Our joint contribution to sustainable development
“A dream you dream alone is just a dream. A dream you have together is a reality”. – JST partners can convince themselves of the truth of these words by artist and peace activist Yoko Ono on a virtual trip to Madagascar. Together with its customers, the JST team has created a corporate forest on the fourth largest island in the world. But that’s not all: We are continuing our commitment! By planting socio-ecological trees in various initiatives in the southern hemisphere, we want to take a decisive step closer to our major goal. In this way, we are making our contribution to the green revolution that the blue planet so urgently needs.
Saplings waiting for new owners in the nursery
The idea is as simple as it is effective. Every customer who purchases one of the high-quality Stratos X11® control consoles from Jungmann automatically becomes the sponsor of a tree. A small company forest has already been created in Madagascar. How it works: JST has already acquired the tender saplings in advance. In the first few months, they were still well protected in a tree nursery. Later, the young trees were planted and cared for by local smallholders. In this way, a sustainable forestry project was created step by step.
Live with geotagging and interactive world map
The example of Madagascar illustrates exactly how our sustainability programs work: All tree sponsors received an individual code that they could enter on the website of our project partner Treedom. This led them directly to “their” tree, so to speak.
With the many Stratos X11® desks sold, a small forest was quickly created in this way. Each individual tree can be tracked on an interactive world map using geotagging. You can even watch your own tree grow by taking photos. If you like, you can also give your protégé its own name.
Projects offer real benefits for people and nature
On the path to greater sustainability, the various JST agroforestry initiatives include both forest and fruit tree species. These not only absorb CO2 from the atmosphere, they also provide a habitat for rare animal species.
In this way, we are jointly helping to promote species diversity and biodiversity in many regions of the southern hemisphere. We also support local people with our campaigns. They look after the trees and also benefit from the harvest periods.
In this way, new job prospects and alternative income opportunities are created.
Previously uncultivated land, today a living forest
Last but not least, soil erosion and desertification are actively combated.
This is best illustrated by the existing project in Madagascar: “Seeing a forest grow where there was previously uncultivated land is perhaps one of the greatest satisfactions I have experienced in my life”, says Nicola Gando, project manager in Madagascar, summing up the wonderful benefits of the initiative.
The world is a big place. Our planet has many regions where socio-ecological tree planting campaigns support local communities. So we are continuing our “one tree for every Stratos desk” project – with plantings in Nepal, Kenya, Tanzania, Ecuador, Colombia…
Sustainability as a "real affair of the heart"
The impetus behind the idea of a JST corporate forest is consultant Dirk Lüders, who would like to bring the topic of “sustainability” into focus with this initiative.
“We only have one world. And we borrowed it from our children,” says the father of a little son and daughter. For Dirk Lüders, one thing is certain: “We use nature’s raw materials. Therefore, it is a real matter of the heart for me to give something back to nature.” He is supported in this by his colleagues.
Every new Stratos console in a European control room is now celebrated by the JST crew in thought of a new tree in the global South, so to speak. “We are committed to reducing our ecological footprint together,” says Dirk Lüders, “and we do so out of deep conviction.”
Success through the fusion of digital and real worlds
More than 3.7 million trees have already been planted in the global South since Treedom was founded in 2010. People from all over the world plant a tree remotely and follow its story online.
Merging the real and digital worlds under the hashtag #Let’sGreenThePlanet has helped more than 200,000 small farmers in a total of 16 countries so far.
CO2 storage and reforestation, promotion of biodiversity, and combating soil erosion are among the Treedom goals, as are direct financing of small farmers and agricultural cooperatives, and new job prospects and alternative income opportunities for the local population.
Thanks to this innovative social business model, Treedom has been one of the “Certified B Corporations” since 2014, a network of companies that stand out for their high environmental and social performance.
