How corporate tree
planting works
at CarbonCert.
From purchase to planting to satellite monitoring — a complete guide to how we fund, track, and verify every tree.
How corporate tree planting works
CarbonCert lets UK businesses fund verified reforestation as a one-off purchase or as part of a monthly carbon offsetting subscription. Every tree is allocated to a named, independently audited project. Here's the process from purchase to planting.
You choose how many trees to fund
Purchase any number of trees from 5 to 10,000 at £1 per tree (global projects) or £6 per tree (UK native woodland). There's no subscription required — it's a single payment. Businesses on our monthly employee plans also fund trees automatically each month as part of their subscription.
We allocate your trees to verified projects
Your payment is allocated across our active reforestation portfolio. Each project is registered with an international verification standard — Verra VCS, Gold Standard, or the UK Woodland Code. We select projects based on ecological impact, species diversity, community benefit, and verification rigour. Your certificate names the specific projects your trees are funding.
Trees are planted in the next seasonal window
Trees aren't planted the day you buy them. Reforestation follows seasonal rainfall patterns — planting during the long rains in East Africa (March–May), monsoon season in South Asia, or autumn in the UK maximises survival rates. Your trees are queued for the next available planting window at the allocated site. This is how professional reforestation works — it's the difference between trees that survive and trees that don't.
Planting partners report back with evidence
After each planting window, our partners provide quarterly reports including geo-tagged photographs, GPS coordinates, species planted, tree counts, and survival rate data. For sites with KML boundary data, we map the exact planting area on your dashboard. This isn't a vague "we planted some trees somewhere" — it's auditable, site-level evidence.
Satellite monitoring tracks long-term progress
Every planting site is registered on Restor.eco, a science-backed platform developed by ETH Zurich. Satellite imagery tracks canopy growth, biodiversity indicators, and carbon sequestration over time — giving you and your stakeholders independent, third-party verification that the forest is actually growing.
Where we plant
Our reforestation portfolio spans Africa, Asia, South America, and the United Kingdom. Each region is selected for ecological significance, community impact, and verification rigour.
East Africa
Mangrove restoration in Kenya and Madagascar. Coastal ecosystems that sequester carbon 3–5× faster than terrestrial forests.
South & Southeast Asia
Agroforestry and biogas projects in India. Community-led planting that combines carbon sequestration with sustainable livelihoods.
South America
Amazon reforestation in Peru and Brazil. Restoring degraded cattle ranch land to native tropical forest.
United Kingdom
Native woodland restoration across England, Scotland, and Wales. Rebuilding habitats lost to centuries of deforestation.
Project availability varies by season and funding capacity. The specific projects allocated to your purchase depend on planting window timing, site capacity, and supplier availability. Your certificate always names the exact projects funded. You can browse all active projects on our projects page.
Verification and monitoring
Tree planting without verification is just marketing. Every project in our portfolio is independently audited, registered with an international standard, and monitored by satellite.
Verra VCS
The Verified Carbon Standard is the world's most widely used voluntary carbon standard. Projects must demonstrate additionality, permanence, and measurable carbon sequestration through independent third-party audits.
Visit registryGold Standard
Founded by WWF, Gold Standard requires projects to deliver measurable contributions to the UN Sustainable Development Goals alongside carbon benefits — including community employment, clean water, and biodiversity.
Visit registryUK Woodland Code
The UK's domestic standard for woodland carbon projects. Administered by the Forestry Commission, it requires native species planting, long-term management plans, and transparent carbon accounting.
Visit registrySatellite monitoring via Restor.eco
Beyond standard-level audits, every CarbonCert planting site is registered on Restor.eco — a global ecosystem monitoring platform developed by the Crowther Lab at ETH Zurich. Restor uses satellite imagery and ecological modelling to independently track canopy cover, biodiversity indicators, and carbon stock over time. This means your trees aren't just audited once — they're continuously monitored by a world-leading research institution.
Quarterly partner reporting
Our planting partners provide quarterly reports aligned to local growing seasons. Each report includes tree survival rates, geo-tagged photographs of the planting site, species breakdowns, and any replanting activity. For sites with KML boundary data, we map the exact planting perimeter on your dashboard alongside Leaflet-rendered polygons showing precisely where your funded trees are growing.
What you receive
What's included depends on whether you buy trees as a one-off or as part of a monthly subscription plan.
One-Off Purchase
Subscription Plan
Everything above, plus:If you start with a one-off tree purchase and later upgrade to a subscription, your existing trees carry over — they'll appear on your verification page and dashboard alongside your subscription impact.
Our planting partners
We don't plant trees ourselves. We fund specialist organisations who have the local knowledge, nursery infrastructure, and community relationships to do it properly.
Eden Reforestation Projects (Eden: People+Planet)
Our primary global partner. Eden operates in 10+ countries across Africa, Asia, and the Americas, employing local communities to grow and plant native species. Their "employ to plant" model means every tree creates direct economic impact — funding wages, nurseries, and community infrastructure in some of the world's most marginalised regions. Eden provides monthly aggregated planting reports and site-level data.
Handles: ~90% of global tree allocationTrees for Kenya
A direct partnership with Kenyan planting teams led by Paulino Mugendi Damiano. Trees for Kenya provides the highest traceability in our portfolio — KML boundary files for every planting site, geo-tagged monitoring photographs, quarterly survival rate reports, and species-level planting data. Sites are registered on Restor.eco for independent satellite verification.
Handles: ~10% of global allocation, 100% of Kenya-specific ordersUK Woodland Partners
UK native woodland restoration is fulfilled through Eden's UK programme and direct partnerships with landowners registered under the UK Woodland Carbon Code. All UK planting uses locally sourced native species — oak, birch, rowan, Scots pine, and hazel — and follows Forestry Commission guidelines for long-term woodland establishment.
Handles: All UK tree planting ordersHow we choose partners
Every planting partner must meet our due diligence criteria before any trees are funded through their programme:
Offsetting neutralises. Reforesting restores.
Carbon offsetting and tree planting are complementary strategies, but they work differently. Understanding the distinction matters for making credible environmental claims.
Carbon Offsetting
Purchasing verified carbon credits that represent a tonne of CO₂ avoided or removed elsewhere. Credits are permanently retired on a public registry in your name.
Reforestation
Funding the physical planting of trees that sequester carbon over their lifetime while restoring ecosystems, supporting biodiversity, and creating community livelihoods.
CarbonCert subscription plans combine both approaches — verified carbon credits for immediate neutralisation, plus real tree planting for long-term restoration. This hybrid model is increasingly recognised as best practice by environmental bodies and procurement teams.
Tree planting alone does not make a business carbon neutral. Trees take years to sequester meaningful carbon, and the amount absorbed varies by species, climate, and survival rates. For a credible net zero claim, businesses need verified carbon credits retired on a recognised registry. Our subscription plans provide both; our one-off tree purchases provide the reforestation component.
Common Questions
Ready to start planting?
Fund verified reforestation from £1 per tree, or go further with a subscription that adds carbon offsetting, an ISO certificate, and a public verification page.