What is the most popular web search engine on your top of mind?
Google? Bing? Yahoo? Baidu?
You may have your own answer but we would like to introduce you another meaningful alternative for consideration.
Ecosia is a web search engine based in Berlin, Germany, which donates 80% of its surplus income to non-profit conservationist organisations, with a focus on tree planting in 17 countries throughout Europe, North America, Central & South America, Africa, and Asia. As of October 2018, over 40 million trees have been planted with Ecosia’s support.
Christian Kroll, Founder of Ecosia (PC: Ecosia Facebook)
Founded by Christian Kroll in 2009 to coincide with UN climate talks in Copenhagen, Denmark, Ecosia considers itself a “social business” as certified by B-Lab as a benefit corporation and claims to support full financial transparency. Currently Ecosia can be searched by using a web browser or a mobile app on Android and iOS devices with over 7 millions users worldwide. According to its motto “Diversity, justice, and equality are the key to solving the world’s most pressing problems.”, the company keeps on improving their business and donation models as well as the quality of the search results.
For instance, between December 2009 and August 2013, Ecosia donated to the Plant a half million Trees program run by the Nature Conservancy, which the program aimed to restore the Brazilian Atlantic Forest by planting one million native trees by 2015. In 2013, Ecosia switched to finance a new reforestation program by The Nature Conservancy (TNC), namely “Plant a Billion Trees” and aimed at reforesting the Mata Atlântica, the Atlantic Forest of Brazil. In 2015, Ecosia began funding reforestation in Burkina Faso, West Africa as part of the Great Green Wall project, backed by the African Union and the World Bank, that aims to prevent desertification. In October 2018, Christian Kroll announced having given part of his shares to the Purpose Foundation and gave up the right to sell Ecosia or take profits out of the company to ensure the conservation projects in long run.
In short, Ecosia targets to plant a billion trees by 2020. Let’s join their hands by walking the talk!
Source of Information:
Source of Information: Ecosia
