New “League of Trees” campaign spotlights nature’s superheroes

Look up – it’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s the branches of one of nature’s mightiest superheroes.

Trees, those climate-change fighting marvels, include stars like the eastern white pine, sugar maple, and bur oak. Together, they form a formidable league of trees numbering 85 billion in Ontario.

While they can’t fly in the air or shoot laser beams, each tree possesses carbon-busting superpowers. In addition to sequestering carbon emissions, trees also produce life-giving oxygen, reduce pollution and smog, provide energy-saving shade, and support biodiversity by serving as home for many animals.

To help expand their numbers, OPG is partnering with LEAF, Nature Conservancy of Canada, and Bruce Trail Conservancy to launch the “League of Trees.” The educational campaign, which kicked off Sept. 19 during National Forest Week, aims to raise awareness of the vital role trees play in the fight against climate change and commits to plant up to 500,000 trees in the province over two years.

Supporters can help grow the League of Trees by using the hashtag #LeagueOfTrees when posting a picture of a tree on social media or sharing the campaign’s video. OPG and its partners will plant a tree each time the hashtag is used or the video is shared.

Tree fans can also visit the League of Trees trail at the Bruce Trail Conservancy’s Splitrock Narrows Nature Reserve in Shelburne from Sept. 20 to Oct. 4. Take a fun, educational walk and meet nature’s superheroes up close while listening along to an audio tour.

Over the years, OPG has planted more than seven million native trees and shrubs, and the company is set to plant millions more in the years ahead. For more information on the League of Trees campaign, visit www.leagueoftrees.com.