- To commemorate World Forestry Day
- To plant One Million Trees over two years
A group of youth led stakeholders under the coordination of Urban Tree Revival Initiative (UTRI) are stepping up plans for a Covid-19 Memorial Forest Reserve Project in a bid to enhance the planting of trees around the country and as an opportunity to commemorate those who lost their lives due to the pandemic, most especially health care workers, emergency personnel and volunteers.
According to Ms Omobola Eko, Global Coordinator of UTRI, the project is designed to be part of the coalitions One million tree revival campaign, which was inaugurated in 2020, and simultaneously launched in four (4) Nigerian cities and three (3) African countries. The objective is to provide a living monument with the right ambience for quiet meditation, nature appreciation and most practically, source of income for host communities with the planting of fruit trees.
Ms Eko also explained that the project would kick off in March 2020 on the occasion of the World Forestry Day with the theme “Forest Restoration: A Path to Recovery” at the Shodex Beautification Gardens in Lagos in collaboration with various other associations including the Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria.
Urban Tree Revival Initiative
Within the last two years, UTRI has implemented several projects in the areas of advocacy on climate change and sustainable tree planting, climate education for schools and conservation of indigenous trees for forest restoration; convening three nationwide climate awareness marches. UTRI has demonstrated capacity to impactfully contribute to a more sustainable and greener environment; combining advocacy with extensive research work to proffer solutions and recommendations to some bottlenecks in domesticating indigenous trees.
