Wisconsin’s Tree Planting Pledge is Growing Strong
by Bobbie Webster, DNR Division of Forestry
Nearly five years ago, Wisconsin made a bold commitment to plant 75 million trees, including 1 million trees in urban areas, and conserve 125,000 acres of forestland by 2030. You may have heard of the Trillion Tree Pledge, but what is this pledge, and is Wisconsin really going to plant one trillion trees? And how is the Forest Exploration Center contributing to the pledge?
The Trillion Trees Program is part of a global effort to accelerate nature-based solutions to the shifting precipitation and temperature patterns we are experiencing. In January 2020, the US became the first nation to join the Trillion Trees movement when President Trump signed an Executive Order establishing a stakeholder council in the US. Governor Tony Evers was invited to serve on this stakeholder council, led by the non-profit American Forests, and in 2021, Wisconsin became the second state to make a pledge toward the Trillion Trees movement.
Several states, cities, counties, non-profit organizations, and corporations across the US have made pledges toward the Trillion Trees movement. But Wisconsin’s program, led by DNR Division of Forestry, has exceeded expectations and is looked to as a national leader. By Earth Day 2024, progress was strong enough that Governor Evers raised the goal to 100 million trees.
By the end of 2024, more than 42.7 million trees have been planted statewide, including over 300,000 in urban areas, where trees are especially vital for improving air quality, reducing energy costs, managing stormwater, and supporting mental health. The remaining 42.4 million trees have been planted in rural locations such as county, state and national forests, parks, and private forestland. Conservation efforts have been impressive as well. More than 76,000 acres of forestland have been protected, 61% of the 125,000-acre goal.
The Forest Exploration Center is contributing to the pledge, with 10,600 trees planted since 2024!
The FEC’s Climate adaptive planting is part of a Climate-Smart Forestry in Action demonstration, an ongoing education and outreach initiative supported by a grant from the Wisconsin Sustainable Forestry Initiative Implementation Committee. Data collection will help inform public and private forest landowners and forest product businesses of the climate smart forestry strategies that work best now, and in the future.
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As part of the pledge, Wisconsin DNR, together with our partners, is committed to several important supporting actions that build a stronger foundation for healthy forests, economies, and socio-cultural impacts of forests. Just a few of these actions include:
Sustainable Forestry
DNR manages over 1.5 million acres of state land under rigorous independent forestry certification standards and administers programs verifying over six million acres of county and private lands under various certification standards.Environmental Education
Wisconsin supplies annual funding for a K-12 forestry education program, known as LEAF, and the Wisconsin school forest program, a network of outdoor classrooms.
The DNR supplies free tree seedlings from the state nursery to fourth-grade classrooms, with over 200,000 distributed since the pledge started.Forest Product Markets and Innovation
The DNR Forest Products Services Program offers technical assistance to businesses interested in implementing sustainable forestry practices. The program also explores and promotes markets for locally-produced wood products that aim to sequester more carbon via wood product utilization, industry growth and sustainable forest management.
Supporting this work is a wide network of partners including state and federal agencies, tribal nations, universities, utilities, non-profit organizations, private landowners, private nurseries, and more. We greatly value the partnership of the Forest Exploration Center in providing education on sustainable forestry and contributing to science on climate-adaptive forestry.
With more trees to be planted and more forestland to be conserved, there are many more opportunities to get involved. The DNR seeks to continually grow the list of partners and highlight the work they do to help achieve the Trillion Trees pledge. One way you can join the pledge is by registering any trees you plant on our statewide survey: www.dnr.wi.gov/tiny/3916. If you have ideas or questions, reach out to the Trillion Trees Program Coordinator here: www.dnr.wi.gov/tiny/1721.
