Supporting sustainability with the Forktree Project
Supporting sustainability with the Forktree Project
Supporting sustainability with the Forktree Project
As a company who believes in keeping things close to home, Allstate is excited to contribute to the rewilding project on the Fleurieu Peninsula.
At Allstate we have always believed in practical, local solutions for even the most complex of challenges. We’re committed to playing our part in creating a sustainable environment, and so when we heard about the Forktree Project we knew we wanted to get involved.
What is the Forktree Project?
Established in April 2019, the Forktree Project is a charity setup to combat the twin threats of climate change and biodiversity loss.
Their goal? To re-wild a degraded 133-acre former pastoral property in South Australia’s Fleurieu Peninsula back to nature. This involves planting native trees and shrubs on the property to attract native animals, insects and birds, while sequestering tens of thousands of tonnes of carbon.
Tim Jarvis AM, the Forktree Project lead, says “Australia has the highest rate of native species loss in OECD nations and is the most climate-exposed developed country in the world, so it is in our interest to do more. South Australia is already doing a lot of good in renewable energy, but all the renewable energy in the world won’t make up for the habitat lost – we need to do more to restore habitat.”
How Allstate is getting involved
Allstate CEO, Vasili Tsoutouras, values the Forktree Project for their active commitment to restoring local habitats. “We chose Forktree because it is a South Australian organisation. As a proud South Australian family business, everything comes back to where we are, and we ask people to buy from us because we support locals. We want to be as sustainable as we can and have a lot of belief in the Forktree Project because of its direct action through re-wilding and putting things back into the ground.”
Allstate Pest Control has provided the Forktree Project with a number of hand tools, as well as an electric post hole digger which enables the charity to drill holes before planting or putting in posts.
This has enabled Forktree to both plant trees more easily and install protective shelters in their seed orchard to protect seeds from the wind.
Tim recalls that “In my conversations with Vasili, he has a very sustainability-focused outlook on the world, which you wouldn’t necessarily expect from people in his industry.”
How businesses can contribute
To make their vision a reality, the Forktree Project relies on the support of small and medium businesses. Its partners provide everything from technical advice to funds, and Forktree also runs corporate tree planting days where organisations can assist with tree planting. The support that Forktree receives from small and medium-sized businesses is critical for the organisation’s success.
Tim explains – “For organisations whose core business doesn’t involve sustainability-focused activities, being involved with the Forktree project has two aspects. Firstly, it gives them the opportunity to start the conversation about sustainability in their organisation. Secondly, regardless of who you are as an organisation, you can offset carbon by helping plant trees and replace habitat.”
Learn more about Forktree’s work here.
