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University of Bristol partners with Ecosia to turn internet searches into trees

Man with watering can

Press release issued: 4 February 2021

The University of Bristol is switching its default search engine on campus computers to Ecosia, in a move that will result in thousands of new trees being planted.

The green shift follows a student-led initiative that has already seen the planting of 672 new saplings.

Berlin-based Ecosia is a not-for-profit search engine that uses advertising revenues to plant trees in areas affected by deforestation. 

So far, over 110 million trees have been planted across 31 reforestation sites worldwide, focused on areas where the trees will have the most powerful ecological and social impact, including Brazil, Indonesia and Madagascar. 

Moving to Ecosia will add to the University of Bristol’s award-winning sustainability mission, which will see it become carbon-neutral by 2030.

Veterinary students Hannah Rose and Elspeth Taylor launched the “Bristol on Ecosia'' campaign at the University in 2018.

Since then they have been raising awareness of the eco-friendly search engine at events on campus and through a social media campaign. 

By working closely with key university stakeholders, including the University’s IT services, Bristol on Ecosia has been able to influence a lasting environmental change. 

Elspeth said: “We are thrilled that our university has embraced Ecosia. The success of the campaign shows there’s a desire across the board to take action on the climate crisis, which is one of the biggest challenges we all face right now and will face for generations to come.”

Hannah said: “We are thrilled that the university acknowledges their part in creating a more sustainable society and hope they continue to display this pragmatism in the coming years. We hope the change highlights the impact smaller changes in our lives can have on the wider global community.”

Starting out as an idea between three students, Ecosia on Campus has developed into a worldwide tree-planting phenomenon, with 200+ universities planting 170,000 trees in just three years. The University of Bristol will be the third Russell Group university to make the switch to Ecosia.

Erik Lithander, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Global Engagement at the University of Bristol, said: “The adoption of Ecosia is one of the many steps that the University is taking to integrate sustainability into our daily activities, from the way that our students learn to the way in which we conduct our research. We look forward to seeing its impact.”

Fred Henderson, Ecosia’s partnerships manager, said: “Now that the University of Bristol has made Ecosia its default search engine, we will be able to plant thousands more trees. 

“I can’t thank the Bristol on Ecosia team enough for initiating this environmental change, and to the faculty and IT department for implementing the switch. I hope it will inspire other universities around the world to join the movement.” 

Ecosia has launched a project in Australia, to plant native subtropical trees in the wake of devastating bushfires. 

To search and plant trees, people can head to ecosia.org (ecosia.co/bristoluniversity to contribute to the Bristol counter), install the Ecosia app on iOS or Android, and download the Chrome or Firefox browser extension.

Further information

The University of Bristol declared a Climate Emergency in 2019. 

Find out about the University’s commitment to sustainability, including its plans to become carbon neutral.

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