Watts Up Magazine wattsup magazine online | Page 8

REPLACING EARTH DAY WITH
NATIONAL TREE PLANTING DAY
E
very
year,
thousands
of
companies do thousands of well-
meaning and beneficial Earth Day
activities. This year, however, those
activities seemed to be a bit out of
touch. The celebrations were held at
the prestigious ‘The Hub’ mall in Karen
with Capital FM having promoted the
event across its media houses. But
does ‘Earth Day’ really resonate with
the masses?
The low level of turnout and seeming
disinterest may be a pointer that
there is a disconnect between the
populace and the Earth Day. Yet
the significance of marking this
day cannot be overstated. Kenyans
continue to bear the brunt of erratic
weather occasioned by environmental
degradation. Droughts are occurring
closer together, with each lasting even
longer than the last one. The distress
we are experiencing is severe.
What it stands for
So how can we establish a connection
between the two and rally the country
behind Earth Day and what it stands
for? My view is that we need to come
up with original ideas that resonate
with our people.
Kenyans are unique in many aspects
and they have a penchant for home
grown solutions, must as they like to
complain about their motherland. We
should desist from borrowing ideas
on conservation from the West and
generate our own. Cutting and pasting
from the rest of the world will not cut
it.
We need to rethink our national tree
planting day that was observed across
the country. Every citizen was expected
to participate by planting a tree and it
was taken seriously across all schools,
institutions and homes. The village
headman was instrumental in raising
awareness in homes and localities on
tree planting and was expected to lead
by example. Tree planting preceded
many formal functions. This was a great
movement that involved all caliber of
Kenyans and was spearheaded by the
president himself.
We need to increase consciousness
of acts that degrade our environment
that we sometimes unconsciously
engage in. Walking around the cities
and towns, you will be surprised at
how much litter we dispose of without
giving it a second thought. This ends
up in drains and will only be noticed
when it rains and the roads are flooded.
Then we heap blame on the council for
not doing enough to keep our cities
Droughts are occurring closer together, with each
lasting even longer than the last one. The distress
we are experiencing is severe.
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WATTS UP MAGAZINE APR - MAY 2017