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YouTube and other social media platforms are often used by social media influencers to post about their random adventures to gain attention and some laughs. Recently some influencers use their fame and money to help their subscribers by giving away money to “winners” and being more generous to their fans. Social media and YouTube specifically can be used for the greater good, though.
A Youtuber with the screen name MrBeast posted a video on October 25 saying for every dollar he raises, a tree will be planted with the goal of 20 Million trees by the year 2020. The idea was brought to him by fans spamming him to do the project after the YouTube star reached 20 million subscribers and wanted to celebrate in a unique way. MrBeast also known as Jimmy Donaldson, paired up with another YouTube star, Mark Rober and the duo paired up with the Arbor Day Foundation to ensure the trees are planted correctly.
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In the video mentioned earlier, the team plants trees while explaining what they are doing in detail. Eventually, they decided it would take too long to plant 20 million trees in a timely manner and they come up with an idea to use drones to do the job. The star raised more than $8.2 million within just a few days, with major donations from Elon Musk of Tesla, and SpaceX fame and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, and a large amount of fans. Musk donated $1 million and Dorsey gave $150,000. Others joined the movement as Norwegian DJ and producer, Alan Walker donated $100,001.
While Musk, Dorsey, and Walker donated large amounts, people were not expected to make large donations, as it isn’t affordable for most, but they receive many small donations that make the difference. The YouTube star donated $100,002 to his own cause as well. On November 12, MrBeast tweeted stating they have reached a whopping 15 million trees in the past month.
The team has a little over a month to get the last 5 million trees raised and planted to reach the goal. This project proved the power of social media and the influencers involved as stars commonly use their fame to gain attention but it can be used to raise money for important things that will change the world. MrBeast used his 20 million subscribers on YouTube as an opportunity to inspire change and is not only raising the money but making sure the trees are planted in the correct places and planted correctly. Join the conversation and stay updated by using #teamtrees.