Trees for Wealth: Thetsumi village plants 8 lakh oak trees

February 20, 2024 27 Views No Comment

Our Correspondent
Kohima, February 20

Eight lakh native oak trees have been planted today by Thetsumi village under Phek district to reclaim barren community lands for reforestation under Trees for Wealth (TfW) movement of The Entrepreneurs Associates (tEA).

With the aspiration to plant 1 billion fruit trees and 2 billion non fruit trees by 2050 under Trees for Wealth movement, tEA spearheaded a successful community tree plantation event in Thetsumi.

In collaboration with the village leaders, the drive witnessed the participation of all the 4 khels of the village with 520 individuals joining in to bolster tEA’s tFW movement.

Strongly advocating the importance of tree plantations and driving home the importance of an initiative such as this, the village declared a local school holiday to ensure that presence of high schoolers at the event.

Thetsumi village has committed to plant 1.5 million native oak trees across the 250-acre community land of ‘Khutsaphfu.’
Today marked the first phase of this endeavor, resulting in the successful planting of 8 lakh native oak trees.

Acknowledging the massive success of the initiative, Vetshe Tsuzuh, Chairman, Thetsumi Village Council stated “We have ample community lands, yet nearly 45% have remained barren for years. Hence I extend my gratitude to tEA for launching this program to rejuvenate our lands and contribute to the environment and our future generations.”

Highlighting the difficulties that were part of the process leading to this drive, Tsuzuh added “After persistent advocacy, the people of Thetsumi have rallied today to achieve something significant and reclaim our wastelands. Additionally, we will formalize our commitment by signing an MoU with tEA to safeguard these trees planted today for the next 25 years, ensuring they remain untouched by external exploitation.”

A team from tEA led by the CEO Neichute Doulo was part of this spectacular community event.

He thanked the village for this collective milestone and stated “It’s truly inspiring to witness Thetsumi Village, under the leadership of the Village Council, uniting for such a noble cause. These trees, planted today, will be nurtured and carefully managed through pollarding, thriving for centuries to come. This milestone marks a significant step towards planting 2 billion non-fruit trees, showcasing Nagaland’s dedication to global tree planting efforts.”

Over the last few weeks, tEA has been working relentlessly to rope in community leaders and villages to take forward the mission of planting both fruit and native trees for economic prosperity and positive climate action.

Neikule Doulo, Executive Director, tEA informed that TfW movement is underway in Nagaland and Manipur, with over 20 lakh fruit trees and non-fruit trees planted so far.

The transformative impact of this work will become visible in the next few years with the expected potential to transform rural landscape in the North East Region, she added.