OREANDA-NEWS. May 17, 2016. In celebration of its 20 year partnership with Tree Canada, IKEA co-workers are rolling up their sleeves today across Canada to plant trees and shrubs that will help restore green areas in communities around each of its stores.

“At IKEA we want to have a positive impact on the communities where we do business,” said Stefan Sj?strand, IKEA Canada President. “We are delighted to celebrate this milestone with our co-workers, customers and Tree Canada, and we are committed to continuing to create a better everyday life for the many people and our communities.”

Since the partnership began in 1996, IKEA Canada has donated over \\$750,000. To date, co-workers have planted 27,679 trees and shrubs, which is enough to provide one year’s worth of oxygen for nearly 14,000 people.

To celebrate this milestone with our customers, IKEA is offering 25% off all plant pots purchased between Thursday, May 19th and Sunday, May 22nd. Additionally, 20% of all plant and plant pot sales during the same period will be donated to Tree Canada. These funds will enable IKEA and Tree Canada to plant 20,000 trees across Canada this year, and will also support the development of environmental education for children.

"The trees we have planted with IKEA are vital for the tree canopy in urban centres and the health of Canadian communities and all the people who live in them," said Michael Rosen, President of Tree Canada. "I would like to thank IKEA for their tremendous support and generosity over the years and look forward to another 20 years of partnership."

IKEA is also proud to announce the IKEA Outdoor Classroom contest. IKEA Canada will provide up to \\$15,000 in funding for the development of two outdoor classrooms on school grounds. One grand prize winning school will receive a \\$10,000 grant, and one runner-up will receive \\$4,000 towards greening their school grounds. Outdoor classrooms are learning spaces that connect students, teachers, and communities to the natural world. They can incorporate outdoor seating areas, outdoor blackboards, ground cover, greenhouses, trees and shrubs. Outdoor classrooms have a significant and positive impact upon students, teachers, and the community. The IKEA Outdoor Classroom grant will be available to Canadian schools within 100km of an IKEA store location. To learn more about the program or apply, visit www.treecanada.ca.

Sustainability is part of everything we do at IKEA and it is our co-workers’ commitment to the People and Planet Positive Strategy that has enabled us to be recognized by Mediacorp as one of Canada’s Greenest Employers for the eighth year in a row.