Life New Zealand helps turn 2020 disappointments into hope

When travellers are able to travel again, they can visit the tree that they helped grow, either in Northland or Queenstown.

New Delhi: It’s been a tough year, with cancellations, postponements, and missed weddings, graduations, birthdays and celebrations. As the first country in the world to welcome in 2021, New Zealand is well placed to make sure that it starts off with a dose of positivity.

Tourism New Zealand is partnering with Trees That Count to build a Forest of Hope. Share your disappointment from 2020 and they will help to turn it into hope by planting a native tree. Give back to yourself, gift a tree to a friend, or simply better the environment by purchasing a tree for $10NZD. When travellers are able to travel again, they can visit the tree that they helped grow, either in Northland or Queenstown.

Forest of Hope went live on December 2 at 3 am NZT / December 1 at 7.30 pm IST and will end on December 31, 2020.

Trees That Count is a conservation charity that started in November 2016. Their vision is to help plant 200 million native trees across the country, done through a community marketplace that connects tree funders to tree planters. Since they started, they have planted over 32,432,000 trees. That’s a lot of trees!

Over 50 years, these native trees have the potential to remove a lot of the carbon dioxide that would otherwise be sitting in our atmosphere, estimated between 5 to over 7 million tonnes of it.

Over 500,000 trees have been gifted since it started, with over 500 planting projects taking place and almost 15,000 funders and planters lending their support.

Trees That Count is New Zealand’s community marketplace to connect tree funders and planters.

Becoming a part of this movement is contributing to an initiative that will make a lasting difference to New Zealand and benefits the climate of the world over. One of the best actions we can take to tackle climate change and to improve our environment is to plant more native trees.

Watch the Forest of Hope video and motivate yourself and those around you to plant some seeds of hope.

Commenting on the partnership with Tourism New Zealand, CEO Adele Fitzpatrick, Trees That Count says: “Our partnership with Tourism NZ will enable us to extend our optimism for the environment to audiences outside of New Zealand, with the message that native trees are part of our culture, wellbeing and future prosperity. Native trees are one of the most powerful tools we have available to help fight climate change while protecting our unique biodiversity, and it reinforces existing international visions of Aotearoa as a country of breath-taking natural beauty, outdoor adventure, and unique experiences keyed to nature.”