IKEA Plants 3 Millions Trees To Rehabilitate Devastated Rainforest

IKEA has completed the replanting of three million rainforest trees at Luasong in east coast Sabah, Borneo, as part of its efforts to rehabilitate the degraded forest since 1998.

The Swedish furniture retailer's "Sow a Seed Foundation" was initiated by the IKEA Group in 1998 to rehabilitate rainforest devastated by logging and forest fires in the state of Sabah.

In the initial phase, IKEA customers contributed generously with start-up funding for the project. Since then, the IKEA Group took full responsibility for finishing the project and ensuring planting and maintenance of 18,500 hectares of lowland rainforest.

"Today we are seeing the wildlife returning to the once burned down forest," said Jan Faulk with the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences.

In addition to protecting the reforested area from logging for 50 years, the project has contributed to the building of homes, meeting places for social events, and field accommodations for the more than 150 workers and their families who are involved in the project.

Project highlights include:

- More than 3 million trees have been planted.

- 150 people employed in the nursery and in the field for 20 years.

- Housing, clean water, electricity, and free medical care are provided to all workers.

- A school to improve access to education.

"It is a gift from IKEA. All over the world, they have shops selling furniture. It is only here in Sabah they are doing rehabilitation. There is no revenue back," Faulk said.