Endangered Trees is a non-profit and community organization in Surin (Thailand) with the aim of planting trees, creating micro-forests, reducing CO2, generating income for the local community through ecological carbon farming and agroforestry and at the same time reduce illegal logging and save endangered tree species from extinction.

In the past 75 years, Thailand has lost 50% of its forest, from 60% of the total land surface in 1945 to about 30% in 2020. From deforestation and illegal trade with trees that are thousands of years old, many of the local tree species are on the brink of extinction.

According to the Department of Thai National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, there are 715 vulnerable, 207 endangered and 56 critically endangered species in Thailand. Among the fifty-six critically endangered species, 17 are trees.

Chemical-industrial farming has robbed the Thais of carbon-rich soil, the most important aspect of the ecosystem that we attempt to restore with our agroforestry projects.

Tree planting in Baan Cha Niang ǀ Isaan ǀ Thailand
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Carbon farming and Agroforestry

The idea of storing carbon in the soil is not new, and in fact, for most of our history, that's what farmers did, in addition to producing food.

In the beginning of the 20th century however, governments, banks, chemical companies and multinational organizations in pursuit of high profits, heavily promoted monocultures, and convinced farmers around the world to produce staples, the big three: Rice, Wheat and Maize (corn). We also refer to them as non-perennials or yearly crops.

One of the many problems with yearly crops is the tilling, during which the soil carbon comes into contact with oxygen and releases Co2. Farming is estimated to contribute 30% to 40% of the world's greenhouse gases. Yet, with the right practices, farming can not only be Co2 neutral, but act as a carbon sink.

With the right techniques, scientist estimate that soils have the capacity of storing 30 to 50 tons of carbon per hectare. Multiply this figure by 3.7, and you get the net weight of atmospheric carbon, also referred to as carbon dioxide (Co2).

Hence, with the right procedures, every farmer in the world has the capacity of retrieving 185 tons of carbon dioxide per hectare of land from the atmosphere. That's equivalent of a per person's Co2 emissions of 185 return flights from London to New York, a sheer unimaginable large number.

The main three components of carbon farming are,

• no till,

• use of cover crops

• and use of perennials.

If applied correctly, carbon remains in the soil for 100 to 5000 years, enough time for mankind to come up with greener energy sources and technological inventions to reduce global warming.

Carbon farming is not the silver bullet for solving the climate crisis, but it is one of many ways of making the planet a better place.

Read more about carbon farming under Storing Carbon in the Soil, about our agroforestry projects, and how we are going to reward farmers for pursuing carbon farming.

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With this donation we upgrade the lunch menu of students at Baan Cha Niang school

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