How You Can Contribute to the Environment by Planting Trees

It’s that time when people around the world are busy filling their resolution list for 2019 with new goals — visiting the gym regularly, making lifestyle changes, quitting smoking, and so on. If you’re still looking for a resolution to keep in the New Year, how about doing something for a greater cause, something more meaningful? Here’s a suggestion: Plant trees. It may sound obvious but how many of us have gone ahead and done it? Actually very few. Let’s change that this year.

Given the rising pollution in our cities, climate changes, and fast depleting green covers, planting more trees is the only long-term solution. Most of us are aware of this and want to contribute but for many reasons, these good intentions don’t convert to fruitful actions. For one, you may not have the time, energy, and space to grow trees. Or, you don’t know which plants/trees to grow, how to take care of them, and so on. Fortunately, there are organizations that can help you contribute towards a greener planet as easily as shopping online.

One such organization is Grow-Trees. It not only plants a tree on your behalf but also brings employment and livelihood to local communities and rural beneficiaries.

It is Different from Plantation Drives

If you’ve ever been a part of a typical tree plantation drive in India, you’d know that most of them lack transparency. You won’t know how many trees will actually survive and whether they are adequately maintained and protected. Sometimes, trees planted through a drive are chopped off for an infrastructure project in future.

Plating trees through organizations like Grow-Trees ensures you remain updated about the tree plantation project that you’re a part of. Sites for planting trees are chosen after a due diligence, which makes sure that plantation activities generate the intended socio-environmental impact. The saplings are raised in local nurseries and are planted by the monsoon. They are monitored and maintained by the local communities to ensure the maximum survival rate, while the plants that haven’t survived are replaced by new saplings.

Grow-Trees’ activities are spread across 14 states in India. Here in West Bengal, they are involved in planting trees in the periphery of Sunderbans with the aim to restore the habitat of the Royal Bengal Tiger.

More Trees for Sundarbans, Bigger Jungle for the Tigers

We are all aware of the dwindling tiger habitat in our due to ever-shrinking forest cover.  Studies show that major damage has happened in the unique mangrove forests of Sundarbans.

Sundarbans has been slowly losing the mangrove forest cover and due to this, there is an increased risk of soil erosion, reduced protection from floods and cyclones, and higher local loss of livelihood.

Grow-trees’ plan is to plant about 350,000 trees in the villages of Rajapur, Pakhiralay, Kachukhali, Ranipur in Gosaba block and Jogeshgunj, Hemnagar and Bankra in Hingalgaunge block at the periphery of Sundarbans National Park.

This will help to protect the habitat of the famous Royal Bengal Tiger as well as reduce chances of a natural disaster like floods and cyclones. Moreover, the islands’ tendency to shift and submerge due to rising sea level will be somewhat arrested.

Higher forest cover can provide better income opportunities to a rising population in this area. The project also involves local landless labourers, thus providing them with more earnings.

An increased forest cover will act as a superior buffer zone between the forest and the human habitat and will help the development of tourism, thereby helping the local economy.

How Much Does it Cost?

You can plant a tree with Grow-Trees at a cost that is even less than your Uber ride. And the best part is, you can join a monthly tree plantation program and make planting tree a habit.

Contribution to planting a single tree is as low as Rs 85 and you can choose to plant multiple trees easily as the amount is very modest.

Not just as a New Year resolution, you can plant a tree or a grove as a gift on birthdays and special occasions of your loved ones as well. They will be sent a customized card/certificate with a personalised message. You can also dedicate the trees to commemorate an event or to a deceased family member or friend.

Planting Trees as CSR Activities

If you have a business or you’re running a company, a plantation drive through Grow-Trees can be a great CSR activity. 600+ corporates across India have joined hands with the organization as a part of their CSR programs. In fact, we, at NK Realtors have also been contributing to the cause through the organization.

So this year, let’s make a resolution to give back to the environment by planting more trees. Even if an individual plants a single tree, collectively it can make a huge difference!

If you’re interested to know more about planting trees through Grow-Trees, you can visit their website: https://www.grow-trees.com