Mazingira Day is a great reminder to all Kenyans that environmental restoration begins with each of us taking personal responsibility as it should always be.
Every action we take today including the planting of trees, is for our own benefit as Kenyans because when our lands are fertile, and the trees are able to attract more rain and even give us food and an income especially the fruit trees, then we are a step closer to food security even in our schools and everyone is happy.
So we should all take pride in this day and ensure that we do something to green our environment that even our children and future generations will take pride in and thank us for.
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Through the Green Generation Initiative, my team and I have spent this season donating and planting Hass avocado tree seedlings in schools across Kenya, not just to mark the day, but to grow living legacies that will feed and sustain generations.
We have also adopted 10 schools as part of the Mau Forest Complex – Integrated Conservation and Livelihoods Improvement Program (MFC-ICLIP) where we will walk the journey with them to ensure the avocado tree seedlings grow to maturity.
I truly appreciate the fact that October 10 was made a day for action and a day meant to reconnect Kenyans with the land, their former schools, and their shared duty to care for the environment.
However, while the renaming of this day from Moi Day to Huduma Day, then Utamaduni Day, and now Mazingira Day reflects Kenya’s evolving national priorities, what truly matters is consistency and commitment beyond the symbolism.
Environmental action cannot just be a one-day affair, it must be an everyday culture. The 15-billion-tree initiative on the other hand is a great bold and visionary goal.
But it will only be achievable if every Kenyan takes it as a personal responsibility and if we shift completely beyond ceremonial planting only and focus on growing trees; ensuring they survive, thrive, and transform our landscapes and lives.
That means even investing in follow-up care, monitoring, and community ownership, especially by the youth, schools and communities. It also means aligning tree growing with livelihoods improvement programs so that communities see value and stay in it for the long term.
Environmental conservation and Tree growing should be a lifestyle that we all embark on in our day to day lives and not one off.
Elizabeth Wathuti, O.G.W Founder and CEO, Green Generation Initiative (GGI)
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By Elizabeth Wathuti