National Geographic highlights ATP’s sustainable forestry programs…

National Geographic daily online news service editor David Braun has released a profile of Armenia Tree Project on his popular blog, Nat Geo News Watch.

“Armenia has learned the hard way what it means for a country to lose its forests--and the huge backbreaking effort required to replant them. But in its struggle and determination to restore its trees, Armenia is an inspiration for the rest of the planet,” writes Braun.

“The endeavor to bring trees back to Armenia is thanks mostly to an initiative called the Armenia Tree Project, a program supported by the international conservation charity World Wildlife Fund and BMU/KfW, the German Development Bank,” he adds.

He points out that last year one million trees were planted by ATP, which brings the total number of trees planted to 3.5 million. “A million trees required a million individual efforts--holes dug, backs bent, tender hands placing seedlings in the soil, careful nurturing of saplings to raise them to productivity. All of this is done by individuals determined that their trees will become forests that will sustain livelihoods and restore a vibrant environment,” notes Braun.

“The massive tree planting program has stimulated employment for Armenians, from the cultivation of seedlings to planting to protection of the nascent forests. In many ways the effort to restore trees to Armenia is a restoration of the nation's vitality,” he concludes in his National Geographic post.

Click here to read the entire Nat Geo News Watch article, “How Trees Are Restoring Hope to Armenia,” which describes how people are pulling together to reinvent Armenia’s future through restoring its trees.