The Word Forest Organisation is a small international reforestation and education charity. Our primary mission is to mitigate climate chaos by planting fast growing trees in the tropics and by providing a raft of support for the amazing people who tend the trees.

We were not set up to be a lobbying organisation, however, we believe everyone and every business has a moral imperative to encourage people to lean towards the green in a variety of ways for the greater good of our planet.

If a significant portion of humankind did just that, our charity could look forward to closing because it wouldn’t be needed anymore.

We endeavour to evoke positive change in a variety of ways, these include:

• through inspirational media created by our Editorial Team and featured on our news feed
• via media outlets who feature the work of our charity and our Team
• during our own and other people’s events, talks, panels and discussions

Our founders Tracey and Simon West, many of our Core Team and some of our volunteers live plant-based lives. Many of them also take sustainable living very seriously. They care deeply about the planet and its health and wellbeing. Their broader lifestyle choices reflect these standpoints. Many of their environmental choices are centred around a love for our planet and that has permeated the very foundations our charity was built on.

As we continue to evolve as a charity, so will our ethical stance on a wide range of environmental and humanitarian issues. We expect this list will continue to grow as we do. You might like to bookmark this page for updates, inspiration and even more good reasons to support us.

None of the things in our list below are secret. Perhaps the reason we’ve attracted so many planet-loving, like-minded supporters is because we move in similar circles and they know our Team talk the talk and walk the walk too.

We feel it’s time to make a public statement about our moral compass in the hope it inspires others to investigate areas that can relieve the pressure on our planet and reduce the demand upon it for resources.

We hope you’ll grab the baton and research areas that might feel a little challenging at first. Making well informed, scientifically supported, Earth-friendly choices in your personal life, your educational spaces and your businesses, will only go on to make our world a nicer place to live.

We know which way our moral compass is pointing and we’re happy to revisit it, particularly when things pop up in the news and prompt us.

We are environmental optimists, it’s our default position!

1. We only serve plant-based food and refreshments at events and in our office
2. We use 100% recycled paper
3. We support ongoing learning both in the UK and Kenya, for our staff, volunteers and supporters
4. We have a fully accessible office
5. We do not run direct marketing mail out campaigns
6. The printing of our Annual Report and Accounts is fully funded by advertising from our Corporate Partners, not paid for by our donors
7. Our fundraising merchandise comes from organisations with strong ethical and environmental policies for their staff and the products they make
8. Our fundraising apparel is 100% organic cotton and vegan friendly
9. We use vegan cleaning products in our office
10. We do not support trophy hunting
11. We do not use online gambling or lotteries to raise funds
12. We fully support equality, diversity and inclusion
13. Our rates of pay in Kenya are the same for men and women
14. The rates of pay in Kenya bring them in line with top 25% of workers for the country
15. Our rates of pay in the UK are £10 per hour for our staff, regardless of their job role
16. Our UK rate of pay will only ever rise to twice the real living wage, this is written into our constitution
17. We endeavour to keep our operating and core costs within 20% of our income
18. We’re cognisant of eco-anxiety and we actively try to mitigate it, internally and externally
19. We use local, eco-friendly suppliers for printing and general consumables
20. We actively and proudly reduce, reuse and recycle
21. We do not discriminate against volunteers or Corporate Partners who do not live a plant-based life, however, we endeavour to raise awareness of the global benefits of embracing one
22. We endeavour to make our news feed articles accessible
23. Our charity is proud to operate with full transparency
24. We are happily registered with the Fundraising Regulator