Region: China
Author: Wang Yongchen, Friends of Nature
Consortium Member: China Demonstration Project
Status: Completed - Final Report
Budget: $792
Collected: $792
Needs: $0
Result: The thousands of saplings that the government planted in a national park near Beijing, China were cultivated. Volunteers paid for the travel to care for the trees. Funding paid for tools.
Donors: Esther Schmidt, New York City [December 1996]
Note: This proposal was fully funded through the Virtual Foundation (December 1996) and has now been completed. It received press and media (national TV) coverage in China. ECOLOGIA thanks Esther Schmidt of New York City for supporting this project.
The area of "Adopt Trees" is the Mang Shan country forest park, in the east of Thirteen Tombs Reservoir, Chang Ping county, Beijing. Its total area is 130 thousand Mu [Editor's Note: 1 mu = .164 acres, so the area is about 21,320 acres] the rate of vegetation reaches 87%, and 176 varieties of trees are found there.
In past years, there were green wooded mountains. But now, the park has met with some economic difficulties, so the work of management of trees was delayed, trees grow slowly and plant disease and insect pests can attack more easily.
"Friends of Nature" called up their members to adopt trees in order to save this forest. There are more than 300 members in "Friends of Nature"; quite a few of them work in each of important media of China, it can be promised that every activity of this group will be well publicized. The proportion of scientific and technical workers and college students is also high, thanks to their knowledge and energy, so all of their activities are brimming with vigor.
It will be the first time to adopt trees in China. The people who attend
this activity will not only be pruning, watering, hoeing up weeds and spreading
manure for trees, but also can deepen their emotion to nature, and raise their
consciousness of environmental protection. The most important thing is: people
can bring their children to work with them. Some of the children have already
said that: I like to grow with the little trees.
The first term of "Adopt Trees" will cover up to 153 Mu, 12,680 plants. Every plant will cost 15 US$ a year.
Tools which we need to apply for are: spade, pick, handsaw, sickle, pruning clipper and plastic bucket etc. One set will cost 12 US$, total of 60 sets will cost 720 US$.