Rotaract Club plants 1 000 trees in Ezulwini

MBABANE – Four Rotaract clubs in Swaziland recently teamed up to plant 1 000 trees at a school in the Ezulwini Valley in an effort to combat the effects of global warming.

The Rotaract clubs of Malkerns Valley, Manzini, Mbabane-Mbuluzi, and University of Swaziland partnered with the Swaziland Environment Authority and Nedbank Swaziland to plant the trees at Ezulwini Community School over two Saturdays in February and March.  Minister of Tourism Macford Sibandze was there to endorse the project.

Explaining the aims of the project, District Rotaract Representative Elect 2009/2010 of the Rotaract Club of Manzini, Dino Dlamini said global warming had become a phenomenon that African states could not ignore.  “The effects of global warming have become more apparent than they were two decades ago. Through this tree-planting project we are trying to give back to the environment and reverse deforestation and other global warming effects,” he explained.  

The effort was part of the larger Billion Tree Campaign, launched by UNEP in 2006 to curb deforestation, one tree at a time.  According to the organisation, tree planting is one of the most cost-effective ways to address global climate change.

Rotaract clubs throughout District 9250 which includes Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa and Swaziland are participating in the Billion Tree Campaign through their district’s Plant for the Planet project.  District Rotaract Representative Elect 2008/2009 and past president of the Rotaract Club of Maputo, Eurídice Vicente, says:
“These days, sustainability must be a way of living and thinking. Our campaign is not only to plant trees, but to teach people how to take care of the trees and allow them to grow.”

Vicente said in her community, trees were cut down for many reasons.
“We decided to join the Billion Tree Campaign because we believe that it is good not only for us, but for future generations. More people will know about Rotaract, and a mark will be strongly (imprinted on) Swaziland.”
In March, UNEP declared that the Billion Tree Campaign had already resulted in three billion new trees being planted. It announced a new target of seven billion by December, when the next UN Climate Change Conference will be held in Copenhagen, Denmark.

UNEP encourages business and community groups to participate in the campaign by registering on its website and pledging to plant a specific number of trees.
*Additional info sourced from Rotary, Rotaract, UNEP websites.