One Million Trees: Belize Pushes for Greener Communities

Belize is beginning a push to plant one million trees as part of efforts to restore degraded landscapes and strengthen the country’s response to climate change.

The Ministry of Sustainable Development held a tree-planting event today, with participants including University of Belize students. As part of the initiative, 50 trees are being planted at five locations in Belmopan.

Minister of Sustainable Development Orlando Habet said, “These are the small everyday benefits of planting trees that can make a real difference in how we experience our city.”

He said the initiative is part of a broader effort to restore degraded landscapes across Belize. Under the Bonn Challenge, Belize has committed to restoring 130,000 hectares of land, equivalent to more than 276,000 acres.

“One million trees will not be planted by one organisation in one day, it will happen through thousands of moments like this, one tree, one partnership, one community at a time,” Habet said.

Michael Lund, Deputy Representative of the United Nations Development Programme in Belize, said the initiative also draws on the importance of trees to Belize’s history and national identity. “Because of the importance of the tree in Belize’s history and in the identity of being Belizean, is to use this opportunity to plant 50 trees in five locations in the city of Belmopan,” Lund said.

“Planting one million trees in Belize is a nice concrete goal that we can all rally around as one country,” he said.

University of Belize student Sabrina Landaverde, who participated as a student ambassador, said the initiative gives young people an opportunity to contribute to climate action. “I believe it’s so important,” Landaverde said. “What this project does is, we’re putting a foot forward into the one million trees project and getting the ball rolling and getting people and communities participating in this project.”

“Every tree planted represents cleaner air, healthier communities, stronger ecosystems, and a Belize that is better prepared to face the challenges of climate change,” Landaverde said.