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<h1>2013 Campaign</h1>
<strong>What is “Trees for You &amp; Me”?</strong>
Trees for You &amp; Me is a friendly competition launched by former PBI Field Ambassadors as a financial campaign to fund tree-planting. This year, the effort has a local focus. Rather than Polar Bears International® gathering the funds for a large tree planting with our partner, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources-Forestry Division, we believe this year is a good year to draw attention to the benefits of urban tree-planting and the associated educational programming and awareness such events create.
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<strong>What is the “local effort”?</strong>
Planting trees in urban areas has distinct benefits, but most important is bringing the community together through engagement. Community engagement—citizens working collaboratively, through inspired action and learning, to create and realize bold visions for their common future, is a critical step in creating a movement to stop our dependence upon fossil fuels and stop global warming.

<strong>How will the campaign work?</strong>
Trees for You &amp; Me is still a campaign to raise financial resources to plant trees.
• The funding raised will stay in your local community, with your own insititution.
• The funds must be spent on a tree-planting (or appropriate greening effort) and educational event to invite others to join you in additional conservation behaviors.
• The effort should coordinate with Acres with the Atmosphere or it can be part of an international tree planting effort associated with another conservation program.
• And finally, that effort should be shared with others through <a href="http://www.polarbearsinternational.org/myplanetmypart">PBI’s My Planet, My Part</a>.
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<strong>When will Trees For You &amp; Me start? </strong>
The campaign will begin January 1, 2013.

<span style="font-weight: bold;">When will Trees For You &amp; Me end?</span>
The campaign will end midnight, PST on March 1, 2013.

<span style="font-weight: bold;">How can chapters raise and gather campaign funds?</span>
Each AAZK chapter can determine the way they want to raise money. Projects in the past have included bake sales, polar plunges, miniature golf events, garage sales, silent auctions, fun runs, spaghetti dinners, car washes, recycling programs, and more. The actual cash handling procedures will be the same you follow for other campaigns for your Chapter at your institution and reporting to AAZK similarly to Bowling for Rhinos in the re-charter packet.

<strong>How will the winners be awarded and announced?</strong>
We invite teams to report the amount of funds raised to PBI on January 31, February 16 and March 2. PBI will report on the status of the different chapters by sharing a website with updates at the half- way point and at the end. AAZK will report on the status of the different chapters on its website and through social media. PBI will provide $25 towards the purchase of a bush for the team leading the charge at the half-way point on Febrauary 15, 2013.  PBI will give a $100 prize to the winning chapter to plant a tree. (A plaque is up to the institution.)
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<strong>What are the prizes?</strong>
First place is awarded to the team with the most funds reported to PBI on March 2, 2013, that were donated by Midnight MST March 1, 2013. The team receives a tree to plant in a public location that is a native species to that area with a purchase value from a commercial nursery of no more than $100. A challenge prize is awarded to the team with highest amount of funds reported to PBI by February 16, 2013, that were donated by Midnight MST February 15, 2013. The team receives a bush to plant in a public location that is a native species to that area with a purchase value from a commercial nursery of no more than $25.
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<strong>How do I start?</strong>
1.  Find a group and become a champion
2.  Make plan for events and strategies to raise the funds over the course of the two months.
3.  Define roles and responsibilities including confirming procedures for handling donations for your chapter and Institution and who will report to AAZK and PBI during the course of the campaign.
4. Good luck on your efforts.
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<strong>How will reporting work?</strong>
Each participating AAZK chapter is responsible for following AAZK National’s requirements for reporting on funds raised for conservation in the re-chartering packet.
PBI requires that each AAZK Chapter report about the planting activity with a photo and description on PBI's new community, <a href="http://www.polarbearsinternational.org/myplanetmypart">My Planet, My Part</a>. Acres for the Atmosphere projects or donations to tropical forests planting should be completed within six months of the campaign fundraiser close. (Reports to My Planet, My Part would occur between April-November, 2013.)
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<strong>What is an example of an  Acres for the Atmosphere project?</strong>
The Acres program involves tree planting, learning, and FUN! Participants plant trees in local communities and also help educate the public about the benefits of tree planting to counteract a warming climate. For more information, contact Heather or Marissa at  <a href="mailto:Acres@pbears.org">Acres@pbears.org</a>.
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<strong>What is an example of an urban tree planting?</strong>
<em>City of Sparta, Wisconsin</em>
The primary goal of this project is to plant a diverse mixture of 1.5" caliper saplings before Emerald Ash Borer infestations destroy the city’s tree canopy. This project has a strong educational component. The proposal includes working with the local school's Earth Club, the county extension office, and Master Gardeners. City residents and homeowners plan to be engaged in watering and mulching the project trees adjacent to their homes. The hope is this will inspire individuals to plant additional trees on their own personal property. The community is willing to develop and place signage in their city parks highlighting the donor.
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<strong>What other projects are eligible for tree planting?</strong>
Your Chapter or Institution may participate in other conservation programs where tree planting is an important component, no matter the taxon, saving tropical forest habitat impacts species and global climate change.
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<strong>How Does  Planting Trees Help Polar Bears?</strong>
Trees act as “carbon sinks” that absorb CO2 from the air. They store this carbon in roots, trunks, stems, and leaves while they grow and in wood products after they're harvested. Reducing the build-up of carbon in the atmosphere is necessary to reverse climate change. Polar bears depend on the sea ice to hunt, breed, and in some cases to den. Less carbon in the atmosphere means better conditions to retain arctic sea ice and improve polar bear habitat and survival. Conservation actions that reduce the production of GHGs are the most impactful efforts to save polar bears. Planting trees in North America is one of the few tools that we have to sequester carbon. For other forestation efforts, saving tropical rainforests is even more impactful for sequestering CO2. As an individual and group you can make difference:
<div style="padding-left: 30px;">• Don’t buy products with palm oil</div>
<div style="padding-left: 30px;">• Purchase shade-grown coffee</div>
<div style="padding-left: 30px;">• Purchase local meat rather than meat produced in deforested tropical rain forests</div>