Tag Archives: Tanzania

Community Celebrations

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Around the world, people celebrated World Environment Day (WED) on June 5, 2012. World Environment Day is an annual event that aims to be the biggest and most celebrated global environmental day. Its goal: to get people tot ake positive environmental action, no matter who you are or where you live.

Tanzanian youth doing traditional dance to celebrate World Environment Day. (Photo credit: Bird Life International)

Tanzanian youth doing traditional dance to celebrate World Environment Day. (Photo credit: Bird Life International)

In Pakistan, the Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) celebrated WED by “reaffirming its commitment to align organizational efforts with environmental sustainability and energy efficiency.” PTCL engaged with employees by using the message, “Every drop is precious. Treat water with respect.” PTCL has been recognized by the national Forum for Environment and Health for its work on sustainability and won the “National Environmental Excellence Award” in 2011. Some activities include planting 300 saplings on headquarter grounds, replacing normal light bulbs with energy efficient LED lights, encouraging a paperless work environment, and using recycled material for its products.

At last year’s WED in Tanzania, villagers in the Uluguru Mountains celebrated with a project that is raising local incomes and protecting the forest. The project is run by the Wildlife Conservation Society of Tanzania and Birdlife UK and involves working with government, civil society, schools, universities and private companies. Due to income disparities amongst Uluguru villagers and a growing population, the local forests are threatened by excessive destruction for timber and fuelwood, and unsustainable farming practices. The event’s theme was, “Plant Trees and Take Care of Them: Protect the Environment of Watersheds in Uluguru Mountains,” and will last until December 2015. The celebration itself was full of dancing and drama and, importantly, identified the most environmentally friendly

school in the area, and the best village for environmental conservation.

In Ireland, the community of Ballina celebrates WED every year by rehabilitating Lennox Headland. The event involves planting and mulching trees along the coast of the Pacific Ocean with the ultimate goal of eventually creating a rainforest. Starting in 2003, a different section of the headland is chosen for rehabilitation, prepped, and then planted in a day-long community event. This year’s WED planting event took place on June 1st. Check out the photo galleries to see the native vegetation planting projects in Ballina from 1980-2011 and get ideas for your own community restoration project!

Did you celebrate World Environment Day this year? If not, have you taken part in any environmental projects like a clean up day, an educational class, or a fun nature-related art project?

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Forest solutions: Tanzania

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Acacia tree on a sunrise safari in Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. (Gopre92/Wikimedia)

Acacia tree on a sunrise safari in Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. (Gopre92/Wikimedia)

Tanzania has a wealth of highly biodiverse forests. Unfortunately, they are currently under threat from uncontrolled fires, illegal harvesting, overgrazing, encroachment from agriculture and other land use, and bushmeat hunting amongst other things. Thankfully there are a variety of organizations working in Tanzania to help conserve forests and the ecosystems of which they are an integral part.

The Tanzania Forest Conservation Group is working to “conserve and restore the biodiversity of globally important forests in Tanzania for the benefit of the present and future generations.”  Their strategy is to use “capacity building, advocacy, research, community development and protected area management” on what they call Tanzania’s most import forests: those in the Eastern Arc Mountains and Coastal forests. Their website provides links to the different conservation projects they are working on, as well as information about the specific areas (Where We Work) and what you can do as an individual to get involved (What You Can Do). There is even a list of helpful links for those interested in more forestry conservation information: http://www.tfcg.org/links.html

The Mpingo Conservation and Development Initiative works alongside the District Forestry Office in Kilwa, in south-eastern Tanzania.  Their main initiative is Participatory Forest Management, under which communities are encouraged to mark some of their forests Village Land Forest Reserves (VLFR). This puts the forest under the management of the local village, and the goal is to create a truly sustainable forest that both helps the local village and preserves the forests. To learn more about the Mpingo organization and their work in Tanzania, check out this Conservation International blog post, “A Better Future in Tanzania’s Forests.” The post explores the role of community ownership in preserving the Mpingo trees and empowering local residents.

For more information on forestry conservation in Africa (including Tanzania), check out these links:

 

 

Guest Blog: The Time to Act is Now

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Seleman Shineni (Courtesy Photo)

Seleman Shineni (Courtesy Photo)

Seleman Shineni is a 25-year-old journalist in Tanzania with a degree in geography and environmental studies from the University of Dodoma. He is also an active fan on the U.S. Department of State’s Global Conversations: Climate Facebook page. We asked Seleman to write about his hopes for the United Nations-led climate conference coming up in Durban, South Africa (COP17), and about the need for world leaders to address greenhouse gas emissions.  Read his guest blog below.

 

It is clear that the world climate is changing. World leaders should understand that they are in power and have a responsibility to act, because their people – voters – trust them to lead them to a better future.

The truth is, there is no good future for our world unless we consider the serious problems that are caused by the climate change.

Climate change is very important to me because it is threatening my existence on this beautiful planet. As a citizen of the world, I can be directly affected by its impacts.

In my country Tanzania, climate change has led to famine in some areas due to prolonged drought. There have been floods in some other areas, and desertification in the central Tanzania areas of Dodoma due to land degradation and lack of rain.

Because sea levels continue to rise, there is concern the Island of Zanzibar may disappear in the ocean. Entire neighborhoods in the commercial city of Dar es Salaam, our capital, meanwhile, could be flooded.

At the same time, a new desert climate may soon sweep across central Tanzania.

I hope world leaders accomplished the following at the international climate conference in Durban:

  • Agree with one voice to reduce green-house gas emissions.
  • Increase funding for environmental projects around the world.
  • Come up with measures that address the inevitable impacts of climate change across the world.

I would also like to ask them to use a participatory approach when tackling climate change. The community has the right to be involved in major decisions concerning this issue, and people in third-world countries, especially, should be educated about the effects of climate change and how to reduce it. Many of them lack knowledge of these issues today, especially those living in rural areas.

We should all care about climate change because of how it is affecting Earth. Climate change is associated with loss of biodiversity, an increase in disease, rising sea levels and many other problems that, at the end of the day, threaten human existence.

We still have time to halt and slow climate change. Let us make the world a better place by addressing this problem with no further delay.