Irish people are being urged to fight climate change by helping to plant trees in Ireland and Africa.
TV present Kathryn Thomas help development charity Self Help Africa launch its One Million Tree campaign this morning.
The charity is promising to one tree in Ireland and ten in Africa for every €5 raised – with the end goal of planting 100,000 trees in Ireland and one million in Africa.
The campaign is part of the UN-backed ‘One Trillion Trees’ initiative – one of the largest reforestation efforts in history.
One Million Trees campaign launch: TV presenter Kathryn Thomas is pictured with (from left) Ronan Scully of Self Help Africa, Alan Kerins, GPA, Mary Magnier, incoming president of the INTO, and Vincent Cleary, MD of Glenisk at Airfield Estate in Dublin. Image: Leon Farrell, Photocall IrelandSelf Help Africa CEO Ray Jordan said: “The message of this campaign is that while no-one can do everything to combat climate change, everybody can do something.”
“In Africa, trees not only help remove harmful greenhouse gases from the atmosphere, they also provide an important source of food, income, shade and shelter for rural poor households.”
The campaign is supported by Glenisk, the Gaelic Players Association (GPA), Supervalu and the Irish National Teachers’ Organisation (INTO).
Glenisk has pledged to reforest up to 120 acres of what was previously Glenisk wood in County Offaly.
Supervalu and Glenisk will be running in-store fundraising promotions throughout the year.
The teachers will be distributing tree seedlings to classrooms and the players will be championing the initiative as role models.
You can find out how you can get involved with the campaign here or by calling (01) 6778880
