Wondwossen Teshome Mekuria, Communications and Marketing Co-ordinator, Ethiopia
Ripple Effect Ethiopia joined thousands of people responding to a call from the Ethiopian government to plant 200 million tree seedlings, in just one day.
The nationwide tree planting campaign that aims to plant 4 billion trees across the country was launched by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on May 26, 2019. Ethiopia aimed to break world record by planting 200 million tree in a day, under the umbrella of the Green Legacy national project.
Over the last several years, Ethiopia has lost billions of trees and forest resources because of many reasons including a lack of awareness around afforestation and sustainable development. Today, most of the seedlings planted are from indigenous trees that are very well adapted to the local environment.
The objective of this campaign is to contribute the worldwide effort to reduce pollution, address climate issues and to restore the natural habitats that contribute positively to the climate crisis. The reforestation programme of planting 40 tree seedlings per head has been an inspiration for the people of Ethiopia, to come together for a noble goal.
Ripple Effect Ethiopia has been working on natural resource management: tackling overgrazing by providing forage seedlings to farmers; addressing rapid deforestation for fire wood by helping farmers use fuel saving stoves; and providing training to farmers to enhance productivity through manure and compost making.
82 volunteers from Ripple Effect Ethiopia and Give Hope Ethiopia, a local NGO, participated in this tree seedlings planting campaign here in Addis Ababa at Millennium Park. Together we planted 575 seedlings as part of this national activity.
Our participation is leaving a green legacy for future generations, following the national call from the government. I am very happy that I participated in this historic event with my four children, Lulim, Lydia, Bethel and Caleb, who all volunteered with Ripple Effect Ethiopia. They will remember this day for the rest of their lives!
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