Take action with Caroline: Planting trees to prevent catastrophes

Project update

12 Apr

Written By International Tree Foundation

Trees are vital for the health of our planet. But our forests and trees have been abused for too long. Deforestation threatens us all. But for communities in East Africa, the threat is critical.

In West Pokot, the scars of deforestation run deep. Once lush and bursting with wild olive trees, it’s been stripped bare. Picture a damaged landscape. The streams have dried up, crops have dwindled and devastating landslides have destroyed homes and taken lives.

What would you do if that happened to your home? For Caroline Menach, the director of Perur Rays of Hope, it moved her to restore the forest. “We want enough seedlings to increase forest cover so that we do not have disasters again in the future,” she says.

“When disaster strikes, it’s the women and the children who suffer the most,” says Caroline. “So, by including women in the reforestation, they’ll take care of the trees because they’ve been taught about the dangers of deforestation.”

The first step in the restoration journey is to gather local, native tree seeds and cultivate them in tree nurseries. Once the saplings are big enough, they’ll be planted in the surrounding land where they’ll grow into a forest canopy.

The women are also growing fruit trees like juicy, fragrant mango, rich avocado and fast-growing pawpaw. Not only will this nourish their families, they’ll be able to sell the surplus.

“This project has really benefitted us and we are so happy,” Eliza Apolo told us. “When we sell the tree seedlings, we will be able to take our children to school without any problem. Even our husbands are proud of our work here because it is helping the community.”