“Geographically contextual and eco-sensitive afforestation will help us fight climate change,” says CEO, Bikrant Tiwary

After planting millions of trees in India’s urban heat zones, wildlife habitats, biodiverse regions, hilly terrains, forests and arid areas since its inception in 2010, social organisation Grow-Trees.com has committed itself to planting 3 Million trees in the country in 2023. Explaining the reason behind this commitment, Bikrant Tiwary, the CEO of Grow-Trees.com says, “India has committed to a 2070 net-zero target and we want to help the nation to implement and maximise green interventions as much as possible. We also believe that geographically contextual and eco-sensitive afforestation and planting 3Million trees across India will help us fight climate change as a nation and mitigate biodiversity loss and the impact of global warming.”

Till date, the organisation has planted over 17,525,064 trees across 23 states, and these inform Bikrant, have the capacity to absorb 350,501,280 kg CO2 on maturity. He adds, “In 2020, a World Bank report estimated that an additional 68 to 135 million people could be pushed into poverty by 2030 because of climate change. Extreme weather events hit the poor the hardest and precipitate existing economic inequalities, causing more people to fall into poverty To address this issue to some extent, we engage local populations in our plantation initiatives and have created over 1,445,818 days of employment.”

Grow-Trees.com pledges to plant 3 Million trees in 2023

Grow-Trees.com’s various projects like ‘Trees for Delhi’, ‘Trees for Tigers’, ‘Trees for Ecotourism’, ‘Trees for Tribals’, ‘Trees for Cities’, ‘Trees for Rivers’, ‘Trees for Himalayan Forests’, and ‘Trees for Water’, have addressed issues of pollution, fragmented animal corridors, biodiversity loss, air pollution, flood control and have helped bolster rural economies, boosted carbon sequestration, elevated water tables, reduced human-animal conflict, and improved wildlife habitats.

Grow-Trees.com has also taken up mangrove plantation drives in coastal areas of various states like Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, and West Bengal and extended its activities to other countries as well. The ‘Trees for Refugee Wellness’ project aims at helping the refugees and local communities in northern Uganda, East Africa. Explains Bikrant, “The plantation project supports refugees and not only reduces conflict over natural resources but also minimizes the pressure on the existing environment.”

In the new year, Grow-Trees.com is also encouraging citizens to get involved with plantation endeavours by gifting trees to loved ones or a group of friends with just a click. Bikrant says, “According to a 2021 globalforestwatch.org report, between 2002 and 2021, India lost 371kha of the humid primary forest, making up to 19% of its total tree cover loss. The humid primary forest also decreased by 3.6%. This is why every tree that is planted by citizens, collectives and social organisations like ours, can change the environmental outlook from bleak to hopeful.”

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