The Foundation for Environmental Education is pleased to announce that the Global Forest Fund will finance a three-year project in Nairobi and Kiambu counties in Kenya, to be implemented by Foundation for Environmental Education member organisation Kenya Organisation for Environmental Education (KOEE). The “Tree Planting as a Pathway to Green Growth and Sustainability” project will run from November 2020 – November 2023 and involve over 1.500 students and 50 teachers from Nairobi Academy and Githiga Boys High School.
Students from Migwani Secondary School in Kitui County, Kenya participate in a previous KOEE tree-planting project
The project in Kenya was awarded funding by the Global Forest Fund Expert Panel, which is composed of several leading figures in the fields of environmental education and Education for Sustainable Development.
Sirpa Kärkkäinen, Liaisons Manager at the Finnish Forest Association and member of the 2020 Expert Panel, says, “All the proposals showed a tremendous amount of thought and innovation… In the end, following much debate by the Expert Panel an unanimous decision was reached. The proposal from Kenya demonstrated the most impact across all the measurable fields of the application. The Expert Panel felt that Kenya’s attention to community and biodiversity aspects was very impressive and the scale of the planting ambitions was within reason. Furthermore, the project’s plans to work closely with experts in the field of forestry and bring in-kind sponsorship to the project were also compelling reasons to allocate the funding to Kenya´s proposal.”
Biodiversity, Education and Green Enterprise
According to Alvin Sika, Programmes Officer at KOEE, the project “aims to increase awareness among students on the importance of trees, promote tree planting in schools and communities and enhance eco-friendly enterprise skills among young people for sustainable forest resource management.”
Tree planting is a central component of all Global Forest Fund projects, and the project in Kenya will see students and communities plant 10.000 trees from a variety of ecologically and socially important species. The species were chosen for their suitability to the ecological zone and fast maturation rates that maximise atmospheric carbon intake. They also serve as windbreaks, have numerous agroforestry benefits and play an important role in soil conservation. Students will also plant mango trees that provide valuable nutritious fruit to their schools and communities and provide an extra source of income through sale at local markets.
A tree nursery established by KOEE at Watema Primary School in Makueni County, Kenya
The project in Kenya will also involve environmental education and capacity building for students, teachers, parents and others in the communities. Participants will learn about the important role of trees in mitigating the impacts of climate change, from carbon sequestration to promoting sustainable livelihoods. Classroom training will be supplemented by outdoor field trips to learn more about local forest ecosystems, and the schools will arrange student art competitions around the products, services and benefits provided by trees.
The participating schools and communities will also be trained in nursery management and long-term tree care, ensuring that the 10.000 new trees will continue to thrive in the future. The project will bring in forestry experts from the Kenya Forest Service to provide training on the more technical aspects of agroforestry and integrated forest resource management. By the end of the project, participants will be equipped with the motivation and practical skills to protect the health and sustainability of their schools, communities and planet for years to come.
As Mr. Sika concludes, “The enhanced partnership between schools and communities will give a much-needed boost to collaborative efforts on sustainable forestry and green enterprises. The biggest benefit for all the stakeholders will be reduced amounts of carbon in the atmosphere.”
A KOEE teacher-training workshop in Nairobi, Kenya
About the Global Forest Fund
The Global Forest Fund is a unique carbon compensation initiative developed by the Foundation for Environmental Education that allows businesses and individuals to reduce their carbon footprint by providing valuable resources and environmental education to communities around the world. Our web platform allows travellers to calculate their carbon emissions across a range of transport options, and compensate for those emissions by investing in projects that have a real and lasting positive impact on the environment. Global Forest Fund projects are designed to capture carbon, restore nature, protect biodiversity, promote sustainable communities and educate the next generation of environmental leaders.