Welcome to your SeaTrees project!
Thanks for partnering with SeaTrees to restore kelp forest ecosystems in Cascais, Portugal! We’ve created this doc to help you share the impact you’re having and inspire your community to follow in your footsteps. Think of this doc as a detailed FAQ - a way to guide the conversation. For larger partners, we're happy to explore bespoke ideas.
We use our social channels (mainly Instagram) to promote our brand partners and newsletter, which is featured on our website, to highlight specific things our brand partners are doing that align with our mission and impact. Follow us: @sea.trees
Scroll to the bottom of your dashboard to access all the media assets provided to you for this project.

What’s our mission/vision?
On World Ocean Day on June 8, 2024, we announced our second major milestone of 4 million SeaTrees planted + protected.
We're already working hard to find quality new projects where we can work together to plant the next Million SeaTrees. Longer-term, our goal is to support 100 blue carbon projects in threatened coastal ecosystems by 2030, in turn becoming a global leader in developing blue carbon projects.
We believe the ocean has superpowers, and we can work with it to reverse climate change. But there's no time to waste. The global scientific consensus is clear that we have the next 10 years to reduce our collective carbon footprint to avoid passing a catastrophic climate tipping point.
Thousands of people and hundreds of brands have joined us on our mission to take action on climate change by regenerating coastal ecosystems. We’re excited to work with YOU to enable and enhance the ocean’s superpowers.

Superpowers?
Yep, 90% of all carbon in the global carbon cycle is stored in the ocean. This is where it should be sequestered to reverse climate change.
Mangrove forests “suck” aka sequester, 5-10 times more CO2 out of the atmosphere per hectare than tropical rainforests. Much of that carbon is stored in the soil and sediment that make up a mangrove ecosystem.
Globally, kelp forests sequester as much CO2 as mangrove forests. 10% of kelp breaks off and sinks into the deep ocean - sequestering the CO2 it contains. The conservation of these ecosystems is critical to solving climate change and will protect the habitats of over 700 species of algae, invertebrates, and fish.
Known as the “rainforests of the sea,” coral reefs are the largest living structures on earth and support 25% of marine life. The conservation of these ecosystems is vital to coastal protection, scientific research, medication, fishing, eco-tourism, and more.
Where are we restoring kelp right now and what impact is it having?
This project restores and protects approximately 27,000 sq-ft of kelp forest off the shallow coast of Cascais, Portugal. With the help of project partners SeaForester and the local community, SeaTrees will support this innovative kelp forest restoration project by building a kelp nursery that will allow us to test a new method called ‘green gravel’ with the potential for large-scale marine reforestation.
Kelp forests historically occurred across all Portuguese rocky shores, but have experienced a dramatic decline due to poor water quality, negative fishing impacts, pollution and coastal runoff. Kelp decline in Portugal has led to a decrease in biodiversity, fewer fish, less carbon sequestration and poorer water quality. Local communities that rely on these habitats for subsistence and various economic activities are the ones most affected by their decline.
This project aims to lay the foundation for scaled-up seaforestation activities at selected sites in Portugal to restore native kelp populations. SeaForester is currently establishing its new upscaled infrastructure (nursery container) for the production of restoration materials (e.g. seeded stones).
The seaforestation technique used in this project involves the seeding of small stones with seaweed spores, growing them on land in specialized nurseries and deploying them in the sea. The seeded stones can be scattered from a boat without the need for divers or technical equipment, providing a low-cost and scalable seaforestation solution. We have been testing and promoting the technique through research projects in Portugal and overseas.
To learn more, please visit the project page on our website here.
How is my “donation” spent?
Most of the money we receive for a specific project goes toward that project. This includes the restoration itself, as well as assessments/auditing of the project, site visits and regular meetings with the project managers, developing content and stories, and updating our website with progress updates.
We hold a portion of the donation to invest in new and start-up blue carbon and research projects that meet our assessment criteria.
Like all non-profits, we also use a portion to fund the operations of our organization. As a registered non-profit, our financials are publicly available - and approximately 15-20% of our income goes towards operational expenses.a

About Seatrees
Seatrees is a nonprofit organization that restores and protects coastal ecosystems around the world to reverse climate change, enhance biodiversity, and support local communities. We use a science-based approach to regenerate coral reefs, kelp forests, mangrove forests, seagrass meadows, and coastal watersheds. Our projects support local community restoration efforts and provide tangible ways for individuals and brands to create a more resilient planet for future generations.

Why coastal marine ecosystems?
Unlike other tree planting and carbon offset programs and projects around the world, the sole focus of Seatrees is on blue carbon coastal ecosystems. As surfers and ocean-lovers, we choose these spaces because they’re places where we play. As environmentalists and ocean-health activists, we focus on blue carbon ecosystems because:
- They’re highly effective at carbon sequestration.
- They’re critical ecosystems on the verge of collapse.
- Methods exist to restore and regenerate these ecosystems.
- The story to protect ocean health is powerful and compelling.
- It’s not too late to act, but we must act fast.

Why Kelp Forests?
Kelp forests are one of the most degraded marine ecosystems in Portugal—yet their disappearance is often overlooked. Once abundant along the coastline of Cascais and throughout Portuguese rocky shores, these underwater forests have suffered a dramatic decline over the last several decades due to pollution, overfishing, and coastal runoff. While water quality and fishing practices have improved, kelp has failed to naturally recolonize much of its former habitat. Without intervention, these critical ecosystems may never return.
Kelp forests are vital for marine biodiversity, acting as nurseries and feeding grounds for countless species. Their loss has led to fewer fish, reduced carbon sequestration, and declining water quality—impacting both marine life and local communities that depend on these ecosystems for subsistence and economic activities.
Seatrees is investing in the restoration of Portugal’s kelp forests by supporting the innovative "green gravel" technique in collaboration with SeaForester. By deploying 25,000 seeded stones across 27,000 square feet of reef, this project will help re-establish kelp where it once thrived.
Kelp plays a crucial role in climate change mitigation by absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and ocean, storing it in its biomass, and ultimately sequestering it in the deep sea. Restoring these underwater forests is essential for revitalizing marine biodiversity, improving coastal resilience, and strengthening the ocean’s ability to combat climate change.
Now that conditions are right for kelp regrowth, it’s time to take action. By restoring Portugal’s kelp forests, we can rebuild a thriving marine ecosystem and support the communities that depend on it.

How do you ensure the impact is happening?
We have a thorough vetting process for every new project we consider. We support a limited number of projects that meet our criteria and can prove that ‘SeaTrees’ are not only being planted, but that they are being protected in the longer term.
The process we go through is underpinned by science and many years of experience managing large-scale restoration and carbon sequestration projects. It’s a long process built on these seven SeaTrees questions:
- Is this project connected to the ocean?
- Who's the planting partner, and how credible are they?
- Is it a region that people are interested in, and how often can we get there?
- Does this place have global/political issues? Any other red flags?
- How does this project align with the UN SDG's? What social impact does this have?
- Do the economics of this project stack up?
- Is this a scalable solution?
We visit all of our projects on an annual basis (more often if we can), and we require our project partners to provide regular updates.
Please share some visuals with us!
We’ll use relevant content from your website and social channels, but if you have any specific please let us know and we’ll determine whether it fits with our brand.
Do share your logo! We’ll display it proudly on our Brand Partners page.
Media Assets
