24 May 2024, Siniloan, Laguna, Sierra Madre Mountain Range. In a significant move towards environmental conservation, Tiktok Philippines, in collaboration with GOODERA, conducted their first-ever tree planting activity at the UP Laguna Quezon Land Grant in Siniloan, Laguna.
600 native Philippine forest trees were planted by 30 enthusiastic TikTok ecowarriors, who added 150 marang, 150 calumpit, 150 catmon, and 150 wild rambutan to the Sierra Madres Mountain Range.
This initiative marks a crucial step for TikTok Philippines’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) journey focused on ecological sustainability.
Forest guardians involved are: Allan Libarnes, Joel Velina, Randy Velina, Wally Gomez, Kiko Manzanilla, Eric Veribi, Shermae Canzana and Rose Bocado.
Thank you TikTok and Goodera for committing to a partnership for the restoration of the Philippine’s lost forest cover, but also to supporting the local communities whose livelihoods livelihoods depend greatly on the sustainable management of our country’s natural resources and critical ecosystems.
Photo Collage
GPS Coordinates of Planting Site
Use any GPS (Global Positioning System) software / applications to input the latitude and longitude coordinates to be able to remotely see the location of your trees planted. Some examples include:
About Tik Tok
TikTok is a social media platform for creating, sharing and discovering short videos. The app is used by young people as an outlet to express themselves through singing, dancing, comedy, and lip-syncing, and allows users to create videos and share them across a community.
For more, visit: https://www.tiktok.com/about?lang=en
About Goodera
What does engineering have to do with volunteering? I’ve spent a decade answering that question. When people volunteer, walls come down, communities are strengthened, and a chain reaction of positive impact begins. It’s not linear impact, it’s exponential. As an engineer, I wanted to understand how this experience could be measured and scaled.
For too long, volunteering has been limited and cumbersome, overly-dependent on the motivation of a passionate few, and too often a burden for nonprofits with limited resources to coordinate. Everything else in our modern life was so simple and frictionless—why not this?
I founded Goodera to harness the power of human goodness and propel employee volunteering into the 21st century, using innovation to expand reach, and data to measure the outcomes. The backbone of our unmatched global infrastructure is technology, allowing us to have a worldwide presence while keeping a hyperlocal focus. By doing so, we’ve enabled literally millions more people to volunteer by making it accessible, engaging, and impactful.
I believe the world is hungry for connection and purpose. People want to do good, but often don’t know where to begin. Volunteering is an important way to connect with others while creating impact for communities, and with Goodera, we’re making it a way of life.
- Abhishek Humbad, Founder & CEO
For more, visit: goodera.com/about/about-us
Community-Based Ridge to REEForestation in the Philippines
By Chat GPT (https://chat.openai.com/c/3941fc4a-04d3-494c-ad4a-7f8a1bf6075c)
The Ridge-to-Reef approach in environmental management refers to the integrated management of land, freshwater, coastal, and marine resources within a watershed or ecosystem. This approach recognizes the interconnectedness of these systems and aims to address issues holistically to achieve sustainable and resilient ecosystems.
In the context of the Philippines, a country known for its rich biodiversity and extensive coastal and marine resources, the Ridge-to-Reef approach is highly relevant. The Philippines faces various environmental challenges such as deforestation, land degradation, water pollution, and overfishing, which threaten the country’s biodiversity and the livelihoods of its people.
Community-based Ridge-to-Reef initiatives in the Philippines involve local communities in the planning, implementation, and monitoring of conservation and sustainable development projects. By actively involving communities, these initiatives aim to build local capacity, foster a sense of ownership and stewardship among community members, and ensure that conservation efforts are aligned with local needs and priorities.
Here are some key components and benefits of community-based Ridge-to-Reef initiatives in the Philippines:
Key Components:
- Community Engagement and Participation: Local communities are involved in decision-making processes, project planning, and implementation to ensure that their knowledge, skills, and perspectives are taken into account.
- Capacity Building: Training and education programs are provided to equip community members with the necessary skills and knowledge to manage and protect their natural resources effectively.
- Integrated Resource Management: Activities focus on managing the entire watershed or ecosystem, from the ridge (upland areas) to the reef (coastal and marine areas), to address the root causes of environmental degradation.
- Stakeholder Collaboration: Collaboration among various stakeholders, including government agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and the private sector, is essential for the success of Ridge-to-Reef initiatives.
- Monitoring and Evaluation: Regular monitoring and evaluation of project outcomes are conducted to assess the effectiveness of interventions and make necessary adjustments.
Benefits:
- Sustainable Resource Use: By promoting sustainable farming practices, responsible fishing methods, and watershed management, Ridge-to-Reef initiatives help ensure the long-term viability of natural resources.
- Climate Resilience: Integrated management approaches can enhance ecosystem resilience to climate change impacts, such as extreme weather events and sea-level rise.
- Livelihood Improvement: By protecting and restoring natural ecosystems, Ridge-to-Reef initiatives can support the livelihoods of local communities that depend on these resources for food, income, and cultural practices.
- Biodiversity Conservation: These initiatives contribute to the conservation of biodiversity by protecting habitats and reducing threats to endangered species.
- Community Empowerment: Engaging local communities in conservation efforts fosters a sense of ownership, empowerment, and pride in their natural heritage.
In the Philippines, several organizations and government agencies are implementing community-based Ridge-to-Reef initiatives across different regions. These initiatives often receive support from international donors, NGOs, and academic institutions, which provide funding, technical expertise, and capacity-building support.
Overall, community-based Ridge-to-Reef initiatives in the Philippines offer a promising approach to address environmental challenges, promote sustainable development, and empower local communities to become stewards of their natural resources.
On Carbon Sequestration – How Much CO2 can our trees absorb?
Trees are often referred to as the “lungs of the Earth” as they are able to store carbon and produce oxygen, which is essential to many life forms. Trees also stabilise soil and reduce air temperature and humidity, whilst also reducing flooding and improving water quality. Without trees, most fauna and flora would not survive, what more humans?
It is widely accepted that a typical tree can absorb around 22 kilograms of carbon dioxide (CO2) per year when in fully grown status, meaning that saplings, seedlings and younger trees – whether mangroves or primary or secondary forest trees – absorb around half, so conservatively say 11 kgs per year (also widely used by most international forestry agencies around the world).
So, over a lifetime of a tropical tree (100 years), one tree can absorb around 1 tonne of CO2. Although this figure seems large, it should be measured in perspective: to date we humans generate around 40 billions tonnes of CO2 each year on Earth. Which means, that we need to plant 40 billion trees annually to offset these emissions.
NATURE IS SPEAKING (Narrated by Julia Roberts)
Check out some of the ways you can take more climate change action.
For example, Climate Action groups are the local solution to a global crisis. Right now people just like you are coming together to develop practical, local solutions and make their towns and cities more climate-friendly. Are you ready to join them? Find out what’s happening near you.
More here: https://friendsoftheearth.uk/climate-change/what-can-I-do-to-stop-climate-change
Contact FEED
In 2015, the Philippine government submitted to the United Nations the country’s commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The country committed to reduce its carbon emissions by 70 percent by 2030. The carbon dioxide reductions will come from the sectors of energy, transport, waste, forestry and industry. Join us! Help us reverse the Earth’s “hothouse climate” tipping point.
Tree-Planting with FEED
Contact us at FEED for more details, to join our regular activities or to design your own tree-nurturing event: info@feed.org.ph or call/text +63 (0)917 552 4722.
© Fostering Education & Environment for Development, Inc.