Frequently Asked
Questions

The minimum investment amount is five thousand (5,000) in your country's currency for eligible investors. Show your interest so that we can make TreesOfLives accessible to all. Contact us with your name, the amount you would like to invest and the reason for your interest in investing with us.

TreesOfLives allows you to recover your investment in one of two ways.

1. TreesOfLives Secondary Market: if you decide to exit your investment before the ten (10) year term, we will facilitate transactions between unitholders starting at year five (5). We calculate the value of your assets and equity in the fund using the discounted cash-flow method. Each year, our auditor partner, the Deloitte accounting firm, will re-evaluate this value. Other investors will then be able to make an offer to you and, if you accept it, redeem your units directly on the TreesOfLives platform, which will be available shortly.
2. Redemption: after ten (10) years, you will be able to recover the value of your investment.

Keep in mind that, to get the maximum return on your investment, you should let it work for you for as long as possible. Forests grow slowly, but they will repay your patience.

The TreesOfLives fund is an impact investment vehicle. It is accessible to individuals and organizations that can, through their investment, have a financial return and benefit from carbon and biodiversity credits. The TreesOfLives Fund provides for the financing of large-scale restoration projects of degraded lands in partnership with landowners and communities. When we return the ground to sustainable production, we sell the products generated to buyers. Then, we distribute profit between the owner and the investor.

What return can I expect on my investment? It is important to remember that the principal and return can never be guaranteed. However, our land management models allow us to anticipate a return of between eight percent (8%) and twelve percent (12%) on an annualized basis. We base our data on past projects in the same part of the Peruvian Amazon. Also, you are assured of offsetting part of your carbon and biodiversity footprint with your investment.

The fund generates a return on investment through the commodities from the land and trees produced by the new and restored forests and agroforests. For example, some land management models will allow bananas, cocoa, coffee, medicinal plants, etc., to be grown. We also plant some tree species for timber. In other models, the farmer will raise livestock with the trees. We will then sell these zero-deforestation commodities to buyers such as large food production and forestry companies committed to countering zero-deforestation goods to their supply chain.

No, it is not possible to choose the project in which you invest, for the simple reason that our fund is exclusively dedicated to projects for the restoration of degraded lands. TreesOfLives will proceed in phases, i.e. we will use the amount raised for phase 1 to reforest land in Peru. Once phase 1 is completed, we will deploy the funds towards phase 2, and so on, in several countries. The return is calculated on the entire fund. The fund's investment committee approves investments. Depending on when you invest, we will apply the amount to projects approved by this committee.

If you want to get the maximum return on your investment, you should wait ten (10) years before you withdraw it. You can also stay longer to take advantage of even more carbon credits and continue to increase your returns. TreesOfLives will facilitate transactions on the platform or use redemption after ten (10) years.

See the question How can I recover my investment and exit the fund?

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Your investor space will allow you to access real-time data on the amount of carbon sequestered and the impact on biodiversity that your investment generates. The information is based on data collected in the field and correlated with carbon sequestration and biodiversity impact studies conducted by our experts, verified by a third party, accredited and certified by VERRA CCB.

Your offset certificate is available in your TreesOfLives investor space and is issued every three (3) years.

The certificate is issued following third-party verifications that make it possible to obtain carbon and biodiversity offset credits certification. As this is a voluntary market, no authority validates it. The certificate is valid for you and those for whom you have invested in TreesOfLives. It is your assurance that you are part of the solution to climate change and the degradation of nature.

All amounts invested in the TreesOfLives Fund, net of any administrative or investment fees, are earmarked for projects to restore and reforest degraded lands in the regions where we work. For example, once the 2% administrative fee is deducted, 39% of the amounts will be dedicated to restoration activities, 55% to ecosystem payments to landowners and 4% is kept in the contingency fund.

The platform allows you to estimate and monitor the impact of your investments at all levels (financial, carbon and biodiversity credits, as well as the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the UN). The more you invest, the more significant your positive impact on society and the fight against climate and ecological crises.

Carbon credits are linked to the investment. For example, suppose you decide to sell part of your investment after five years. In that case, all the carbon credits for which you have received certificates still belong to you and contribute to reducing your carbon footprint. On the other hand, all future certified carbon credits generated by the sold portion of your investment will belong to the new investor.

The reason is simple! Because there is no model like ours at this time. The biotechnologies we have developed allow us to increase land productivity 2 to 3 fold, creating value much faster for all stakeholders. The company's integrated business model also ensures the sustainability of our activities' financial, social, environmental and economic impact over time.

The platform is transparent. All information on project progress and asset growth is available in your investor space, including photos and videos.

It is possible to volunteer at our intervention sites through our NGO partners. Contact us for further details.

To be considered a qualified investor in Canada, a person must have an annual income of more than seventy-five thousand dollars $75,000 (or a family income of one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars $125,000) or have at least four hundred thousand dollars $400,000 in assets and liquid assets. This rule applies to investments of $10,000 or more in TreesOfLives. For an investment of less than $10,000, it is still possible for non-qualified investors to invest in TreesOfLives, under certain conditions. An exempt market dealer retained by us will be able to accompany you through the verification process. Contact us for more information.

According to Climate Transparency, an average Canadian emits 18.9 tons of CO2 per year. An average American emits 18.1 tons of CO2 per year, and an average European emits 7.9 tons of CO2 per year. You can calculate your emissions using one of the many emissions calculators available on the Web.

You can reduce your carbon and environmental footprint, invest in investment vehicles that promote a low-carbon green economy and reduce your overall consumption.

Here are a few ways to become carbon neutral or carbon negative: - eat less meat, use an electric vehicle, buy products with environmental certifications, reduce travel and commuting, choose green and renewable energy, buy carbon offsets, invest in TreesOfLives and offset your GHG emissions at the same time.

Do you know exactly where your portfolio is invested? With the TreesOfLives Fund, you know exactly what project your money is going into and the positive impact your investment will have on society and the environment. Moreover, you can offset your greenhouse gas emissions while becoming a key player in the fight against climate and ecological crises, which is impossible with traditional investments.

No. Once we fulfill the first contract with landowners, they have all the tools, knowledge and resources they need to continue to develop their land sustainably. They can choose to continue to work with us or go their own way. Landholders will be accompanied for a period of 8 to 34 years depending on the project. During this period, we will constantly update their knowledge of their development's technical and institutional aspects.

Our sustainable model is designed to generate positive long-term economic, financial, social and environmental impacts for all stakeholders involved and not just an immediate return for one or the other. The communities, our partners, will benefit from the model's impact on improving income and living conditions for generations to come. Ecosystems—which we will regenerate together—will continue to grow and positively impact the environment. Soils will be more productive, and natural resilience will be restored. Our success measures will be economic, financial, social, environmental and even cultural, inspired by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

To successfully fight against climate and ecological crises, we must create a green economy around the restoration of degraded lands. Current restoration models do not allow for large-scale activities and, therefore, do not compensate for the accelerated pace of land degradation and deforestation that generates GHG emissions. By mobilizing the private sector, we can leverage massive investments that will enable us to carry out our activities on a vast scale and in several countries. By turning the cost of restoration into an investment opportunity, we can create this economy and engage major players, including you, in this green economy. TreesOfLives was made from this vision to create value and wealth for all.

The TreesOfLives platform is very secure, and cybersecurity is at the heart of every decision we make.

Data encryption

Encryption on the Internet protects your information as it travels between your computer and our systems. The TreesOfLives platform uses a 256-bit SSL certificate and a minimum protocol of TLS 1.2. To ensure that your connection is secure, you can verify that your address bar's URL protocol is HTTPS and not HTTP.

Once on our systems, all your information is encrypted at rest with AES-256 across our entire infrastructure. This includes documents and our database and helps keep data safe even in the unlikely scenario of a database failure.

Cloud computing infrastructure

We use secure cloud computing technologies provided by Amazon Web Services for all aspects of the TreesOfLives platform. Their data centres use state-of-the-art physical and environmental security measures. For more information on their security measures: AWS Cloud Security.

Independent security tests

An external evaluation is crucial to obtaining an accurate assessment and understanding of the state of our cybersecurity posture. We have an annual penetration test on the platform and our infrastructure by an external IT security firm.

Controlled access to your account

Access to your account requires the correct login information, which is your email address and password. We have a password strength policy that requires long and complex passwords.

Furthermore, we support and strongly encourage all of our investors to activate two-step authentication by confirming a cellphone number in their account. This allows us to send you a temporary code via text message (SMS) that you will need to enter before accessing your account. This helps ensure that only you can access your account by requiring physical access to your phone.

Data retention policy

We keep a strict minimum of information once your investment is made. All the information you share with us on your investor profile is erased as soon as the dealer evaluating your file has consulted it, or at the latest, ninety (90) days after your investment request. We only retain the information required by the Autorité des marchés financiers.

The security of your information and your trust are our priorities. We make every effort to protect your account using the highest security standards.

As described in the section Is your platform secure?, the TreesOfLives platform uses various advanced strategies to keep all your information safe, including encryption and verification by external cybersecurity experts.

Moreover, we carefully choose our financial technology partners to ensure that they adhere to the same high standards in cybersecurity. For example, we work with Plaid, an industry leader, to facilitate the investor profile's initial creation. They have a credible and comprehensive Security program.

The TreesOfLives platform does not automatically process financial transactions. In addition to the security mechanisms in place on the platform as described in the section Is your platform secure?, several manual interventions are required for a transaction to be completed.

We must obtain explicit authorization from you via an electronically-signed legal document that we use with our financial institution (Desjardins Group) offline. For Canadian investors, we only accept payments via pre-authorized debits initiated by TreesOfLives and expressly authorized by the investor.

We deal with an exempt market dealer to process investment files. These dealers must follow a process called Know your client that protects both parties in several ways. The call allows the dealer to be aware of your level of sophistication as an investor and ensure that you understand the product in which you are investing your money. The process helps prevent fraud such as identity theft, tax evasion, and money laundering and terrorist financing.

You must create a TreesOfLives account that will allow you to access the investor space, where you will find all the detailed information concerning your investment.

The TreesOfLives Fund is currently RRSP or TFSA-eligible through our exempt market dealer. When you create your account, you can determine if you would like your investment to be included in these savings products. Your money will then be invested in an ESG fund. We have an agreement with the broker that stipulates that your entire investment will be dedicated to TreesOfLives.

The exempt market allows companies seeking liquidity to solicit certain types of investors without having to prepare a prospectus. It is intended for risk-tolerant investors seeking to diversify their investment portfolio. TreesOfLives uses a broker duly registered on the exempt market, who will contact you to find out if you are eligible for this type of investment. For more information on the exempt market, visit the website of the Autorité des marchés financiers.

If the TreesOfLives Fund does not reach a minimum amount of US $250,000 before June 30, 2021, all investors will receive back the capital invested, less administrative expenses incurred.

If the TreesOfLives Fund succeeds in raising between US $250,000 and US $500,000 as of June 30, 2021, we will initiate a smaller-scale restoration project this year. Beyond this amount, each additional investment of US $6,000 will add one hectare of restored land to the project.

Our goal is to raise at least US $6 million by June 30, 2021, which will allow us to initiate the restoration of 1000 hectares in the same year.

Here are the steps TreesOfLives follows to select the projects in which the fund invests.

1. Viridis Terra develops investment opportunities verified by an Advisory Board composed of representatives of world-renowned organizations.

2. These opportunities are then presented to the TreesOfLives Investment Committee for analysis, evaluation and approval.

3. Finally, the decision must be endorsed by the TreesOfLives Board of Directors.

We created two limited partnerships as legal and fiscal investment vehicles for TreesOfLives: one for individuals and corporations in Canada, United States and Europe and another for institutional investors (banks, pension funds, ESG funds, funds climate, development banks, among others).

When you invest in TreesOfLives, you get equity in the limited partnership through the issuance of units you own. For more details, see the legal documents.

We expect that the different land development models will generate returns from the first years following the establishment of restoration projects,. This profitability comes from the sale of basic products such as fruit from the tree, coffee, cocoa and certain medicinal plants. The TreesOfLives fund will distribute 50% of the profits and allocate the other 50% to be reinvested in new projects. This means that the investor will be paid an amount normally already within the first three years corresponding to this 50% of the profits from all projects.

It is important to mention that the fund manager retains the flexibility to change the proportion of reinvestment in projects versus distribution to investors in order to create even more value for investors.

Expenses related to the TreesOfLives Fund are allocated as follows. A fee of 5% of the initial investment amount is charged in the first year. This fee allows us to develop new projects and investment opportunities. After that, an annual management fee of 2% is deducted from the initial capital amount. This fee allows us to ensure good management of the TreesOfLives funds and support the legal, regulatory and fiscal structure of limited partnerships. All fees are always calculated only on the initial amount invested and not on the compounded amount.

If you choose to invest in a registered product (RRSP, TFSA, etc.), a total fee of 3% annually is charged following the 5% on the initial investment. This amount corresponds to the fund manager's fee, mardi.info, which is our intermediary for registered products.