Africa as a continent is joining forces to undertake a project of epic proportions. It wants to grow a Great Green Wall which stretches 8,000 km (~5,000 miles) long and 15 km (~10 miles) wide.
Billions of trees planted by hand. Thus providing food, jobs and a future for millions of people who live in a region where the effects of climate change are getting worse every year.
The project is taking root in the Sahel region, at the southern edge of the Sahara desert - one of the driest and poorest region on our planet. Persistent droughts combined with lack of food, and conflicts over the few natural resources that are left lead to mass migration to Europe and other countries. The people in the Sahel region are desperate. But there is a light shining on the horizon.
With the birth of the initiative in 2007, hope came to the people from Senegal to Djibouti. Indeed life has started coming back to the land, with the trees bringing greater food security, jobs and stability to the lives of the people in the region.
And it doesn´t end there. The Great Green Wall is global symbol for the strength of unity and for positive change. We can overcome adversity, and build a better world for generations to come.
The Great Green Wall is a hugely progressive and ambitious project, not just for Africa, for the whole world. It’s more than just an environmental initiative; it’s a symbol of hope that humanity can reverse the effects of climate change. ‘Growing a World Wonder’ lets people experience this for themselves, in incredible Virtual Reality.
– David Milsom, Creative Strategist at venturethree
20 countries are banding together to help making the impossible possible!
As of 2017 the best progress seems to be made in Senegal.
While Ecosia, a search engine that lets you plant trees while searching claims to have planted 3 millions trees in Burkina Faso (you can visit their blog post here. If you like to know more about the search engine, you can read our blog post about it here.
For a nice finish you can watch the latest VR movie made from the mother organisation http://www.greatgreenwall.org here with us
Always remember: change is in our hands!
