Ever thought nothing good can happen when your alarm goes off in the morning? Well, there鈥檚 now an app that will plant a tree if you wake up on time.
鈥淓veryone wakes up to an alarm. This is a way to empower people,鈥� said Adam Sorensen, one of the creators of EcoWake.
He continued that planting trees is one of the most effective ways to combat climate change.
鈥淚 want there to be a world for my children.鈥�
| Founders Adam Sorensen and Jesse Teron. (Submitted) |
How the app works is every time the user wakes up on time, they earn virtual seeds that turn into real trees planted by global organizations, such as Eden Reforestation Projects. is a non-profit whose mission according to their website is to provide fair wages to impoverished villagers.
鈥淲e hire the poorest of the poor to grow, plant, and guard to maturity native species forest on a massive scale,鈥� states the website. They plant trees in Nepal, Madagascar, Haiti, Indonesia, Mozambique and Kenya.
EcoWake offers two types of memberships: one is free and the other is $5 per month. The free version plants one tree per month and the paid subscription will plant up to to 10 trees per month.
The idea for the alarm came from Jesse Teron, the other owner, while he was on a 10 day silence retreat near Merritt, B.C. At the retreat, there was no talking, writing, reading, exercise or eye contact. Just meditating, eating, sleeping and the occasional stroll. By day eight, while on a walk, Teron said he had a revelation.
鈥淥ne tree in particular caught my attention and in that moment, I became one with the tree. And in that, I realized that humans are one with the entire planet, we are not separate. And if that planet isn鈥檛 healthy, then we aren鈥檛 healthy. That鈥檚 when I knew I had to do something.鈥�
At the retreat, people would wake up to a gong. Later while meditating, Teron had an image of a tree beside a gong.
鈥淎nd that鈥檚 when it hit me. Unite people by having them wake up for the planet.鈥�
According to the , in the past 25 years alone, the world鈥檚 forests have shrunk 1.3 million square km, which is larger than South Africa.
Yet, there are more trees on earth than stars in the Milky Way.
EcoWake was launched earlier this month. To turn off the alarm, user must answer a question, such as what are you grateful for today? There鈥檚 also no snooze button.
鈥淚t鈥檚 designed to get you moving,鈥� said Adam.
So far, the company said there have been over 1,400 downloads since the launch and almost 3,000 trees have been planted.
The company has a goal of planting 1 billion trees by 2030.
鈥淲e are starting to change the narrative. This is how we can change the world,鈥� Adam said.
Adam and Teron live in Vancouver.
liam.harrap@revelstokereview.com
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