From reading about the company at the
http://www.heiferfoundation.org/ site and
Wikipedia entry, this organization sounds like the real deal.
A bit from Wikipedia:
Heifer International is a non-profit charitable organization based in Little Rock, Arkansas, dedicated to relieving global hunger and poverty. It provides gifts of livestock and plants, as well as education in sustainable agriculture, to financially-disadvantaged families around the world. ...
Awards
Heifer International received the 2004 Hilton Humanitarian Prize for its efforts to eliminate hunger and help communities become self-sustaining. It was the first US-based organization to win the $1 million award since 1997.
Accountability standards
A 2005 report by the Better Business Bureau's Wise Giving Alliance (WGA) found that Heifer International met all of its standards for charity accountability. The WGA found that Heifer International is truthful in its representations of how money is spent, does not allocate an excessive part of its budget for fundraising or administrative expenses and makes its financial statements readily available to the public.
The American Institute of Philanthropy gave Heifer International an "Open Book Credit" for making complete financial documentation available on request.Okay, I'm impressed. There are a lot of charitable organizations out there which don't come close to this level of accountability. It sounds like a good organization addressing a worthy cause.
More trees are always a good thing, and this is an easy way to get them planted all over the world. The $60 price tag might be steep for some, but it's not hard to pool that amount if people really wanted to do it. 500 trees in the ground for $60 is nothing to sneeze at.
Global warming won't be stopped with one magic pill. Strategies for changing the way we live and the fuels we use are at the forefront, of course, but Porcupine is right:
Each little tree might sequester, optimistically, a few hundred pounds. It's a math problem.There's another nonprofit out there planting trees called
The Fruit Tree Planting Foundation which people might want to look into.
Nice idea, pathansen. Every litte bit helps.
ETA: I understand the concerns people have raised about some of Heifer's policies and/or the desire not to be involved with encouraging meat and dairy diets. But you wouldn't be paying to send someone a goat or a cow, you'd be paying for planted trees. And as suggested, there are other organizations which plant trees if you're that uncomfortable with this particular charity. In the end, the idea to find ways to get more trees planted worldwide is a good one.