ReSpek Nature

Offset carbon, restore nature, plant a spekboom
2021 SEED Low Carbon Awards; IKI BMU
Biodiversity
Graaff-Reinet
South Africa

ReSpek Nature’s service is designed to allow a spekboom planting opportunity for any consumer purchase, via pop-up, at ZAR10 or USD 0.65c per tree. Organisations can offset carbon via monthly subscriptions.

Currently the enterprise is financed with a mix of funding from Nahana Foundation and simple-to-use web app which allows customers to offset the carbon of their purchase.

Its customers are tiered: online merchants are first tier. Second tier are customers who use their platforms to shop online. Then, they provide monthly subscription plans for anyone; individuals, families, organisations, corporates who want to offset their own carbon through planting spekboom.

Eco-inclusive Impacts
ReSpek Nature is training the local community in social commitments, education and gender equality. They are empowering equality by prioritising women in leadership roles. With their business activities create jobs for the local community.
  • Employing local staff and training them in social commitments, education and gender equality
  • Prioritising women in leadership roles within the company
  • Planting 10,000 trees which capture 8.5 tonnes of carbon per hectare per year. The planting density means increased carbon capture per hectare, above the standard.
  • Training members of the local community to manage the project
  • Creating new jobs in a community that suffers from poverty

Partners

ReSpek Nature is directly addressing desertification by planting the indigenous spekboom shrub, a high carbon sequester, on denuded, dry land. It will capture carbon, restore the thicket, lock in moisture, promote biodiversity, combat erosion and provide jobs.

Nahana Foundation covers ReSpek Nature’s basic costs, as well as support in communications, branding, marketing and broadcasting.

SANParks brings botanical expertise and occasional resource support, and provides spekboom truncheons (saplings) for the plantation.