Earth Month Spotlight: Reforesting Communities in the High Andes and Thailand

At MarketAxess we actively seek to build communities through our ESG initiatives and partnerships with organisations that align with our core values. We successfully built our business foundations using this approach, and we firmly believe that communities define our identity and purpose, remaining our North Star. Our Open Trading network is testament to this philosophy and so is the work we do with One Tree Planted.

One Tree Planted has been a fantastic partner for us and shares our ethos for helping different communities flourish around the world. Together, in 2020, we launched Trading for Trees, a global initiative whereby 5 trees are planted for every $1M in green bonds traded on our platform. Since inception, over 1.1M trees have been planted. It’s a program that I deeply care about and one that I know resonates with our client community.

But what does planting 1.1M trees actually mean? I could tell you that last year we restored almost 350 hectares of land, the equivalent of 2.5 Hyde Park’s, but I’d rather tell you some of the stories of the communities you’ve impacted. Your trading of Green Bonds isn’t just about the number of trees planted, it’s about the environmental initiatives you’ve supported. From the heights of the Andes Mountains in South America to the Jungles of Northern Thailand, this Earth Month lets celebrate these stories.

Thailand—Hilltribes Forestry and Agroforestry

In 2022, your trading activity helped plant over 50,000 trees in support of the Hilltribes Agroforestry Project in Northern Thailand. What you may not know is that these trees have deep community benefits; helping not only to reduce poverty and food insecurity by improving crop yields and regenerating the area, but also by empowering marginalised ethnic minorities in Thailand. On the ground, our partner engages with local farmers and provides education that equips them with the tools and knowledge necessary to support sustainable farming practices. The trees you’ve helped plant will help absorb carbon, decrease pollution, and limit erosion in this beautiful area.

By participating in this large-scale project, over 600 families, who call this region home, will benefit from the variety of forest species, including bamboo, rattan, and fish palm trees, that have been planted to restore ecosystems in these subwatersheds. They will enjoy better crop yields over time, as they integrate mixed agroforestry trees on their farms, such as coffee, tea, orange, and mango.

Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador, Peru—High Andes Polylepis Forest

On the other side of the globe, in the High Andes Mountain Region, over 7,000 High Andes Polylepis trees have been planted by your trading activity. The impacts the local Andes community will feel are both far-reaching and long term. Deforestation has historically degraded this critical forest type, which serves as “natural water towers” for all of South America — including the Amazon rainforest. These trees are also vital to the high Andes indigenous population, containing plants the locals use for food and medicines as well as playing a prominent role in their cultural belief systems.

Your trading efforts are not only helping protect a forest whose very survival is threatened but also the cultural identity of the Andes people.

At MarketAxess we know it is a powerful thing to be part of a community. By doing your day job you are serving reforestation initiatives like those in the Andes and Thailand; you are helping plant trees that have far greater impact than you can imagine. By trading Green Bonds on MarketAxess you are making a difference to communities across the globe.

Read more about our Trading for Trees program and other sustainability initiatives in our 2023 ESG Report.