Month: January 2024

Taking the Next Step: Trees4Trees’ Planting Season 2023-2024

At Trees4Trees, we started the new year early, by kicking off our 2023-2024 planting season back in December. With the generous support of our sponsors, volunteers, and donors, we plan to continue these programs through March 2024.

Since December, millions of seedlings have been distributed from our nurseries to locations all over Java. Each of these trees offers reason for hope. From village to city and from coast to coast, they can help protect the environment and empower local communities.

Rising to the challenge

Indonesia saw its fair share of troubles in 2023. An extended dry season, caused by El Niño, delayed our planting efforts by a month – from November to December. Now the rains have finally arrived, were determined to make up for lost time.

“We intend to plant 4.9 million trees across Java,” says Pandu Budi Wahono, Trees4Trees Program Manager. “This will help around 21,770 local farmers in 231 villages,” he added.

Continuing the Citarum Watershed project

A big part of this program is our Citarum Watershed restoration project. Our goal, with support from 18,800 local farmers in 176 villages in the watershed area, is to plant 4 million trees in the next couple of months.

“The restoration covers areas around five sub-watersheds,” explains Tomi Bustomi, who is our Regional Manager for West Java. “Ciminyak, Ciwidey, Cisangkuy, Cirasea, and Citarik River.,”

Working alongside the Government of Indonesia, Tomi and his team aim to plant 10 million trees by 2025. In doing so, they will help restore ecosystems, preserve cultural and economic value for local communities, and safeguard biodiversity.

A shore sign of progress: Replanting on the coast of Java

In Pati Regency in Central Java, Trees4Trees is creating a green belt along the shoreline by planting mangroves. From 2021 through 2023, we already planted a total of 195,200 trees in six villages. Now, the plan is to extend these efforts to four more villages in the region.

During December and January, a total of 33,750 new trees were planted in the villages of Semerak, Dukuhseti, Tegalombo, and Banyutowo. Khoirum Minan is the Trees4Trees Pati Unit Manager, who says extending the green belt in this way can benefit local communities by “preventing high tides from hitting residential areas and fishponds owned by locals.”

Saving water, improving lives

Last year’s prolonged dry season had a massive impact on local communities. Lots of places experienced serious water shortages, which affected both people and plants. To prevent this happening again in the future, Trees4Trees has been busy planting lots of tropical fruit trees known for their ability to store water when times are hard.

These tree species include teak, kaliandra, and indigofera. We’ve also planted multi-purpose trees like coffee and petai, which are good for the environment and offer a sustainable source of income for local people too.

Taking the Next Step: Trees4Trees’ Planting Season 2023-2024 — (Above) Water sources in Boyolali dried up in 2023, so T4T stepped to support water conservation by planting seedlings that will store water in their trunks, prevent soil erosion, and reduce surface run-off (below).

Expanding urban forests

Our replanting plan extends to all kinds of environments, tackling a range of problems. This even includes cities and industrial areas, where trees bring some much-needed shade, carbon capture, and soil health, not to mention adding a little natural beauty.

Most recently, Trees4Trees has been busy planting urban forests in industrial areas like GIIC in Bekasi, KIIC in Karawang, and Bogor.

another planting event — (Above) Another planting event, this time with AOI & ITS in Bojonegoro, East Java. (Above) Another planting event, this time with AOI & ITS in Bojonegoro, East Java.

It takes a village: Working together with partners

In all our replanting operations, we collaborate with lots of different companies and organizations to get the job done. Each of these events helps deliver sustainable impacts to different areas, from cultural and historical sites to industrial regions, villages, farmland, and watersheds.

Every project is a team effort. By involving staff, partners, and clients as tree-planter volunteers, and teaming them up with local communities of growers and farmers, we’re helping create new networks.

Whether developing skills, sharing stories, or simply making new friends, the Trees4Trees planting season continues to expand its impact. Everyone involved is ready to take the next step on this journey, together.

Tree-Seedling Distribution in West Java

Nursery Highlight: Tree-seedlings Distribution in West Java

Our planting season is now underway. In West Java, the distribution of tree-seedlings, which began in December 2023 and extends until mid-February 2024, heavily relies on our three nurseries. They are Cirasea Nursery, Soreang Nursery, and Ciminyak Nursery. The three nurseries serve as the cornerstone, facilitating the distribution of millions of tree seedlings to local communities across five sub-watersheds of the Citarum River in West Java.

Our nurseries team in West Java has been diligently preparing the tree seedlings, which have been growing since April 2023. We invite you to witness their wholehearted efforts as they skillfully prepare the tree seedlings for distribution through images below!

Our nurseries team selected the tree seedlings meticulously. It aims to ensure the distribution of only high-quality tree seedlings to local communities.

After completing the selection process and quality control, our team packed and categorized each tree based on its type. Demonstrating our commitment to reducing plastic waste, we educated and encouraged our tree growers to reuse the plastic bags previously used for the seedlings.

We appreciate the dedication of our nurseries’ team as they continue to work wholeheartedly, packing each tree even in the rain.

After finishing the tree-seedling packing process, our nursery workers transported tree-seedlings from the tree blocks to the distribution points.

Before loading into trucks for distribution, our dedicated team checked all tree-seedlings and recorded them carefully. (Above) A nursery worker checked the type of trees that would be distributed to the dedicated planting areas. (Below) Our team made sure they recorded and checked all tree-seedlings.

As part of our commitment to the transparency of tree distribution and our tree-planting program provided to sponsors and donors, a barcode attach to each tree. Then, they will be scanned and recorded in our in-house technology system called the GEKO system. This in-house technology allows us to monitor the tree distribution and tree-planting process. (Above) The Ciminyak Nursery team and (below) the Soreang Nursery team scanned barcodes on the trees to record them.

Our nursery team also prepared liquid organic fertilizer. They will then being distributed to our tree growers along with the tree seedlings. We reuse used mineral plastic bottles to store the fertilizer as part of our commitment to reduce plastic waste.

All of our nursery team are working hand in hand. They sticked one to another to load tree seedlings from the distribution point onto the trucks. This exemplifies the cultural spirit of gotong royong in Indonesia, signifying collaborative effort.

The loading process has already been completed and the tree seedlings are ready to go. (Above) The truck was full of tree seedlings and ready to bring seedlings from Soreang nursery.

Our nursery team covered the trucks with paranet to ensure tree seedlings safe and not exposed with direct sunlight or rainfall.

2023-2024 Trees4Trees Planting Season nursery highlight planting season tree-seedlings distribution

Planting Trees: A Sustainable Initiative in Bojonegoro

(Planting Trees: A Sustainable Initiative in Bojonegoro) Trate village, in the Sugihwaras District of Bojonegoro Regency, is landscape that’s prone to drought. Three neighboring villages – Papringan, Pandangtoyo, and Jono – have similar troubles. During the dry season, communities living here experience prolonged drought and water scarcity, making access to clean water a major challenge.

Now, as part of a collaboration between Trees4Trees, Alliance One Indonesia (AOI), and Indonesia Tri Sembilan (ITS), a coordinated initiative is underway to address environmental concerns and support local communities. In 2023, this initiative focused on planting trees in those four villages of Sugihwaras district.

Working With Partners to Grow a Better World

On December 12, 2023, 550 trees were planted in Trate Village, as part of a tree planting program based on the following theme: Let’s Green the Planet, Growing a Better World. The event featured members of Trees4Trees and the local community, along with around 20 volunteers comprising staff members from AOI and ITS.

“This is our contribution to the planet,” commented Cleomar Panno, AOI’s National Agronomy Manager, during the event. “It won’t change the world completely, but at least it will be beneficial for this area, including the local community. And the most important thing is they will be able to harvest the results later.”

This tree planting initiative reflects the companies’ commitment within the tobacco industry to contribute to preserving nature and support the local communities who partner with them as tobacco producers.

Iba Swasono is the Operational Manager of Bojonegoro Regency for PT. AOI, who emphasizes the importance of environmental restoration to both companies. “We recognize that every business, including ours, contributes to environmental degradation,” said Iba while volunteering in Trate. “This tree planting initiative is our responsible action to give back what we have taken from nature. Through this activity, we aim to restore balance by giving back, working to minimize the effects of environmental degradation,” Iba added.

Restoring the environment, empowering farmers

In addition to the initial event in Trate, 5,000 more trees are scheduled for planting in early 2024.

Khoirum Minan is the Trees4Trees Pati Unit Manager overseeing this regional program, which will involve planting avocado, teak, and indigofera trees. Another initiative will introduce four more tree types – kaliandra, petai, water apple, and elephant thorn (locally known as klampis) – selected for their ability to improve soil and conserve water.

“After our initial assessments, Trate Village and the three other villages were identified as having soil prone to dryness,” explains Khoirum. “As a result, we opted for trees that are well-suited to these soil conditions and can address water scarcity concerns. Teak, for example, thrives in dry-prone areas, and water apples contribute to water conservation,” he explained.

According to Khoirum, these types of trees bring environmental benefits but also offer economic value:. “Avocado trees provide fruits that local communities can enjoy, while indigofera, in addition to improving soil conditions during drought, yields leaves rich in protein that serve as fodder for the cattle raised by the local community.”

Sustainable tree planting program

AOI and ITS are committed to building on these positive benefits, with a target of 53,000 trees planted in Bojonegoro by 2030.

This sustainable tree –planting initiative aims to combat climate change as a global concern, reduce carbon emissions, address environmental issues in villages around the district (particularly water scarcity and drought), and support local community livelihoods.

CSR Event with AOI and ITS — (Above) Volunteers plant seedlings in Trate Village, as part of AOI’s ESG activities

Yossy Zahra is the Environmental and Social Governance (ESG) Assistant Manager at AOI. She confirmed that the company’s tree planting program forms part of a wider scheme designed to generate long-term benefits for both the environment and society. In addition to conservation, AOI is aiming to bolster the incomes of local community members through products that come from the new trees.

“This initiative is a component of our ESG program, which covers crops, environment, and people, with a specific focus on the environment,” explains Yossy, before adding that carbon offsetting, and crop diversification are their main areas of focus. “Through these efforts, our goal is to provide our farmer partners with tree products that they can either sell or utilize to meet their needs.,”

At the beginning of a New Year, the residents of Bojonegoro Regency can look forward to a new era of productivity, landscape stability, and availability of resources. With support from AOI and ITS, Trees4Trees is planting the seeds of a more sustainable future in East Java.

AOI Bojonegoro East Java ITS tree planting event

Growing Green: Microsoft’s Continued Urban Forestry Initiative

(Microsoft; Growing Green) It was only 8 AM, but already hot as an oven in the GIIC industrial area in Bekasi, just east of Jakarta. Sweltering days are par for the course around here, in one of West Java’s largest and busiest industrial centers, where buildings and factories are scattered all around, and trees are hard to come by.

But all that is beginning to change. Microsoft Operations Indonesia has teamed up with Trees4Trees and One Tree Planted to launch a tree –planting program that will bring shade to the industrial estate and a range of benefits to the surrounding landscape and communities.

CSR Tree Planting event — (Above) Seedlings planted in 2022 have taken root and are beginning to grow (Photo: Kemas Duga Muis/Trees4Trees)

Balancing development with environment

This program kicked off in 2022 – 2023, when 22,800 trees were planted. Following the success of that pilot project, 19,000 more trees are being planted in 2024.

“Together with Microsoft, our goal is to enhance the greenery and create a healthier environment in industrial areas,” explains Pandu Budi Wahono, Trees4Trees’ Program Manager.

Trees chosen for the program include gmelina and rain trees, which can provide some much-needed shade. Other, multipurpose trees like petai, durian, and jackfruit have also been chosen, as they can provide fruit and other resources for the local community.

Regreening the urban jungle

In December 2023, 500 new trees were planted in GIIC by a team of volunteers made up of Microsoft staff, partners, and clients marking the starting of the tree-planting initiative.

“This tree –planting event serves as a reminder for those of us, who work in the technology field, about the significance of environmental protection,” said Elizabeth Simatupang, who is the Data Center Operations Manager at Microsoft Operation Indonesia.

She also revealed that volunteering had made her more aware of the many benefits trees can offer. “I hope the trees we’ve planted will produce more oxygen and be beneficial to the environment, aligning with our motto: Technology should not cost the Earth,” she added.

Gavin Hodge is DCD Project Manager at Microsoft Operations Indonesia. This was his second time volunteering with Trees4Trees, and he felt energized to see so many people working to support the environment.

“It’ is great to see so many people get involved,” said Gavin, referring to the various Microsoft partners and team members onboard with the project. “I hope big trees will stay here for a long time and remove carbon dioxide, making it a better place to live,” he added.

A watershed moment for urban replanting

Although the program focuses on creating an urban forest, improving degraded land and providing tree cover, its goals go even further. The industrial areas are located downstream of the Citarum river, specifically alongside the Cipamingkis and Cikalapa rivers., The program aims to restore the watershed and return forest cover to the region, addressing a range of complex challenges triggered by developmental pressures.

Amung is a local farmer and one of the project partners, who helps out by growing trees for the planting activities. In recent times, he’s seen the dangers of deforestation and land degradation firsthand: “Recently, when the river burst its banks and flowed into my field, many of my plants were lost.” He blames excessive upstream development for the flood, noting that severe river siltation left the rainwater with nowhere else to go.

The benefits of Microsoft’s extended planting program spread beyond the industrial estate and into the surrounding landscape, impacting lives and livelihoods in unexpected ways. In addition to providing shade and restoring the watershed, planting trees here can help prevent flooding and protect local farmers from potential ruin. Technology shouldn’t cost the Earth. Thanks to the latest initiatives by Microsoft and partners, development is headed in a more positive direction.

Watch the video: Urban Forestry Tree-planting with Microsoft

Writer: V. Arnila Wulandani. Editor: Christopher Alexander

bekasi citarum restoration karawang microsoft reforestation urban forestry