Latest news with #100MillionTrees
Irish Examiner
01-05-2025
- General
- Irish Examiner
Watch: Native tree planting takes root in Inch as 100 Million Trees project grows nationwide
A little corner of bog on the Kennedy family farm near Inch was alive with energy recently as part of the 100 Million Trees project, now in its second year. Project co-founder Richard Mulcahy oversaw the planting, teaching pupils from Park National School how to plant native trees. Farmer Brian Kennedy spoke of the importance of setting aside land for nature and mental wellbeing, while Mairead Kennedy highlighted the vital role of the school community. To plant 500,000 trees this year and a million next year, the project continues to grow and the pupils were eager to suggest the grown-up decision makers in our world do less cutting down and more hugging and planting of trees instead.
Irish Examiner
01-05-2025
- General
- Irish Examiner
Watch: 100 Million Trees Project
A little corner of bog on the Kennedy family farm near Inch was alive with energy recently as part of the 100 Million Trees project, now in its second year. Project co-founder Richard Mulcahy oversaw the planting, teaching pupils from Park National School how to plant native trees. Farmer Brian Kennedy spoke of the importance of setting aside land for nature and mental wellbeing, while Mairead Kennedy highlighted the vital role of the school community. With a goal of planting 500,000 trees this year and a million next year, the project continues to grow and the pupils were eager to suggest the grown up decision makers in our world do less cutting down and more hugging and planting of trees instead.
Irish Examiner
28-04-2025
- General
- Irish Examiner
Cork pupils help take on task of planting 100m trees 'for next generation'
A mini forest densely planted with thousands of native Irish trees is set to shoot up in a small corner of East Cork, as part of an ambitious project to plant 100m trees nationwide, that could help save the State billions in emissions fines. The pocket forest on the Kennedy family farm near Killeagh, funded by the 100 Million Trees Project, was planted on Monday using the special Miyawaki dense planting method. It will have trees up to 16ft high within four to five years, extracting around 35 tonnes of carbon from the air annually. It is the latest plantation by the 100 Million Trees Project, which aims to plant 100m native Irish trees — creating a vast new national carbon sink over a decade — amid warnings that the State could face a cost of €20bn in EU fines if it fails to achieve reductions in carbon emissions in 2030. The Irish Fiscal Advisory Council (Ifac) figure of €20bn is far higher than a previous estimate of about €8bn from the Climate Change Advisory Council. Mairead Kennedy, along with her children Sean and Aila Connery, work together to plant a native tree. Picture: Chani Anderson. School children from Park National School donned wellies and dug in on Monday to help professional planter John Overton plant some 2,500 trees in a small corner of Brian and Kira Kennedy's at Mount Uniacke. Brian said he wasn't really using the quarter-acre site for agriculture, and so he approached the 100 Million Trees project. 'My original plan for this unutilised four-acre field was to drain it, plough it, re-seed it,' he said. 'My father said: 'Can't you leave it for the frogs, foxes, and wildlife, haven't you enough land without it?' Instead of improving the land agriculturally, I've decided to improve its biodiversity 'I have a great love of trees which my father passed onto me, and I have fond memories as a child in Park National School of planting horse chestnuts which I have now growing on the farm. Professional tree planter John Overton puts seedlings into the ground on the Kennedy family land. Picture: Chani Anderson. 'I find planting trees or just observing them very therapeutic. I think people need to get away more from their phones and hectic lives and spend time in nature. There's calming energy from trees. My plan for this field is to take it from agriculture and give it back to nature, and create a number of different habitats — such as a pond, woodland, and rewilded grassland The 100 Million Trees Project was founded in 2022 by brothers Richard and David Mulcahy and their sister Tina. It is a non-profit community and volunteer-driven environmental initiative that aims to plant 100m native Irish trees in a decade using the special Miyawaki planting method. The method is named after Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki, and it involves the dense planting of excess trees very close together. It has been proven that trees grow considerably faster, denser, are more biodiverse through this method. Most importantly, they create a very rapid carbon sink. Sean Connery and his younger sister Aila Connery share a joyful moment as Aila gleefully throws a shovel of dirt while planting trees. Picture: Chani Anderson. Richard Mulcahy was in Mount Uniacke on Monday for the planting, which is being funded entirely by Uniphar. 'This is for the next generation,' he said. In its first year, the 100 Million Trees Project oversaw the planting of some 20,000 trees at 18 sites nationwide. However, it has scaled up significantly in 2023 to plant some 200,000 trees at 85 sites in 23 counties. The 2024/25 season began with a planting project in Kerry last November, and Mr Mulcahy said they aim to have planted some 550,000 native Irish trees across 230 sites like the one on the Kennedy's farm in 29 counties by the end of May. Planting 100m trees in a decade could reduce Ireland's carbon output by 'a significant 2.5%', he said. Aila Connery follows her teacher's instructions carefully as she plants a native tree on the Kennedy's family land. 'We are facing a climate crisis unless we do something quickly, and one of the few things you can do quickly in a climate crisis is plant trees — because they extract carbon from the air,' he said. Traditionally, Coillte would plant 1,000 trees in an acre — but we plant 1,000 trees in 0.1 of an acre "The logic with our dense planting method is that the trees grow up, rather than grow out, so the energy goes into them growing up. "Because they grow much quicker, they extract carbon much quicker. "There are about 130,000 farms in Ireland and, to plant 100m trees using our method, you only need 40,000 quarter-acre sites. "Typical farms invariably have four or five corners that are just sitting there doing nothing. Getting 40,000 sites like this shouldn't be a big ask given the benefits it will bring 'If the Government really wanted to do something serious about getting trees into the ground, they could plant 5bn trees — which would cost about €5bn — and completely neutralise Ireland's carbon output, [as opposed to] paying fines of up to €20bn in five years.' He urged farmers, landowners, and local authorities to consider the benefits of planting disused or under-used sites using their method, with the cost of the trees and labour all covered by the 100 Million Trees Project. Richard Mulcahy, the co-founder of the 100 Million Trees Project, smiles with members of the extended Kennedy family on the piece of bogland they donated for native tree planting to support the project's rewilding mission. Picture: Chani Anderson. Individual planting plots can range in size from as little as a tenth of an acre to a quarter of an acre from amongst Ireland's entire stock of 20.8m acres. The areas required for planting are small — covering an area roughly the size of between one and two basketball courts. Areas of native forest can also be planted on portions of dormant State-owned lands and on corporate sites, which is a relatively small price to pay in exchange for the returned dividend: A carbon sequestration equivalent of 1,184,625 tonnes of CO2 every year. The Miyawaki planting method offers many benefits to both landowners and to the State, Mr Mulcahy said, including 10 times increased carbon sequestration for one tenth of the land mass required for normal planting. It also offers 10 times the speed of growth, creating a rapid solution to improving biodiversity. It rapidly improves air quality, and provides an inexpensive way for farmers to create a rapid area of biodiversity. You can find out how to get involved on Read More Ciarán Brennan: Government is letting bills mount up rather than deal with climate change
Zawya
16-04-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Her Excellency (H.E.) Dr. Rania Al-Mashat, Minister of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation, Presents the 2025/2026 Economic and Social Development Plan to the Egyptian Parliament
Dr. Rania Al-Mashat, Minister of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation, presented the efforts and targets for promoting spatial, local, and rural development, environmental improvement, and the transition to a green economy in the draft economic and social development plan for FY 2025/2026, as part of the medium-term plan (2025/2026 – 2028/2029), during the General Session of the House of Representatives held today, chaired by Chancellor Dr. Hanafy Gebaly, Speaker of the House, and attended by members of parliament. During her speech, Dr. Al-Mashat emphasized that with regards to enhancing spatial and local development, the plan is keen on allocating the necessary financial resources to improve services for citizens across various governorates. It also adheres to applying indicators that reflect developmental gaps, ensuring equitable distribution of investments across governorates. Public investments allocated to local development amount to EGP 28 billion in FY 2025/2026, with EGP 24.3 billion allocated to governorates, and the remainder to the Ministry of Local Development's general office. Investment distribution across local development programs is planned as follows: 56% for local roads, transportation, and mobility; 11% each for enhancing local and community services, and local administration and technical support programs; 8% each for environmental improvement and rural/urban development programs; and 6% for local economic development. Local development projects include paving 1,525 internal roads, lighting 750 streets, constructing and upgrading six public transportation hubs, developing 64 markets and exhibitions, continuing the construction and development of 30 slaughterhouses, and implementing the 100 Million Trees initiative, in addition to solid waste management and major renovation projects. Regional investment allocation ensures that approximately 35% of total local development investments are directed to Upper Egypt governorates to reduce developmental disparities. To incentivize governorates to improve performance levels, the Ministry of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation continues implementing the 'Performance Excellence Incentives Initiative' for local-level investment management, awarding governorates that apply best international practices in planning, monitoring, and performance evaluation. In FY 2024/2025, eight governorates won awards totaling EGP 300 million. The plan also aims to intensify development efforts for comprehensive economic and social growth in North and South Sinai, with 15% of local investments allocated to these two governorates for implementing several projects, including the establishment of 18 agricultural and development clusters, construction of irrigation networks for reclaimed lands, and road expansions, including five major road development projects in South Sinai such as the upgrading of the Dahab/Nuweiba road (50 km), Sharm El Sheikh/Dahab (80 km), Nuweiba/Naqb (60 km), and the first phase of the Tunnel/Taba road (26 km). Dr. Al-Mashat affirmed that the Egyptian state is increasingly prioritizing localizing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) due to their impact in supporting inclusive and sustainable growth, and balanced regional development—key pillars of Egypt's Sustainable Development Strategy: Egypt Vision 2030. The state continues its collaboration with development partners to formulate and implement evidence-based policies for achieving the SDGs at the local level. To this end, the Ministry of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation, in collaboration with the United Nations, released two editions of the 'Localizing the SDGs at the Governorate Level' reports in 2021 and 2025. These reports aim to provide an overview of each governorate's performance in achieving the SDGs, and to use the data strategically to highlight areas requiring more attention, design suitable policies and programs to enhance local performance, accelerate SDG implementation, and enable performance comparison and ranking among governorates. In rural development, Dr. Al-Mashat highlighted that the 2025/2026 plan seeks to continue implementing Phase II of the 'Decent Life' initiative. This phase spans 20 governorates, encompassing 52 centers and a total of 1,667 villages, home to 21.3 million people. The plan targets EGP 25 billion to initiate implementation of Phase II goals in drinking water and sanitation, aiming to raise wastewater coverage to at least 90% in these villages through 698 integrated wastewater projects, 97 treatment plants with a combined capacity of one million cubic meters per day, and 1.8 million household wastewater connections. The plan also targets full coverage in drinking water services by establishing and upgrading 18 water stations, expanding and reinforcing 2,350 km of water networks, and delivering 315,000 household water connections. In the area of environmental improvement and green economy transition, Dr. Al-Mashat said the ministry is enhancing green investments and supporting sustainable infrastructure as part of the state's broader green economy shift. This is being realized by continuing to integrate environmental dimensions into planning through the implementation of the 'Environmental Sustainability Standards Guide.' Under these standards, the share of green investment projects in the FY 2025/2026 investment plan is targeted to reach approximately 55% of total public investments, up from 50% in the current fiscal year (2024/2025), and from 15% in FY 2020/2021. The upcoming plan directs investments toward climate change mitigation projects such as smart and green transport, renewable energy, solid waste management systems, and afforestation projects. The plan also includes climate change adaptation projects such as the rehabilitation and upgrading of drinking water stations and networks, desalination plants, and wastewater treatment plants, as well as desertification control, soil improvement in old agricultural lands, natural reserve management, development of water resources using groundwater and rainwater harvesting, and upgrading irrigation channels to modern systems. Coastal and shoreline protection and development are also featured. She added that the plan aims to continue implementing a set of initiatives supporting the green transition, including the "Green Labeling of Public Investments" initiative. This involves tracking and measuring investments directed towards green projects listed in the investment plan, as part of the integrated system for preparing and monitoring the investment plan. The system includes the classification of 160 areas into projects targeting climate change adaptation and projects focused on mitigation. It also involves assessing climate change risks, with the goal of activating interactive maps showing the risks, threats, and anticipated impacts of climate change across various sectors and regions. The initiative also includes establishing an early warning system, preparing risk assessment plans for threatened areas, and managing climate-related disasters. She also highlighted the Climate Technology Competition, which aims to encourage startups, entrepreneurs, innovators, and specialists to contribute ideas and innovative solutions to address climate change and its negative impacts on development efforts. Additionally, she referred to the National Initiative for Smart Green Projects, which aims to create a governorate-level map of green and smart projects and connect them with funding entities, both domestic and international, to attract the necessary investments. She pointed to the "Green Village" initiative, which aims to prepare villages under the 'Decent Life' (Hayah Karima) program to align with the latest global environmental standards set by the World Green Building Council, and to obtain the 'Tarsheed' certification for green rural communities. The initiative focuses on three main pillars: energy, water, and resources. Four villages have already received the certification: El-Liwaa Sobeh village in New Valley Governorate (2024), Shamma village in Menoufia (2024), Nahtai village in Gharbia (2023), Fares village in Aswan (2022). The goal is to qualify the remaining villages in the coming phase. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation - Egypt.
Egypt Today
13-02-2025
- General
- Egypt Today
Green Road: Egypt plants 1250 trees along routes leading to natural reserves
Planting trees along the roads leading to the entrances of the natural reserves- press photo CAIRO - 13 February 2025: During the first phase of the "Green Road" initiative, a total of 1,250 trees were planted along the roads leading to the entrances of the natural reserves, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Environment on Thursday. The Green Road Initiative is part of the presidential initiative "100 Million Trees,' launched in cooperation between the Ministry of Environment, the Youth Foundation for Development and Creativity, the Arab Network for Development (Raed), and the Mediterranean Cooperation Center of the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The initiative involves planting trees along roads leading to the entrances of natural reserves in Fayoum Governorate, which are frequented by migratory birds. A plan was developed to plant the entrances to the Wadi El-Rayan and Qarun reserves, marking a step toward promoting sustainable development and creating a clean, healthy environment for future generations. The first phase of the initiative saw the planting of 150 mulberry and poinciana trees in the Ashtum El-Gamil Reserve, 250 cucumber and mulberry trees in the Wadi El-Rayan Reserve, and 850 trees along the road to the Qarun Reserve. These efforts are aimed at improving vegetation cover and enhancing biodiversity in the local environment. Minister of Environment Yasmine Fouad confirmed that the road leading to the Qarun Reserve was planted with 850 Omani mulberry and Shambar cucumber trees, with the participation of 100 volunteers from 17 African nationalities. The "Green Road" initiative aims to enhance ecosystem sustainability, improve air quality, and create an environment that supports wildlife. It also seeks to promote environmental awareness and bolster ecotourism, ultimately supporting environmental sustainability in Egypt.
