Women across the world to ‘sing for the trees’

To mark International Women’s Day, thousands of women around the world will be gathering together to ‘sing for the trees’ in celebration of the crucial role trees plays in alleviating climate change.

The Sing for the Trees campaign will bring together over almost 70 ‘sing for the trees’ events in 20 countries around the globe, from the USA, the UK, Finland and Greece, to Kenya, South Africa, India and Nepal.

Organisers say they were inspired by other grassroots campaigns such as the Civil Rights Movement in the US, the ending of Apartheid, Gandi’s Indian independence movement and the Suffragettes, and they hope to influence policymakers to stop deforestation and plant more trees.

Pollyanna Darling, spokesperson for TreeSisters, who are behind the campaign, says: ‘TreeSisters is a grassroots organisation focused on the power of women’s leadership to effect change through shared action and responsibility.

‘We have so far planted over 3 million trees through the generosity of women in our network giving back to the Earth that sustains us. Despite wide-scale recognition of climate change, awareness of the role of trees in mitigation is yet to be fully understood or adopted at a grassroots level. Sing for the trees is raising awareness of both the importance of trees for our future survival, and the role of women in the restoration of the world’s forests.’

Details of Sing for the Trees activities happening in the UK and worldwide on Friday 8 and Saturday March 9 can be found on the TreeSisters Facebook events page and there are UK events in Stroud and Great Malvern.

In December, the environment secretary Michael Gove announced plans to ensure councils cannot cut down street trees without first consulting communities.

Councils would also have to report on tree felling and replanting and the Forestry Commission would be given more powers to tackle illegal tree felling and strengthen protection of wooded landscapes.