Billionth tree planted in time for Bali climate change conference in November 2007

The simple challenge to plant a billion trees, conceived by Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Wangari Maathai, sparked a worldwide movement almost overnight after it was launched on 8 November 2006 during the 12th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Nairobi, Kenya. The billionth tree was planted before thousands of delegates arrived in Bali, Indonesia, for the next yearly meeting on global warming.

The Executive Director of UNEP launched the Billion Tree Campaign, joined by Professor Maathai and Dennis Garrity, Director General of the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), and, by video link, by His Serene Highness Albert II, Sovereign Prince of Monaco. Fittingly, the first pledge came from the Green Belt Movement founded by Maathai: 2 million trees. Soon after, pledges from individuals, schools, scouting troops, neighbourhood and civil society organizations, began streaming in from more than 100 countries. Corporations stepped forward, promoting the Campaign to millions of customers through glossy advertisements, radio spots and even billboards. Artists dedicated paintings and performances to the cause. An Egyptian translator offered his services pro bono for the Arabic version of the Campaign website.

Governments at all levels – from city councils to district officers, state governments and even presidents – pledged hundreds of millions of trees. International organizations, including the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for refugees (UNHCR), the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity and the United Nations Forum on Forests added their commitment, as did many environment and development organizations, some of which have been planting trees for many years.

This remarkable demonstration of popular and political will meant the Billion Tree Campaign surpassed its original goal seven months ahead of schedule. The billionth tree planted is believed to be in Ethiopia where, as part of the country's Millennium Commemoration 2007, close to 700 million trees have been planted.

The Campaign was organized in cyberspace by a handful of staff with few resources, but a great deal of passion and dedication, thanks to the Internet. The initiative’s website became Campaign Headquarters. Partners entered the site to record their pledges and plantings, to obtain guidance, to share ideas and resources, and to post pictures. The website was available in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish, with language-specific content.

After the initial announcements, the Campaign took on a life of its own: friends emailed friends to join. Social networking sites recruited thousands of partners and, as a sign of the times, some 4,000 blogs promoted the idea. In November 2007, the totals of trees planted were still being tallied with numbers rising almost daily. The top-ranking countries appeared to be Ethiopia, over 700 million trees planted; Mexico, 217 million trees; Turkey, 150 million; Kenya, 100 million; Cuba, 96.5 million; Rwanda, 50 million; Republic of Korea, 43 million; Tunisia, 21 million; Morocco, 20 million; Myanmar, 20 million and Brazil, 16 million. The Green Belt Movement alone planted 4.7 million trees, double the number of trees it had initially pledged.

Trees were planted in degraded natural forests and wilderness areas; farms and rural landscapes; sustainably managed plantations; and urban environments. Said Prof. Maathai: "I am elated beyond words at the global interest and action that was motivated by the Billion Tree Campaign. I knew we had it within us as a human family to rise up! We called you to action almost exactly a year ago and you responded beyond our dreams. Thank you very much! Now we must keep the pressure on and continue the good work for the planet. Plant another tree today in celebration!"

Some of the stories behind the success of the Billion Tree Campaign are told in the 2008 UNEP publication, Plant for the Planet – the Billion Tree Campaign. This article was compiled from information in that publication, as well as from a UNEP press release issued in Nairobi, Kenya, 28 Nov. 2007,  Communities, Corporations and Countries Deliver on Planting of One Billion Trees.

 

UPDATE: Target is raised to seven billion trees

The UN’s “Billion Tree Campaign,” a grassroots campaign to plant trees around the globe, has raised its target from one billion to seven billion trees. The campaign was launched in 2006 by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) as a response to the threat of global warming and other sustainability challenges related to biodiversity loss and water supply. Since its launch, the campaign has resulted in the planting of two billion trees, over half of which have been planted in African countries. UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner said “having exceeded every target that has been set for the campaign, we are now calling on individuals, communities, business and industry, civil society organizations and governments to evolve this initiative on to a new and even higher level by the crucial climate change conference in Copenhagen in late 2009.” The announcement of the new target was made 13 May 2008.

 


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