After Earth Hour comes Earth Day

You’ve switched off extra lights, now it’s time to plant trees on April 22.

KARACHI:

Last month, World Wildlife Fund-Pakistan (WWF-P) organised activities for an hour in an attempt to save earth. On April 22, it’s going to step up it’s activities by devoting an entire day to plant trees across Pakistan.

In order to launch the campaign which WWF-P is jointly organising with Pharmevo, an event was held on Thursday where celebrities planted trees. The aim of the campaign, titled ‘Save the Planet in a ‘Nise’ way’, is to get people to plant 50,000 trees across the country on Earth Day which falls on April 22.

Celebrities, including Nadia Hussain, Maya Khan, Adnan Siddiqui, Aijaz Aslam and Mehwish Hayat, have been chosen as ambassadors of Earth Day 2013. Actor Adnan Siddiqui said Karachi looks greener if looked at from an airplane flying high in the air. But like an oasis, the pleasing sight disappears as the plane lands. His fellow ambassador, Aijaz Aslam, condemned pervasive deforestation in Pakistan. “We should start from our homes to save the planet. “

Model Nadia Hussain vowed to take her children to schools in the city on the Earth Day in order to encourage people to plant more trees. Singer Mehwish Hayat said, “Where the quality of life goes down for [the trees in] the environment, the quality of life goes down for humans.”

Prof. Abdul Ghaffar Billo, the chairperson of HANDS, who has also been selected as an ambassador for Earth Day 2013, said, “The planting of trees is a form of charity that lasts an eternity.” He pledged his organisation would plant 50,000 more trees across the country on Earth Day. Sumair Saeed of Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) stated the organisation is redesigning the air routes to reduce fuel consumption within the country. Sayeed pledged to plant 10,000 trees for Earth Day at airports across the country.

The caretaker health minister Dr Junaid Ali Shah, who was the chief guest, said more campaigns to conserve the environment need to be organised in Pakistan. He said he would participate actively in the campaign and muster support for it in government hospitals.

Marriyum Aurangzeb, WWF - P’s senior manager of corporate relations, said that more than one billion people across the globe will participate in the 43rd annual celebration of Earth Day. “Activities on Earth Day will start from 9am and continue till 6pm. A total of 25,000 trees will be planted in schools across the country.”

She added the campaign is not merely about planting saplings and then forgetting about them. A year after they have been planted, trees will be inspected and reports will be made about their growth. 

Published in The Express Tribune, April 12^th, 2013.