There’s no refuting the fact that trees are the source of life, whose value to Mother Earth cannot be denied. In the face of environmental degradation and massive deforestation, instilling the importance of trees and properly caring for the environment among the young is best started early.
It’s against this pressing backdrop that Natalia Sali, a social worker with an innate love for the environment, took action. Together with her family, the One Child, One Tree movement was born. Launched under the auspices of the Fostering Education and Environment for Development (FEED), Inc., the Sali family has been supporting environmental projects in Hagonoy, Bulacan that educate, encourage, and foster awareness on ecological preservation.
Alongside tree planting for students as its primary activity, the One Child, One Tree movement also organizes and facilitates events related to training and providing expertise in bio-intensive gardening as well as discussions on environmental protection. Targeting teachers, volunteers, and community residents, the results are relevant exchanges on learnings and the latest developments in the field. Similarly, the family also seeks partnerships between schools, local government units and agencies, NGOs, and private corporations in order to ensure proper support for, and the continued sustainability of their initiatives.
The results have been very remarkable thus far. From 2017 to present, the One Child, One Tree movement’s series of mangrove reforestation efforts saw the planting of 5,000 mangrove seedlings along the Tibaguin seashore in Hagonoy, Bulacan, as well as the planting of over 2,000 fruit-bearing and native trees in different elementary schools and forests in the province. They have also planted 1,000 cropped plants and 150 trees in different elementary schools in the same area.
“Maganda yong gawain dahil nagiging aware na, mga bata pa lang sila, eh natututo nang magtanim. Na-oorient din sa kahalagahan ng pagtatanim”, [The initiative is good as kids become aware early on, as they are oriented on the value of planting trees], said Leonora Robles, a teacher from Sitio Buga Elementary School, a beneficiary of the family’s One Child, One Tree Movement.
No doubt, the selfless and impactful work of the Sali family for the environment could not be more timely or relevant. In light of the world that we live in, initiatives such as the One Child, One Tree movement are truly deserving of emulation and praise, and we thank the Jollibee Family Values Awards (JFVA) for bringing recognition to their efforts.