Healthy forests for healthy people – expanding our investment in climate action and nature
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AZ Forest
Our reforestation and biodiversity initiative
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What is AZ Forest?
AZ Forest is our global reforestation and biodiversity programme. We aim to plant and monitor 200 million trees across six continents by 2030. Through AZ Forest, we are restoring forests and helping to mitigate the effects of climate change, while protecting biodiversity, strengthening natural ecosystems and building sustainable livelihoods. We are investing $400 million in AZ Forest which supports our Ambition Zero Carbon strategy by removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
Since the programme originally launched in 2020, we have planted over 40 million trees across Australia, Brazil, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Rwanda, the UK and the US.
Co-designed with ecological experts, communities, and governments, AZ Forest projects each have a number of co-benefits including:
- Supporting sustainable livelihoods and human health
- Purifying and cooling the air
- Building local climate resilience
- Restoring and connecting habitats to support species diversity
- Reducing risk of natural disasters, such as floods and landslides
- Protecting and improving local water sources
- Supporting local economic growth
The initiative supports the World Economic Forum’s 1T.org – The Champions for a Trillion Trees’ platform, where we are members of the Corporate Alliance committed to helping conserve, restore and grow one trillion trees by 2030.
Explore our AZ Forest projects
Our current project goals include:
⬤ Australia: 25 million trees
⬤ France: 450 rare oak trees
⬤ Indonesia: 20 million trees
⬤ Local AstraZeneca tree planting initiatives support landscape regeneration but are in addition to our global AZ Forest commitment.
Americas
- In Brazil, we are partnering with Biofílica Ambipar and the Instituto de Pesquisas Ecológicas (IPE) to plant 11 million trees in the West of Sao Paulo to connect remaining fragments of the Atlantic Forest. The reforestation initiative, called “Corridors for Life”, will create important habitats for vulnerable and endangered species, while also providing local employment opportunities, with an estimated 600 new jobs.
- In partnership with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), we are planting and sustaining 1 million trees in the US by the end of 2027. The tree planting effort will contribute to the restoration of water quality and wildlife habits primarily within the Delaware River Watershed, while at the same time combating climate change by increasing carbon storage
Africa
- In Kenya, we aim to plant and maintain up to six million trees, across more than 3,500 hectares of land.
- In central Ghana, we are expanding our existing AZ Forest partnership with the Circular Bioeconomy Alliance (CBA) and iNovaland to plant over six million trees in a community-led project known as a 'Living Lab’.
- In Rwanda, we are collaborating on another another "Living Lab", this time in partnership with CBA, the Albertine Rift Conservation Society (ARCOS) and Reforest'Action. The "MuLaKiLa” agroforestry project aims to plant over 5.8 million trees in 5 years and benefit more than 30,000 farming households – one of the largest forest restoration initiatives in Rwanda.
Europe
- In the UK, one million trees will be planted and maintained by the end of 2025, in partnership with Forestry England and Borders Forest Trust. We will plant 450,000 trees in areas close to our sites in Cambridge and Macclesfield.
- In France, we have replanted 450 rare oak trees lost in the devastating storms of 1990 and 1999 at the Palace of Versailles, bringing life back to the iconic Palace gardens.
Asia
- In Indonesia, we have planted 9 million trees with One Tree Planted and local partner Trees4Trees, in the Citarum River Basin, West Java, by working with small holder farmers to restore the waterway upon which millions of people depend.
- In Meghalaya, India, we aim to plant around 60 million trees, to restore degraded land. The project will focus on a diverse mix of agroforestry species, accelerating landscape restoration and developing sustainable value chains.
Oceania
- As part of our commitment to reforestation in Australia, we have planted over 6 million trees with our partners One Tree Planted and Greening Australia. The project aims to restore degraded land and create habitats for endangered species. The project harnesses local knowledge, providing economic opportunities for Traditional Owners and rural communities through seed collection, planting, and long-term stewardship
Our partners include
Circular Bioeconomy Alliance (Global)
European Forest Institute (Europe)
One Tree Planted (Global)
Greening Australia
Biofílica Ambipar (Brazil)
Instituto de Pesquisas Ecológicas (IPE) (Brazil)
iNovaland (Ghana)
Nature and Development Foundation (Ghana)
Africa Plantation for Sustainable Development (APSD) (Ghana)
Trees for Trees (Indonesia)
Reforest'Action (Rwanda)
ARCOS (Rwanda)
Forestry England (UK)
Borders Forest Trust Scotland (UK)
NFWF (US)
Palace of Versailles (France)
Our AZ Forest Guiding Principles
Our AZ Forest Guiding Principles establish a science-based project framework for sustainable tree planting to support long-term forest health and maximum co-benefits:
- Engaging local stakeholders, including farmers, landowners and communities, to establish shared goals.
- Monitoring local tree projects for an average of three years and all large-scale projects for at least ten years, to ensure survival.
- Selecting diverse, locally appropriate tree species to maximise climate resilience, biodiversity benefits and reduce risks from pests and diseases.
- Assessing potential projects risks, developing a mitigation plan, and ensuring there is a long-term strategy to protect the area and trees.
- Considering land ownership and ensuring project objectives fit the local socioeconomic context. N.B. AstraZeneca does not purchase land for reforestation.
- Designing projects to yield positive social, economic, and environmental benefits, while assessing and mitigating any potential negative impacts.
- Adhering to local and national regulations; and seeking to complement policy goals and initiatives where possible.
- Monitoring and reporting metrics from AZ Forest projects, including number of trees planted and surviving, species planted, as well as community and biodiversity impacts.
CBA Principles for Landscape Restoration
Alongside our AZ Forest Principles, thorough due diligence addresses local risk and opportunity contexts. As project scale and ambition grow, so do our assessments.
We've partnered with the European Forest Institute (EFI) and the Circular Bioeconomy Alliance (CBA) to create the CBA Principles for Landscape Restoration—a framework for sustainable, resilient, and locally suitable landscapes and bioeconomy value chains. This framework, has been adopted by the CBA for its “Living Labs for Nature, People and Planet,” to be applied across its global network of landscape restoration projects.
Our projects in Brazil, India, Rwanda, Kenya and Ghana have undergone a robust science-based third party assessment and we are working with partners to adopt the CBA principles. These Principles will guide all new AZ Forest projects (excludes pre-existing projects established prior to 2023).