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Hello WCAFI world!

               The youth are our future, plain and simple.  This is about a cool presentation, which will eventually create more clean air.

               The Ontario Nipissing Early Years Center is a place for children six years old and under, and their parents and caregivers, to take part in amazing programs and activities together.  They have a wide variety of interesting topics, all of which help to educate youth.

               The WCAFI was lucky to get an opportunity to be one of those events, by giving our “Clean Air Workshop.”  I presented to this group of enthusiastic youth and their parents about Climate Change, the benefits of trees, and the WCAFI.  They even got Clean Air Tree Kits!  The coolest part about this workshop, and why it will be memorable, is that this is the youngest group to grow Clean Air Trees!

               A special thanks to the North Bay-Mattawa Conservation Authority for sponsoring the kits for this workshop.  We will be keeping up with these young Clean Air Pioneers, and their trees, and can’t wait to see the bright new growth sprout!

Until next time,

Root 1

               Hello WCAFI community!  Lately I have been focusing on stories of initiative around the world, and I have one more tale today!

               This one is about a very inspiring individual who believes that trees are the future, and decided to make a random act of kindness around his community.  His name is Elwyn Behnke, a logger that is very eco aware.  He planted Butternut trees around North Bay, Ontario at public places such as the Ministry of Natural Resources office.  He also gave away 100 saplings for other people to plant around the area!  So why did this start?

               Elwyn’s career as a logger has some very cool mottos.  His dad started his company (Behnke Logging and Trucking LTD.) in 1949, and Elwyn took over in 1980.  Elwyn is hoping to pass this tradition to his son.  His logging company cuts renewably, “only cutting down what they plant.”  This is logging like farming, providing a greener planet so they will always have lumber!  Elwyn also wants the Butternut trees to thrive because he used them in carpentry when he was in high-school, and would like to see it commonly used today.

               One of the cool parts of giving out the Butternut trees to many people is the fact that it will influence and educate the community about the protection and preservation of the Butternut tree.  Each person will nurture and grow these trees as their own and will increase the Butternut tree`s survival rate.

               The Butternut tree has been rapidly decreasing in population in North America, due to a disease called Butternut Canker.  The Canker fungus is believed to have come from outside of Canada.  This disease is an uncontrollable nuisance throughout the range of the Butternut, which slowly cuts off nutrients to first the tree’s crown, then down to the tree’s roots.  The tree becomes exposed to the disease through insect wounds, buds, and openings in the bark, providing multiple entries for the fungus.  The tree’s nuts may become infected, which would cause the sapling to die early.   One of the ways the Canker is being combated are hybrids such as Butternut combined with English walnut.

               How do you spot the Canker?  Look for black sooty patches, or in the spring look for black ooze coming out of holes in the bark.  They will have their crown die first, and then start having the die off go lower and lower.  The canker’s themselves are diamond, sunken in, brown or black patches.

The Butternut tree (Also known as White Walnut) is valued by carpenters for their softness, colour and varying texture, and is very useful.  It is now listed as a Species at Risk in Ontario, and an Endangered species in Canada.  Animals such as squirrels eat the Butternut, as the nut is an important food source.  First Nations also use the nut for cooking, hair dressing, leather making and polishing tools. The Butternut tree has a 75 year life span.  The Canker disease was noticed in Canada in the 1990’s.

Elwyn has taken a huge step just by simply planting some trees.  This inspires me and shows that anyone can make a huge difference, whether the outcome is saving a species or educating youth. 

So get out there, and be inspired!

~~Root 1~~

Hello WCAFI world!

Today, I have news from Suriname, a country in South America.  The group that contacted the WCAFI was Little Miss Suriname, an organization that has decided to make a very environmental choice.  They have decided to work with support from other organizations and governmental Ministries to plant fruit trees around their local schools to promote environmental awareness.

First though, a little introduction to Suriname.  Suriname is the smallest independent country in South America, and is situated near the equator.  It’s biggest city, and Capital, is Paramaribo with around 250, 000 people.  The country’s official language is Dutch.

Back to the tree plant.  The Miss Suriname Organization planted 150 fruit trees around 50 schools, teaching the students about the benefits of a tree!  The Miss Suriname Organization, Angel Public Relations and Administration, the Ministry of Agriculture, First Lady Mrs. Ingrid Boutersse, and Ministry of Education all partnered together to let this come about, and plan on planting more trees on the 23^rd of May.  On that date, they may have the First Lady of Suriname join them! 

This is an amazing new initiative in the world, but for every one that appears on my blog, there are so many more out there.  All you need to do is leave a comment, and I will get back to you as soon as possible.

So get out there, and keep inspiring!

Root 1

Students from 5 schools in Alcañiz in Spain planted 300 trees in the Motorland race circuit to help improve the environment.  The trees were given to the circuit as part of last years campaign where WCAFI and Fundacion Repsol gave 1000 trees to each MotoGP circuit in Spain, and planted 29,000 tree in Haiti.  Hopefully we'll see more of these trees being planted this year.

WCAFI world, the youth are being empowered, and inspired to make a difference.  The United Nations has declared August 2010-2011 the International Year of the Youth, inspiring youth influence on local, national, and global levels.  That isn’t the only opportunity that has been presented to us.  This year has also been deemed the United Nations’ International Year of the Forests!  It is a relatively new program launched on Feb. 2.  What an opportunity!  Anyone can organize an event that promotes or encourages others based on one of these two initiatives.  Check out the great public events.

If you haven’t taken the Clean Air pledge, now is the time to do so.  As United Nations say, it is “Our Year, Our Voice,” so we can make a difference on a worldwide scale!  If you want to share with the WCAFI community how you are making a difference, you could send in a really cool outline on your initiative.

UPDATE: The United Nations’ Billion Tree campaign is still going strong!  With 12,718,917,782 trees pledged, and 11,333,617,951 trees planted, that is one initiative that will go on for a long, long, long time.  If you haven’t registered your tree on the  Plant for the Planet website yet, now is a great time to do so! 

So what is the WCAFI doing for these two great United Nations’ initiatives?  In December 2010, I was honoured to receive the Ward Smith Environmental Youth Award from the North Bay-Mattawa Conservation Authority in recognition of my work with the WCAFI.  This honour included a cash donation to continue our work educating youth on the environment and creating more clean air.  The WCAFI decided that it would be really cool to do a double bonus: give back to the community and empower the youth!  The WCAFI and North Bay Mattawa Conservation Authority have been discussing different ideas to improve the local environment, and developing a Clean Air Workshop to educate  youth and get them growing!  This was an amazing success, which took place on the March Break during the North Bay Mattawa Conservation Authority’s Enviro Camp.  The age range was 6-12 years old, and some of these cool youth wanted to get involved with the WCAFI and learning about the environment!  This shows that there are people out there that want to get involved, they just need to be inspired!  So get out into the world, and become empowered.

Also, I would like to thank Alexandria, an amazing youth who helped out with the Clean Air Youth workshop, and had previously helped her class grow Clean Air Tree Kits!

Keep on inspiring!

Root 1

WCAFI has teamed up with ISIC the International Student Identity Card so students can get 50% off the Clean Air Tree Kit. The promotion is for the moment available in US, Canada and  accross Europe. For more detail  follow this link www.isic.org/student-discounts/global-partners.html

               Well WCAFI community, it has been done.  The G8 MY SUMMIT Forest has been planted!  If you look on the Clean Air Map, there are three different plantings on Haiti by the WCAFI.  The one named Jacmel is our very own forest on behalf of MY SUMMIT 2010.  If you don’t remember, or are new to the community, you can go to the MY SUMMIT blog, or click on more details in the Jacmel pop-up. 

               So if you are wondering about why it has taken so long, we can say that we were trying to give the trees their wonderland.  The planting had to be done during optimum planting conditions, so we were trying to give our earth savers the best a tree can get.  There were 2000 trees in this plantation, enough for every global youth delegate and world leader at the G8 and G20 summits, and then some.  I also have to thank the Global Vision delegate that donated the $50 towards this; unfortunately this person will remain nameless because I had such a good time I forgot to write down his name.  This is my way of giving thanks, and supporting the young leaders of tomorrow.  I may be updating with news of co-ordinates and pictures, but we have to give it time because of the situation in Haiti.  I unfortunately couldn’t be there as I originally said due to these circumstances, but it makes me eager for the future when one of my extraordinary goals is completed with style. 

               Thanks to all the amazing people who helped get me here: Minister Clement, Anthony Rota M.P., Mr. David Pierce, Terry, Amy, and Jake Clifford, Andy Pothecary our Managing Director for organizing it, Trees for the Tomorrow for planting it, and all the inspiring people I met at Global Vision. 

               Keep on leading the world forward everybody.

Root 1.

Planting For The Planet, By The Planet

WCAFI community, we have to face the facts.  It is nearing Christmas and we have to know something that is essential to clean air.  ... ... ...

Oh right, well, the truth is...   WE NEED TO SHOW IT!  Yes, if you register your tree kit on our map, that is one good way to show your initiative, but there is another way, with an organization you probably know.  The United Nations!  If you have seen the logo for the 'Plant for the Planet' on the Clean Air Tree Kits, then you know about it.  The U.N. Environmental Programme originally started it at the target of 1 billion trees planted worldwide.  If you go to the home page it now says that they are going 10+ billion trees planted strong, with 12+ billion pledges, and with a new 13 billion tree goal.

November 8^th, 2006.  This was the date that the Billion Tree Campaign launched its initiative inspired by Professor Wangari Maathai, a Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.  She is the founder of Kenya’s Green Belt Movement, which has planted more than 30 million trees in 12 African countries since 1977.  It was her that replied when a corporate group in the United States said they were planting a million trees, “That’s great, but what we need is 1 billion trees!”

Now remember, we don’t register your trees onto the Billion Tree Campaign, just the ones we plant under the ‘you plant, we plant’, so if you want your tree on another worldwide scale, register on the link above.  It is pretty amazing that you are either way helping the United Nations in fulfilling their goal, one tree at a time. 

Placed under the patronage of Professor Wangari Maathai and His Serene Highness Prince Albert II of Monaco, the Billion Tree Campaign is raising awareness of the inter-dependence between humankind and the planet’s ecosystems, as well as the linkages between tree planting and climate change mitigation, the restoration of biodiversity, air and soil quality and food security.

And you thought you just wanted to plant a tree!!!

Root 1

WCAFI se siente orgulloso de ser parte de este evento tan especial.  ECO&CO es una iniciativa de Cache Events, que con el motivo de impulsar la práctica del concepto de la sostenibilidad, nos ha escogido como event parnter.

La Sostenibilidad consiste en satisfacer las necesidades de la actual generación sin sacrificar la capacidad de futuras generaciones de satisfacer sus propias necesidades. Para esto existen distintas prácticas que favorecen al medio ambiente, plantaciones masivas de árboles para regenera la bio-diversidad, acciones sociales de cooperación al desarrollo, tratamiento y uso consciente de las aguas y hasta reciclaje adecuado de material electrónico en desuso. 

En esta ocasión ECO&CO te invita a un evento por La Sostenibilidad para que tengas la oportunidad de poner en práctica tu consciencia ecológica, podrás donar tu móvil en desuso y recibirás un kit de árbol de WCAFI con todo lo necesario para hacer crecer tu árbol. En tu kit de árbol hay un código especial que podrás registrar en nuetra web www.wcafi.org y colaborar con los proyectos agro-forestales de los ocho países en desarrollo en los que tenemos nuestras plantaciones.

Las aportaciones de ECO&CO irán destinadas a un centro de investigación al medio ambiente ICTA. 

El evento tendrá lugar este jueves 23 de septiembre a las 19:00 en el Hotel Rey Juan Carlos I. Av. Diagonal 661-671 Barcelona, 08028.

Mas información en el blog de ECO&CO: http://www.cache-events-eco.blogspot.com/