Digital drive supports planting of millions of trees

China's private-sector, internet-based afforestation efforts have reached a massive scale milestone, demonstrating how gamified digital incentives have been successfully integrated into the country's broader national ecological strategies.

Since 2017, under a partnership between tree planting initiative Ant Forest and the China Green Foundation, 386 million trees have been planted across about 440 projects spanning seven provincial-level regions, including Gansu and Qinghai provinces and the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, said Zhang Quanzhou, the foundation's secretary general.

According to Zhang, the partnership saw more than 200,000 hectares of desertified land treated in that time, with about 90 percent of it located in key areas of the country's Three-North Shelterbelt Forest Program, which is the world's largest afforestation endeavor.

"This program has transformed the 'green energy' of hundreds of millions of netizens into tangible ecological outcomes," he said.

Ant Forest was launched in August 2016 by internet financial services firm Ant Financial, an affiliate of Alibaba Group.

The app rewards users with virtual energy — which they can use to have trees planted — when they take low-carbon actions such as walking or using public transport instead of driving, or buying things online, which avoids the need for paper receipts.

The amount of energy needed to plant different trees varies. After receiving an application from an app user who has saved enough energy, Ant Forest will plant a real tree.

To ensure that digital goodwill translates into lasting ecological impact, Zhang said the foundation has built a long-term mechanism for public participation.

In collaboration with the National Greening Committee, it launched a nationwide online platform that allows citizens to adopt, monitor and track tree growth via their mobile phones, making voluntary tree-planting a year-round, regular activity.

Zhang also said that the foundation has established a clear responsibility chain, supported by technologies such as satellite remote sensing, third-party inspections and digital oversight.

Moreover, a collaborative governance model has taken shape in the country, featuring government guidance, corporate donations, public participation, foundation execution, and oversight by forestry and grassland authorities, he added.

A recent commentary in the journal Nature said that Ant Forest is an example of how digital incentives can be used to inspire the public and generate funding.

Since its launch, the gamified initiative with more than 500 million users has funded more than 619 million drought-resistant trees and shrubs, the article said.

Li Meng, a 28-year-old map data collector and dedicated Ant Forest user, embodies the power of digital incentives to drive lasting behavioral change. To date, Li has planted 1,120 trees across Ant Forest's forested areas since October 20, 2016.

His motivation is deeply rooted in a sense of shared responsibility.

"Western China has a sparse population yet silently protects the ecological environment of the eastern region," he said. "Whether we live in the east or the west, everyone should consciously protect the environment."

When personally participating in a tree planting activity in Alxa League in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, Li observed saplings at different growth stages — from newly planted seedlings to mature, thickening saxaul trees.

"It's like the development of public welfare: gradual, persistent and built on dedicated effort," he said. "It will slowly grow stronger, better and better."

Contact the writers at houliqiang@chinadaily.com.cn