Running with Trees
On 16 October , marathon runners and spectators may catch a glimpse of the Moving Forest runners , who will tackle the marathon with saplings strapped to their backs .
This group runs to promote the planting of indigenous trees and to raise awareness for the Running Tree Campaign , which was founded by non-profit Township Farmers SA in 2017 with the aim to reduce food insecurity by creating small-scale organic farms , embark on township greening initiatives , and facilitate climate change education among disadvantaged communities .
The man behind Running Tree Campaign is activist and treegrower Siyabulela Sokomani - co-owner of Shoots and Roots Agriculture and cofounder of Township Farmers - who believes that tree planting and creating environmental awareness should be the duty of every citizen .
Siyabulela ’ s sustainable greening mission started at school . He grew up in Khayelitsha where environmental protection , and as a result , he barely saw trees . This changed when his high school geography teacher set up an environmental club and began to teach students about indigenous flora , which made him realise that he had been living in a manmade desert .
In 2001 , this club participated in a city-wide competition and won several saplings - the first trees he and many of his classmates had ever seen , and that still stand at his old high school to this day … Today , two decades after winning that competition with his club , Siyabulela is a green entrepreneur who sees the potential for the green industry as the key to sustainable job creation while combating climate change and hunger .
In 2019 , Sokomani was elected as one of five youth ambassadors by the African Forest Landscape Restoration Initiative ( AFR100 ), a project that has African countries committed to restoring over 111 million hectares of degraded land by 2030 . The ambassadors are helping restore degraded forests , farms and grasslands , and serve as inspiration to other youth to follow suit .
“ There is a future in trees . And if rural communities acquire the skills to take care of their degraded land , they would be able to earn a living from the land and be less likely to move to cities .”
Participants in the Trail and Peace Runs will be able to take home a Spekboom sapling or a potted plant after their race on 15 October .
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