Most of us are fortunate enough to go about our day eating exactly the foods we want, when we want. Or, we vacation among palm trees, pine trees . . . taking our pick. However, disturbing news about the decline of our planet continues to change the way we think, eat and travel, regularly forcing us to carefully consider and question every aspect the Earth’s health and ours.
From the state of the rainforest to the devastating effects of Fukushima to the plight of bees, we’re a world on edge. Trees are being wiped out, radiation is entering our food supply and as far as bees are concerned, studies and some leaked documents have shown show that pesticides known to be lethal to bees have been used. This plays a huge role in the demise of their population and in turn, destroys our food supply, its quality and our trust in big agencies claiming to have our health top of mind.
While we can’t be everywhere at once, we can do our part to help the planet by donating to charities. Now before you run the other way with thoughts of fake scams (remember the “I need $10 mil to save Vilcabamba?” scam?) stay tuned. We’ve compiled a list for you . . . with a twist.
While they are certainly legit and doing more than their share to help the planet, they are lesser-known groups and organizations. No mainstream names here. No mega organizations that already have absurd amounts of money and dozens of celebrity endorsements. We’re talking about the smaller ones that deserve our attention and recognition too, because their tireless efforts to help preserve the splendor of this Earth are smart, promising and inspiring.
The ones we found have secure payment methods in place. Better yet, they’re in good standing with places like the Better Business Bureau, have high ratings from Charity Navigator, which assesses the accountability of certain charities, or have a large community following that reinforces their levels of commitment.
Top 10 Organizations Dedicated to Saving the Planet
1. Urine Recycling, or “Pee-Cycling.” That’s Right, “pee-cycling.”
Cute pun aside, it’s a real process, all in the name of creating better fertilization methods, improving agriculture and making waterways safer. It’s the first project (and legally authorized in the United States by the way) of its kind for the Rich Earth Institute, where over 150 volunteers in the Brattleboro, Vermont area are involved in the concept of nutrient recycling.
Bottom line is Americans produce 30 billion gallons of urine annually, which contains significant amounts of fertilizers. Yet, this is flushed away. So in addition to releasing pollutants into waterways, a natural fertilization method is overlooked and instead, synthetic fertilizers are used. The Rich Earth Institute’s goal is to recycle urine to improve the quality of our waterways and bypass the need for costly fertilizers that are often harmful for our bodies and the Earth.
Donate here: http://richearthinstitute.org/?page_id=849
2. Trees, Water & People (TWP)
TWP focuses on the protection, conservation and management of natural resources so Native American communities can thrive. From providing ways to grow nutritious foods to creating composting toilets, TWP works throughout Latin America and on Native American reservations to improve the quality of the environment. They have locations throughout the United States as well as Haiti and Guatemala to name just a few.
Donate here: https://www.givedirect.org/give/givefrm.asp?CID=712
3. Planet Rehab
This non-profit organization was founded by Gary Mitchell, a man from San Dimas, California who set out on a mission to give this planet a desperately needed overhaul. He continues to educate others, leading tours, engaging in hands-on activities and even participating in peaceful demonstrations to save the planet.
From restoring the Monarch butterfly population to involvement in upcycling projects, Planet Rehab aims to protect the Earth from natural resource depletion. It’s focus in on the inter-connectedness between humans, plants and animals.
Donate here: http://www.planetrehab.org/
4. Beyond Pesticides (formerly National Coalition Against the Misuse of Pesticides)
This group has its eyes on freeing the world of toxic pesticides. They identify hazards, and then provide safe alternatives, always encouraging local action and discussion about this matter. Protection of air, water, land and food through the removal and assessment of toxic pesticides is their goal.
Donate here: https://org2.salsalabs.com/
5. Archangel Ancient Tree Archive
Their web site conveys their mission in a nutshell: “Propagate the world’s most important old growth trees before they are gone. Archive the genetics of ancient trees in living libraries around the world for the future. Reforest the Earth with the offspring of these trees to provide the myriad of beneficial ecosystem services essential for all life forms to thrive including releasing oxygen, sequestering carbon dioxide, providing beneficial aerosols and medicines: essentially a global warming solution.”
The non-profit, Michigan-based organization seeks to replace trees to restore the environment but they note that because they are small and not fully funded, they are thankful for donations.
Donate here: http://www.ancienttreearchive.org/donate/
6. American Rivers
American Rivers is dedicated to the protection and restoration of wild rivers as well as conserving clean water. Since the early 1970s, American Rivers has helped 150,000 miles of rivers thanks to their advocacy groups, numerous projects and annual events.
Donate here: http://www.americanrivers.org/support-our-work/
7. Forget the Bag!
The United States uses 60,000 plastic bags every five seconds. We don’t need to be a mathematician to know that’s a lot of bags annually. That’s not only costly for retailers, but because it takes up to 1,000 years to degrade, it’s also costing our planet.
Forget the Bag! Rewards Program is based in New York and designed to help retailers cut their costs by rewarding customers who use their own bags. Helping this group jump-start their Manhattan pilot program will help them generate local awareness about this problem, foster community relationships and discourage others to stop using plastic bags.
Donate here: https://ioby.org/project/forget-bag-rewards-program
8. Help with Honeybee Research
Founded by a cancer survivor, Honeydrop is a maker of juices and teas (all natural ingredients) that are sweetened with honey. Donations collected by Honeydrop support honeybee research at the University of California, Davis. Additionally, their Buy a Bottle – Save a Bee initiative was developed to help the fight against Colony Collapse Disorder and support local beekeeping on a nationwide basis.
Donate here: http://www.honeydrop.com/savethebees/
9. Wild Animals & Humans Together
African Wildlife Foundation is dedicated to promoting tourism while protecting wildlife, focusing on the fact that it’s possible for wild animals and humans to co-exist in harmony. Wildlife conservation is key for this group, which is also dedicated to elephant poaching prevention and protection of other animals including lions, cheetahs, giraffes and other African wildlife.
Donate here: http://www.awf.org/donate
10. Farmers Markets & Vegetable Plant Boxes for a Better Earth
What initially started as a rebuilding effort stemming from the effects of Hurricane Sandy has turned into a community initiative to create a sustainable environment. Smallwater Community Center & Garden is based out of Queens, New York and is dedicated to turning empty spaces to ones filled with apple trees, vegetable plant boxes and weekly farmer’s markets.
Donate here: https://ioby.org/project/smallwater-community-center-and-garden
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Sources for this article include:
- http://www.naturalnews.com/035511_insecticide_bees_collapse.html
- http://www.infowars.com/beware-of-fake-gurus-fake-films-and-fraudulent-donation-scams/
- http://www.treeswaterpeople.org/programs/programs.html
- http://www.bbb.org/charity-reviews/national/environment/trees-water-and-people-in-fort-collins-co-1150/tax-status
- http://www.charitynavigator.org/
- http://www.beyondpesticides.org/
- http://www.americanrivers.org/about/
- http://www.honeydrop.com/savethebees/
- http://www.awf.org/economic/conservation-tourism
- http://onepercentfortheplanet.org/2011/11/1-named-among-30-best-environmental-non-profits-by-outside-magazine/
- https://ioby.org/project/smallwater-community-center-and-garden
- http://richearthinstitute.org/
- https://ioby.org/project/forget-bag-rewards-program
- http://www.ancienttreearchive.org/
- http://planetrehab.org/
- http://www.dailybulletin.com/environment-and-nature/20131017/san-dimas-man-dedicated-to-saving-the-endangered-environment
