It started as a joke!

Six couples, all friends, joking about buying a piece of land in rural Spain (Mula) and reforest this land to compensate for our CO₂ emissions. The idea? To ease our minds before the inevitable day we “board our final flight.”

But the joke got serious.
We set up a foundation with ANBI status, and over the past three years, we’ve planted an incredible number of trees—20,000! This was made possible with the support of Life Terra Foundation and sponsorships from companies and individuals.

A huge round of applause to all our sponsors who made this possible:
Clipper Interall @Stichting Help International Fine Living Curacao @Stichting Kono NNEK Vermogensopbouw Pincvision @Snel Holding, @QA Consulting JobKans, The Telecom Consultancy Company and various private donors.

Was it easy? Absolutely not.
Like any startup, it’s been a journey of trial and error—figuring out what works and what doesn’t when reforesting in semi-arid land. And that’s just one side of it. As a group of friends, we’ve also had to make it work on a personal level. Yet, three years in, we’re succeeding! We still love each other, and without making much noise, companies from our networks are joining in as sponsors. This enables us to plant even more trees.

Do you have plans to start a similar project?
Are you curious about the challenges we’ve faced? Or how we tackled this as a group of friends? We hope to inspire others to take up similar initiatives. If you’d like your company to sponsor us—and perhaps enjoy a taste of farm life, the most delicious tapas for under €25, or even plant trees with us on-site—it’s all possible!

Taking steps towards sustainability together.
It’s achievable. It matters.

Just look at the results after two years (see photo).

Who are we?
We are a group of friends committed to fighting global warming. Not just by donating to a good green cause, but by taking physical action ourselves. For instance, by purchasing land, planting trees, and restoring barren land to vibrant, healthy ecosystems that we can admire and share with others.
In May 2021, through the foundation “Stichting Climates,” we purchased our first plot of around 53 hectares in southern Spain, near Murcia, close to the village of Mula. Our mission? To plant as many trees and shrubs as possible on this largely degraded agricultural land.

Thanks to our “Climates”: Jac Besuijen Danielle Boerendans Maurice G. Stoevenbeld Ruud Smeets Fleur Rutten Fritz Meijaard @Nicolette Coster Nathalie Van Iterson Gé VisserMichiel van Hemert Anne Stoevenbeld