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At Nepal’s sacred Garden of Lumbini, the birthplace of Lord Buddha, Earth Hour 2011 was celebrated with a commitment to plant 108,000 saplings over the course of the year as part of a 10-year project to plant one million trees at the world heritage site.
A cooperation of Lumbini Development Trust and WWF Nepal, the ambitious program engaged the active participation of the public and private sector and individuals from all walks of life. Thanks to this community-driven effort the 12-month target was achieved in half the time with WWF Nepal announcing in September that the last of the 108,000 saplings had been planted.
In keeping with the original ambience of the Lumbini Garden, tree specimens that are believed to have existed in the time of Lord Buddha, such as Ashoka, Sal and Pipal, have been planted, while all monasteries throughout the complex have made a further commitment to switch to energy efficient light bulbs.
In addition to its spiritual significance, Lumbini is an important carbon sink and the plan to plant one million trees in the sacred site is an important measure towards mitigating the effects of climate change in Nepal.
Image (C) WWF Nepal/Min Bajracharya.
