The current economic crunch has left the public with fewer discretionary dollars to donate and has severely limited government funding for nonprofit organizations. No strangers to fundraising, some nonprofits are getting creative and have found a new way to raise money for their organizations while at the same time helping to reforest land on the Big Island's Hamakua Coast with native koa trees.
Organizations like Big Brothers Big Sisters of Hawai'i, the National Kidney Foundation of Hawai'i, Hawaii Healing Hearts and the Kalihi Education Coalition have joined up with Hawaiian Legacy Hardwoods under their Hawaiian Legacy Reforestation Initiative to become Legacy Partners, offering the sponsoring of Koa Legacy Trees to their supporters. The nonprofit organizations are able to raise $20 for every tree planted through their efforts, which simultaneously benefits their organization and restores a native ecosystem in the process. "The Legacy Tree program enables us to further our mission and sustain our mentoring programs and services to help children reach their potential," says Roger Higa, fund development and marketing director for Big Brothers Big Sisters. "A $20 donation pays for the cost of a background check, the first step to making a quality match between a big and a little."
Using a unique tagging method, Hawaiian Legacy Hardwoods is able to assign each tree to an individual sponsor, track its growth and record its maintenance, all through the use of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags and GPS technologies. The nonprofit can give each sponsor a certificate of planting complete with the GPS coordinates and specific RFID tag number of each tree sponsored. The 1,000-acre reforestation effort also includes fencing to keep pigs and cows out of the conservation area.
Through their Legacy Partners, Hawaiian Legacy Hardwoods is also donating $1 from every Legacy Tree to the Nature Conservancy of Hawaii. "Hawaiian Legacy Hardwoods has developed a very effective, efficient and economic method to encourage the reforestation of our Hawaiian koa forests," says John Henshaw, director of land protection and conservation partnerships for the Nature Conservancy of Hawaii. "This model is a resource for sustaining our Islands and our communities."