate a tree’s requirements. Artificial intelligence helps sort through vast data sets to make informed predictions about the species suited to an ecosystem, now and in a warmer future.
- Biotechnology company Spades uses laboratory testing of tissue samples from plant species to quantify what growing conditions a species can tolerate and to identify its optimum growing conditions.
This story is the second article of a four-part Mongabay mini-series exploring the latest technological solutions to support reforestation. Read Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four.
New Tree Tech: Cutting-edge drones give reforestation a helping hand
- This four-part Mongabay mini-series examines the latest technological solutions to help tree-planting projects achieve scale and long-term efficiency. Using these innovative approaches could be vital for meeting international targets to repair degraded ecosystems, sequester carbon, and restore biodiversity.
- Restoring hundreds of millions of hectares of lost and degraded forest worldwide will require a gigantic effort, a challenge made doubly hard by the fact that many sites are inaccessible by road, stopping manual replanting projects in their tracks.
- Manual planting is labor-intensive and slow. Drone seeding uses the latest in robotic technology to deliver seeds directly to where they’re needed. Drones can drop seeds along a predefined route, working together in a “swarm” to complete the task with a single human supervisor overseeing the process.
- Drone-dropped seed success rates are lower than for manually planted seedlings, but biotech solutions are helping. Specially designed pods encase the seeds in a tailored mix of nutrients to help them thrive. Drones are tech-intensive, and still available mostly in industrialized countries, but could one day help reseed forests worldwide.
This story is the third article of a four-part Mongabay mini-series exploring the latest technological solutions to support reforestation. Read Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four.
Explore other services offered with Spades solutions, including SaaS, TaaS, satellites, and drones, by visiting this page.
New Tree Tech: Real-time, long-term high-tech reforestation monitoring
- This four-part Mongabay mini-series examines the latest technological solutions to help tree-planting projects achieve scale and long-term efficiency. Using these innovative approaches could be vital for meeting international targets to repair degraded ecosystems, sequester carbon, and restore biodiversity.
- Many people see reforestation as a quick fix to the climate emergency, but tree-planting projects often fail to put in place the monitoring programs needed to track newly planted forests. Traditionally, forest monitoring has been done by hand, one tree at a time, which is extremely expensive and time-consuming.
- Satellites are mapping and remapping the entire planet daily, providing real-time data that can be used to monitor forests remotely. Drones can fly over or through forests to collect data on tree growth, bridging the gap between on-site measurements and distant satellites.
- Sensors can be installed to monitor individual trees directly, while people can collect and analyze the data electronically from a safer and easier-to-access location. Multiple sensors can form a distributed network that returns detailed information on the growth of each tree within huge reforestation plots.
This story is the fourth article of a four-part Mongabay mini-series exploring the latest technological solutions to support reforestation. Read Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four.
Also read about Topodox™, site monitoring software that provides comprehensive support for forest development, and monitoring and standards that track project status and results from planning through 50 years.
“In this book, I tell the story of Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR): what led me to spend 17 years in Niger, the moment of revelation, the challenges of working with rural communities, how a miracle emerged from a crisis, and the global spread of FMNR today.
At its core, this is a story of hope against all the odds. In a seemingly hopeless situation, this is a good-news story that will move hearts and hands to care for the planet. I believe this story will be a powerful tool in the global FMNR movement, and in providing a nature-based solution to climate change.”
-Tony Rinaudo
Click here to pre-order your copy today.
The State of the World’s Forests 2022, FAO
“The State of the World’s Forests” report is published by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Every two years, it analyzes the interaction between forests and people.
Taking into account the Glasgow Leaders’ Declaration on Forests and Land Use, the 2022 edition explores three forest pathways for achieving green recovery and tackling environmental crises, including climate change and biodiversity loss.
The report identified the need for three interrelated pathways for achieving desired results: stopping deforestation and maintaining forests; restoring degraded lands and expanding agroforestry; and building sustainable value chains from forests. It is possible to generate sustainable economic and social benefits for countries and their rural communities if these pathways are pursued in a balanced, simultaneous manner while meeting the demands for materials on a global scale and being environmentally conscious.
Access the report here.
Spades Partners with Initiative 20×20 to Restore Forests on Degraded Lands
The company joins forces with organizations across Latin America and the Caribbean for the natural restoration of forests
Minneapolis, Minnesota / March 14, 2022 – Spades announces its partnership with Initiative 20×20, a country-led effort seeking to change the dynamics of land degradation in Latin America and the Caribbean by beginning to protect and restore 50 million hectares of forests, farms, pasture, and other landscapes by 2030.
Over 18 countries and three regional programs are already committed to improving more than 52 million hectares of land (or about 124 million acres, about the size of Nicaragua and Paraguay combined). Besides Spades, more than 95 technical organizations and institutions support the initiative. USD $3.13 billion in private investment is also backing the initiative.
Spades’ first Caribbean project is in Belize. More than 80 unique ecosystems are under threat in this country. A loss of mangroves along its coast and around its islands threatens the world’s second-largest coral reef. Unemployment and poverty rates are high.
The project includes the replanting of coastal mangroves, critical to the Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the second-largest reef in the world. The work harmonizes land-uses so that environmental competition grows into sustainable resilience where everyone wins.
“We must act quickly to curb climate change. Restoration is key. Our Sustainable Belize project aims to restore and protect coastal ecosystems and forests,” says Raymond Menard, CEO and Founder of Spades. “It promotes regenerative agriculture and fosters a sustainable economy in Belize.”
Walter Vergara, Senior Fellow and Director of Initiative 20×20, said, “We take note that Spades is a Specific Benefit Corporation that works on climate change initiatives through reforestation and agroforestry projects around the world, including in Latin America. Spades’ involvement in reforestation, protection, and social engagement fits extremely well with the aims of the Initiative.”
Spades is a Specific Benefit Corporation committed to developing profitable projects to reforest the world. Our vision is to sustain the world by integrating thriving human, environmental, and economic solutions. For more information, visit www.spades.life or Twitter @Spades_SBC.
World Resources Institute (WRI)‘s Global Restoration Initiative is the secretariat of Initiative 20×20. WRI works with governments and international partners to inspire, enable and implement restoration on degraded landscapes, returning them to economic and environmental productivity. For more information click here or visit Twitter @restoreforward.
Spades New Biotech is a Game-Changer in Climate Change
Ecofit™ discovers which trees will thrive in local conditions.
Minneapolis, MN / January 24, 2022 — Spades announces Ecofit™, a biotech fostering forest vitality and hardiness. Trees are nature’s solution for removing greenhouse gases and slowing global warming. Ecofit selects trees for resilience to improve investor returns, mitigate climate change, and save habitats.
Climate change makes it hard to choose flourishing trees for regreening projects. Depleted soils caused by prior land-uses also create challenges. Trees that once grew on a site may no longer do so. In addition, little is known about most tree species. Short-term planting trials or past observations lack reliability. Understandably, landscape planners may default to well-known non-native species, displacing local biodiversity.
A tree’s measured ecological fit (ecofit) grows a greener future. Ecofit reveals the exact abiotic needs of a species and variety. This includes light, water, soil, nutrients, temperature, etc. Through Ecofit, foresters can screen and rank trees’ suitability for local conditions and site objectives.
Ecofit has laboratory-tested the tech across over 400 tree species in 30 ecosystems globally. Ecofit rates a given species’ fitness for local conditions using tree biopsies, soil tests, and climate data. Lab testing quickly reveals a vast amount of data that helps us speed up the process of restoring trees and ecosystems.
“Serious climate mitigation requires serious investment, which requires serious risk mitigation. Ecofit is the only testing method to predict tree success. The critical win is to have trees thrive, not just survive. Even if an apple tree grows only 10% more apples, it can be the difference between profit and loss. This applies to timber, carbon, habitats, fruits, nuts, and all the benefits we receive from trees,” says Raymond Menard, CEO and Founder of Spades.
Ecofit is available for any large-scale regreening project in the world. Future development is planned on other types of plants.
Forest Conservation Impact Investing: Balancing Competing Interests
Frank Williams, January 18, 2022
Harvard Business School Professor Josh Lerner’s recent article, “3 lessons for financing forest conservation” (see https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/12/3-lessons-for-financing-forest-conservation/), describes how public and philanthropic resources, the primary source of funding to protect the planet’s biodiversity, are dramatically insufficient. Private investors are increasingly embracing various forms of impact investing, including forest conservation, as the earth has lost one-third of its forests.
Successful forest conservation investing must blend the need for investor financial returns with sustained biodiversity outcomes; all participants must reflect deeply to develop new models that enable environmental and economic objectives to coexist with reasonable trade-offs.
Spades exists to address the problems and opportunities that Professor Lerner has highlighted. The Spades business model invites impact investors to collaborate with local communities, smallholder farmers, environmental experts, and local and national governments to accelerate and sustain tree planting at scale while promoting shared prosperity for all stakeholders.
Spades has three shovel-ready forest conservation projects (in Uganda, Kenya, and Belize) involving 400,000+ ha, 100+ million trees, and 100+ million MT of sequestered carbon, with a global pipeline of dozens of such projects. Our solutions help trees flourish to improve investor returns, create climate resilience, save habitats, and help communities, while directly supporting 11 of the 17 SDGs. Spades contributes to a sustainable future for the planet and for people.
Spades Builds Climate Resilience Enterprise with Social Impact
Innovative climate change company links investment, land, and capacity to massive regreening projects worldwide
Minneapolis, MN / January 4, 2022 — Spades announces significant expansion with three tree projects in development involving 1,000,000 acres, 100 million trees, and 100 million MT of sequestered carbon, with dozens of projects in its pipeline. Its biotechnology increases tree survival to improve climate resilience, investor returns, and local economic development. Worldwide projects provide returns via carbon offsets, timber, and agroforestry.
“Trees are critical because they are the best way to remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. Plus, forest density creates climate resilience locally. Unfortunately, science shows we need one hundred times as many trees grown every year to achieve the needed change,” says Raymond Menard, CEO and Founder of Spades.
Some Good News from COP26
Frank Williams, December 14, 2021
The key document in my view (out of hundreds created in the lead up to COP26) is the RethinkX “Rethinking Climate Change” report – Climate Implications — RethinkX. This data analytics-based report has dramatic implications for future principle level choices of any organization. To get the gist of what this report says, this Just Have a Think video, covers the report’s major themes in 19 minutes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=UUySXZ6y2fk.
RethinkX Themes:
- Based on current trends, humanity can achieve a 95% reduction in greenhouse gases by 2035 from the massive disruptions taking place in Energy, Transportation and Food systems
- Passive reforestation will contribute to 20% of greenhouse gas reductions and will be by far the largest part of the solution
- Food advances occurring today will free up 2.7B ha of agricultural land (size of America, China and Australia combined)
$130 Trillion and Counting
Frank Williams, December 13, 2021
As of November 2021, capital asset managers stewarding $130 trillion (40% of global assets under management, see www.gfanzero.com), have added Impact linked to the UN Sustainable Development Goals to their general Risk and Return investment thesis, and this systemic shift will only accelerate. In addition, nations are working through revisions to their legal, accounting, and reporting regulatory frameworks to support low carbon economy transitions. There will be, sooner than later, no place to hide.
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