The Restore the Earth Foundation announced today their Clinton Global Initiative Commitment to Action to restore 1,000 critical acres in the Mississippi River Basin, North America’s Amazon. This commitment will serve as the launch point of a larger, 15-year commitment to restore 1 million acres in the basin’s important southern region, the Mississippi Alluvial Valley. 

“The Earth’s critical ecosystems are being degraded and destroyed at an alarming rate. These are the same ecosystems which support our economy, society and life itself. Time is ticking: there is no longer a need, but a requirement to restore these ecosystems and the communities they impact,” said P.J. Marshall, Co-Founder of Restore the Earth. 

REF’s approach extends the benefits of forest restoration beyond the immediate beneficiaries to neighboring communities and the nation. Reforestation of 1 million acres in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley will reduce the U.S. climate footprint by 2 percent, while generating significant social and economic benefits, which include improved air/water quality, increased biodiversity, aggregate offsets, and the mitigation of contaminants reaching the Gulf of Mexico. Reforestation also increases economic opportunities for job training and creation in the region.

Restore the Earth will work with partners Global Impact, the Lower Mississippi Valley Joint Venture (LMVJV) with technical support from the Business for Social Responsibility (BSR) Ecosystem Services Working Group to accomplish this commitment.

“We are thrilled to announce our Commitment to Action to incorporating our model for large-scale environmental restoration grounded in market-based approaches that can be scaled and replicated internationally,” P.J. Marshall said.

About the Clinton Global Initiative
Established in 2005 by President Bill Clinton, the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), an initiative of the Clinton Foundation, convenes global leaders to create and implement solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges. CGI Annual Meetings have brought together more than 180 heads of state, 20 Nobel Prize laureates, and hundreds of leading CEOs, heads of foundations and NGOs, major philanthropists, and members of the media. To date, members of the CGI community have made more than 2,900 commitments, which are already improving the lives of more than 430 million people in over 180 countries.

CGI also convenes CGI America, a meeting focused on collaborative solutions to economic recovery in the United States, and CGI University (CGI U), which brings together undergraduate and graduate students to address pressing challenges in their community or around the world. For more information, visit clintonglobalinitiative.org and follow us on Twitter @ClintonGlobal and Facebook at facebook.com/clintonglobalinitiative.  

About Restore the Earth Foundation
Restore the Earth Foundation (REF) is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit, founded in 2010. REF’s mission is to restore the Earth's essential forest ecosystems. REF provides the only proven, large-scale forest ecosystem restoration solution in the US that delivers a combination of environmental, social and economic returns verified by a leading third-party social return on investment (SROI) impact accounting firm.

REF's leadership has 50+ years of management experience in real estate and land development, business development, corporate sponsorship, marketing communications and community organizing. REF’s leaders have had executive responsibility for land development and real estate assets in North America exceeding more than $6 billion in value. The team has collectively raised more than $50 million in charitable donations to support community based organizations and initiatives.

For more information, visit restoretheearth.org and follow us on Twitter @REF_Restores and Facebook at facebook.com/restoretheearthfoundation

Restore the Earth Foundation

Restore the Earth Foundation

Restore the Earth Foundation’s mission is to restore the Earth’s essential forest ecosystems. We envision the Earth in balance—its original vitality and natural abundance available to all for generations to come. We employ the only large-scale forest restoration solution with environmental, social, and economic returns verified by a leading third-party impact accounting firm. Since 2010, Restore the Earth Foundation has focused its efforts in the Mississippi River Basin.

We accomplish our mission through a network of collaborative partners who believe in our approach to large-scale forest restoration, including key governmental agencies, corporate partners, NGOs, donors, and investors.

If you share our vision of the Earth in balance, we invite you to examine our strategy more closely; meet our team and partners; learn more about our science-based growing techniques, fund-based business model, and monitoring and reporting systems.

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