Today, the Ambassador of the European Union for the Pacific, H.E. Sujiro Seam and Delegation staff were joined by representatives of the Fiji Ministry of Forestry, Civil Society partners ADRA Fiji and Rotary Pacific Water for Life Foundation, and Forestry and Environmental Science students from the Fiji National University, at the Colo-I-Suva Forest Park near Suva.

In his introductory speech at the event, Ambassador Seam highlighted the theme of this year’s United Nations Climate Change Conference - delivering for people and the planet.

“We are here to mark the conclusion of COP27 and to amplify the message it has sent on the importance of sustainable forest management and conservation, but also to make our own contribution, because everyone has a role to play in confronting climate change and no contribution is too small”, he stated.

The urgency of reducing deforestation and increasing forest restoration to limiting the rapidly rising temperatures across the world was spelled out clearly in the United Nations ‘2022 The State of the World’s Forests Report’, central to the COP27 commitments to sustainable forest management.

At COP27 in Egypt, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, underlined the importance of forests in combating climate change: “Only with healthy forests can we deliver on our shared climate commitments under the Paris Agreement. And only with intact, lively forests can we address biodiversity.”

The planting of the trees was kicked off by Ambassador Seam who planted a shade tree indigenous to Fiji with the help of local forestry students.

“Planting trees is a symbol of peace, and we need peace around the world, including in Europe where Russia continues its war of aggression against Ukraine. It is also a symbol of our thriving cooperation with our local partners. We are happy to have these young students with us, because they will be the ones to see these trees grow.”

Mr Moape Drikalu, Director Operation (Central Eastern) from the Fiji Ministry of Forestry also gave a speech at the event, in which he placed the Ministry’s ’30 Million Trees in 15 Years initiative’ in the spotlight, while further expressing his gratitude to the European Union for its contributions to the initiative.