281 trees: a success for One Event – One Tree

One Event – One Tree: 281 trees planted

The Essen-based event agency teamio has planted trees for the team events it ran in 2019. To be precise, it was 281, because every team-building event got one. So every client now has a tree of their own – some even have several. For a major materials manufacturer from Leverkusen, for example, Teamio Event GmbH planted a full 24 trees. Each team or department also receives an individual certificate as proof. These are sent to clients digitally by email – with carbon-neutral delivery.

Successful partnership with PrimaKlima continues

“We didn’t plant most of the trees ourselves, though,” says Gerhard Jansgers, sustainability officer at teamio, with a smile. “We worked with our non-profit partner PrimaKlima e.V.” The organisation, based in Bergisch Gladbach (North Rhine-Westphalia), was recently awarded the grade “very good” by Stiftung Warentest, the German consumer testing foundation. The test looked at the quality of the offsetting, the transparency of the initiative, and its management and oversight. You can find the full Stiftung Warentest report here.

Why teamio is planting these trees in Nicaragua

Thanks to Stiftung Warentest’s “very good” verdict, demand multiplied almost overnight. The projects developed in Germany that we have supported in recent years are fully funded. Suitable opportunities are currently available in Nicaragua, however. In this Central American country, PrimaKlima was still able to acquire land to plant trees and care for them over the long term.

A sensible local alternative to PrimaKlima’s offsetting projects is Green Forest Found e.V., an initiative by Thorsten Walter. This environmental initiative buys the land it needs, securing the trees’ long-term future. The areas described as primeval forest are supplemented by meadows for bees and butterflies. After all, rich biodiversity provides the best foundation for nature conservation in the highly complex forest ecosystem, including primeval woodland.

teamio as a catalyst for the industry

Amit Lal, one of the two managing directors of Teamio Event GmbH, is especially pleased that other companies – including our partners – are adapting our environmental project One Event – One Tree for their own businesses: “We launched this campaign back in 2016 and planted hundreds of trees – first movers, so to speak.” Today several companies run similar projects, such as a partner hotel, the Atlantic Congress Hotel an der Messe Essen or the equipment hire firm Kleinklang Event. “We’re delighted that One Event – One Tree has helped us inspire the industry – and society – to pay attention to the important issue of the environment and environmental protection, and put sustainable action by everyone involved in the spotlight.”