Ecosia is an application that uses their income from search ads to help plant trees all around the world. This means that by simply browsing using the app ( the same way we browse on Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox ), we are contributing in making our planet more habitable.

Ever since I learned those, I immediately changed my default browser from Google Chrome to Ecosia and I encourage all of you to do the same. It has been my default browser for over a year now and I already helped in planting 782 trees. Yes, that's how transparent they are. Their main website shows the total number of trees planted ever since they launched in 2009, the number of active users, euro invested, and the number of planting sites. As of writing, they already planted 108 million trees in places that need it the most. They also provide websites for each project they work on. Examples include restoring key watersheds in Ghana, green belt movement in Kenya, planting in Usambara mountains, and trees for a climate-resilient future in Senegal. 

By just conveniently searching on your phone or computer, you can already help thousands of people, most of whom do not have the privilege of even owning a cellular phone. Since staying at home is the best option these days, it's the least we can do to help restore our environment.

The pandemic is almost over and a new start is waiting for all of us. This simple gesture of changing your default browser is one way of showing hope. That amidst all the bad things that happened and are still happening, there is light at the end of the tunnel. That someday, somehow, things will be better not just for us but also for the next generation.