PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten — Red Cross and Nature Foundation St. Maarten Re-greening SXM Project will be hosting their final tree-planting event of the year on Saturday December 5th, 2020. The Re-greening SXM Project (an initiative of Red Cross and the Nature Foundation St. Maarten) will be organizing its third and final tree-planting event in Seaside Nature Park. In the past events, we have experienced large numbers of volunteers coming out in support of the project’s mission — to restore environmental resilience within communities in St. Maarten. Volunteers may register for time slots by sending an email to regreeningsxm@gmail.com. Over 330 trees have already been planted within the nature park, and we aim to plant much more on December 5th.
“It has been a rewarding experience seeing that there are many people who care for our environment and island as much as we do. The success of these planting events is dependent upon our volunteers, which is why we appreciate each of them so much. It is always a pleasure seeing our volunteers come back to our other events for the simple fact that they love the project’s mission and are willing to be a huge part of that.” said Ernika van Putten, Re-greening SXM Project Leader.
At these planting events, volunteers learn how to carry-out proper plant transference and various plant-types per area, along with the importance of having green spaces within our communities. Trees help build our environment’s resilience against disasters, improve soil and air quality, and improve the overall health of the ecosystem. This is a message that our project carries, which we hope for everyone to imbibe.
“In the light of climate change and the large environmental challenges on St Maarten, we invite our residents to assist our nature by enhancing natural resilience by planting trees. This is your opportunity to do something significant for the generations to come and help nature and ourselves by planting a tree!” stated Melanie Meijer zu Schlochtern Manager of the Nature Foundation.
The Re-greening SXM team is looking forward to having more volunteers at our final planting event. We would like to encourage the public to come out and grab the opportunity to be part of something great that will promote overall island resilience in St. Maarten’s. The final tree planting event will be held at the Seaside Nature Park, Cay Bay, on December 5th, 2020, starting at 7:30AM.
Additionally, we will be hosting our final community clean-up event in the community of Cole Bay on Saturday, 19th of December 2020. We will be giving away amazing prizes to the team that collects the most trash. For more information visit our volunteer page at https://redcross.sx/volunteer-opportunities/ or visit Nature Foundation St. Maarten Facebook page. To sign up for events with this project you can email us at regreeningsxm@gmail.com or visit naturefoundationsxm.org/preservation/regreening-st-maarten/.
