{"id":583860,"date":"2021-04-30T09:07:08","date_gmt":"2021-04-30T13:07:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/?p=583860"},"modified":"2022-02-28T09:45:12","modified_gmt":"2022-02-28T14:45:12","slug":"happy-arbor-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/my-missions\/happy-arbor-day\/","title":{"rendered":"Happy Arbor Day!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Today is all about trees! Our planet is actually home to over three trillion trees! That might seem like a huge number but the truth is we need even more as trees are essential for our environment to remain healthy!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So, what makes a tree a tree?  Well, they are typically defined as a woody\nplant with a tall stem (the trunk) with a defined crown of branches and leaves.\nTrees come in all shapes and sizes. Some are small while others can reach over\nheights of over 110 meters tall. That\u2019s almost double the height of the CN\ntower, the largest building in Canada! \nUnlike many plants that only survival for a year, trees are perennials\nmeaning they survive all year round only slowing their growing during the\ncolder winter months.  In fact, some\ntrees on our planet have lived to be over five thousand years old! Wow!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trees are extremely important to all\nanimals!  They provide many species with\nhabitat, shelter and delicious foods like seeds, nuts and fruits.  For thousands of years, trees have also been\nvital for human survival providing us with firewood for cooking and heat and\nbuilding materials for shelter, tools and furniture among so many other\nthings.  However, the most amazing thing about\ntrees has to do with a process called photosynthesis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

When we think of trees, we immediately think of\nforests, but trees can survive on almost every surface of the planet, from\nmountains to grasslands and even deserts. That is because trees are very hardy\nplants that only need four main things to survive; sunlight, air, water and\nnutrients from the soil.  Water and\nnutrients are absorbed through the tree\u2019s root and travel up the stem,\neventually reaching the leaves. The leaves contain tiny pores called stomata\nthat absorb carbon dioxide from the air. Sunlight, along with tiny compounds\ncalled chlorophyll (which is what gives plants their green color) jumpstart a\nprocess known as photosynthesis. Photosynthesis helps turn all these components\ninto glucose, which is energy that the plant needs to survive. This process\nalso releases oxygen back into the air which all living creatures need to\nsurvive.  So, the next time you take a\nbig breath of fresh air, remember to thank a tree!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>
\n

In addition to releasing oxygen into the environment, trees also absorb excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.  This is very important in recent years as carbon dioxide is one of the largest contributors to greenhouse gases.  Greenhouse gases trap heat from the sun, causing the temperature of the planet to rise steadily year after year.  This is a process known as climate change.  Climate change affects all living things on our planet, creating unpredictable weather patterns and rising sea levels.  <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately, deforestation is a real problem\nas humans cut down trees to make room for agriculture and urbanization as the\nhuman population continues to grow. As Earth Rangers, it\u2019s our responsibility\nto protect our existing trees while planting new ones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s why Earth Rangers is very excited to be\npartnering with the British High Commission, or BHC, to raise awareness about\nclimate change and give kids the tools to take concrete and positive action for\nthe future of our planet!  Together we\nwill be launching a series of climate-themed activities as part of the Earth Rangers\u2019\nMission Program. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>
\n

As today is Arbor Day, it\u2019s the perfect time accept the Just 1 Tree Mission! Scientists believe that two of the best ways we can prepare for climate change are to protect existing habitats and create new ones.  So, what are you waiting for?  Even doing something as simple as planting just ONE tree can make a huge difference for animals, humans and the whole planet! <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Today is all about trees! Our planet is actually home to over three trillion trees! That might seem like a huge number but the truth is we need even more as trees are essential for our environment to remain healthy! So, what makes a tree a tree?  Well, they are typically defined as a woody […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":45848,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1020,586,931],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-583860","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-j1t","8":"category-my-missions","9":"category-all"},"pp_force_visibility":null,"pp_subpost_visibility":null,"pp_inherited_force_visibility":null,"pp_inherited_subpost_visibility":null,"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/583860","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=583860"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/583860\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45848"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=583860"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=583860"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.earthrangers.com\/EN\/CA\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=583860"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}