Yaoundé, 21 March 2018: Greenpeace Africa and local partners have today launched a pilot green space at the Baptist High School- Awai, to commemorate the World Forest Day. The need for urban green spaces is highlighted in the theme for this year’s World Forest Day celebration.
“Forest & Sustainable cities” speaks to the important role of the forest in reducing the impact of climate change in our cities. Greenpeace Africa’s volunteers ‘Environmental Ambassadors’ along with the students of Baptist High School, Awai, planted over fifty trees. They were also involved in outdoor activities to sensitise the public on the importance of trees in fostering a healthy lifestyle.
“We are calling on the government to put in place national policies that will support sensitisation efforts about the importance of trees in our urban cities. This is also an opportunity to start a national tree planting exercise across our cities,” said Greenpeace Africa’s Environmental Ambassador, Biakolo Onana Alain.
The approach to sensitising city dwellers on forest matters is an interactive awareness campaign where Greenpeace Africa volunteers seek to educate and inform young Cameroonians about the important role of the forest in helping city dwellers to live healthy. Trees are important in regulating the global climate, filtering portable water and removing harmful pollutants and fine particulates from the air we breathe. Even though the forest is under threat, Greenpeace Africa believes working with educational institutions in creating urban green spaces is a foundation for future leaders to stem deforestation.
In 2012, the United Nations General Assembly established the International Day of the Forest to highlight the importance of forest and the challenges faced with regards to degradation and deforestation. This global celebration of the forest provides a platform to raise awareness of the importance of all types of woodlands and trees and celebrate the ways in which they sustain and protect humanity.
World Forest Day is an opportunity to reflect on the usefulness of our forest and the urgent need to address irresponsible practices that undermine intact forest. In Cameroon, industrial agriculture is a major threat in efforts to protect the second largest rainforest – the Congo Basin Forest.
Greenpeace Africa Forest Campaigner, Sylvie Djacbou asserted that, “By its sheer size, the Congo Basin Forest serves as a large carbon reservoir of global significance for regulating greenhouse gas and carbon dioxide. Greenpeace stands with local and indigenous communities to protect the forest against illegal industrial agriculture and land grabbing,” concluded Djacbou.
Media contacts:
[email protected]; Greenpeace Africa, Forest Campaigner; (237) 652-233-542
[email protected]; Greenpeace Africa, Communications Officer; (237) 677-345-612