One Million Tree Campaign pledges get a boost from Jumeirah Rotary Club

Teachers', Jumeirah Rotary Club Members, EEG staff and enthusiastic students of Al Safa School for Boys, fielded shovels and dug pits and planted the saplings inside the school campus. The students took the initiative to spruce up their school campus and planted trees with gusto.

The tree planting was carried out under the EEG - Rotary Jumeirah School Project, which had the Rotary Club of Jumeirah Dubai partnering with the Emirates Environmental Group.

EEG Chairperson, Mrs. Al Marashi, said:

"The One Million Tree Campaign for EEG aims to complement the urban environment and also combat the spin - off of human activities. Planting indigenous trees will not only help offset the carbon count of our daily lives, but also provide a cleaner, greener future for our next generation. EEG is thankful to organisations such as the Jumeirah Rotary Club for lending a helping hand to EEG's Programmes".

Commenting on the campaign Mr.Donal Kilalea, Vice President of the Rotary Club of Jumeirah said, "As Rotarians, our role is to help as businessmen and women in projects that benefit the community, both locally and internationally. Education, health and the environment are key projects for us and we are very proud to be a partner in the school tree planting campaign".

EEG is accredited to United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) governing Council.

Tree planting is a part of EEG's commitment to the UNEP's Billion Tree programme, wherein EEG had pledged 1.5 million indigenous trees to be planted in UAE in the year 2007.

EEG surpassed its target and succeeded in planting more than 1,612,954 million indigenous trees.

The One Million Tree Campaign is continuing in the year 2008, as an ongoing commitment to UNEP and the New Year has already brought together numerous corporate organisations and schools to plant trees for the latter that are committed to the cause of environmental protection and preservation.

The Rotary Club of Jumeirah was chartered in July 2007 and is made up of senior businessmen and women in industries in the UAE with the aim of working together to assist in charitable projects.

Part of the International Rotary Organization, that led the fight against polio world wide, the Rotary Club of Jumeirah is further involved in a micro financing project in Afghanistan and the organization of the first Raft race here in the UAE.