Happy Greenery Day! The Kawari Fund, The Climate Daily Reforestation Campaign!

MAY 4TH–JAPAN’S GREENERY DAY

Today is May 4th–Happy Greenery Day! Greenery Day or commonly known as ‘Midori no Hi’ in Japan, is a national holiday observed on May 4 every year. This holiday is celebrated in honor of the late Emperor Hirohito who was known for his fondness towards plants and nature.

It is said the emperor showed his true personality through his love of nature, respect for all living things, and confidence in the brotherhood of science. Emperor “Hirohito was a born naturalist.” Greenery Day is also called ‘Arbor Day’ or ‘Nature Day’. Since its establishment back in 1989, this occasion has been dedicated to encouraging the general public to be more appreciative of nature and to be grateful for its gifts and blessings.   

One of the most common practices during Greenery Day is to participate in the Japanese tradition of Shinrin Yoku, or “forest bathing.” It’s been scientifically proven that the sounds of the forest, the scent of the trees, the sunlight playing through the leaves, the fresh, clean air — these things give us a sense of comfort. They ease our stress and worry, help us to relax and to think more clearly. Being in nature can restore our mood, give us back our energy and vitality, refresh and rejuvenate us.

Shinrin-yoku is like a bridge. By opening our senses, it bridges the gap between us and the natural world. Commune with nature this Greenery Day. It’s a great way to unwind and take a step back from one’s daily activities.

DEEPER DIVE: Greenery Day, Time, JobsInJapan, Wikipedia, Golden Week

KAWARI FUND LAUNCHES

The newly launched Kawari Fund aims to enable inclusive participation of Indigenous peoples and local communities in carbon initiatives. In a press release from Re:wild, the Kawari Fund, a new fund launched last week. It aims to help the carbon market continue to scale by addressing these issues of social integrity, adequate representation and informed participation of indigenous peoples  and local communities in carbon negotiations. The fund will provide a trusted source of financial support in the carbon space for IP and LCs to strengthen their role and negotiating position in the voluntary carbon market on jurisdictional (national or subnational) initiatives, while also ensuring that they benefit equitably from any carbon trading schemes that they choose to engage with. This, in addition to robust accounting and verification systems, is referred to as “high-integrity” in the carbon market.

Minnie Degawan, director of the Kawari Fund, said, “It is critical that we reduce emissions, but too often we’ve seen carbon initiatives jeopardize the rights of Indigenous peoples and local communities, resulting in the displacement of communities, new rules over lands and resources that the communities have not agreed to, or disruption of local governance,” 

The fund will also provide support to NGOs and governments working to ensure integrity in forest carbon markets. The fund launched during the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. 

The Kawari Fund’s core initial donors include the Packard Foundation via the Climate & Land Use Alliance (CLUA) and the Hewlett Foundation. It is open to support from philanthropic, corporate and public sector donors. The fund is administered by Re:wild and was constructed with the support of diverse IP and LC representatives. 

Why does the Kawari Fund matter to us? Unless the process leading to the creation of carbon credits incorporates the rights, opinions and knowledge of Indigenous peoples and local communities, the voluntary carbon market will fail to effectively do what it is largely meant to do: address the triple interconnected crises of climate change, biodiversity loss and human wellbeing.

DEEPER DIVE: Kawari Fund, Re:Wild

THE CLIMATE DAILY 50/100 REFORESTATION CAMPAIGN CONTINUES!

We’re making progress with our Climate Champions 50/100 reforestation campaign, so we’re keeping it going!

(Yeessss…)

Thank you to the listeners of The Climate Daily who donated to The Climate Champions 50/100 campaign! There’s still work to do to get us to 10,000 trees. That’s why we’re extending the campaign through May to give more of you the chance to become climate champions. What’s a climate champion, you ask? A climate champion proves that a small group of people can make a massive impact on the planet in a short amount of time.  

How? Our company, The Climate, is partnering with over 30 international tree-planting organizations–ALONG WITH our climate champions– to re-plant, and regrow forests all over the world, by planting ten thousand trees at a time. Why? Because science says the best way to combat climate change is to restore nature. And the fastest way to restore nature is to plant and grow a trillion trees by 2030, and the fastest way to plant and grow a trillion trees is to replant and regrow forests. The fastest way to do that is to plant ten thousand trees at a time. So, we’re looking for folks to donate $50 or $100 one time, to help us plant 10,000 trees at a time, in one of seven regions around the planet.

(Which our tree planting partners will do. They’re the tree-planting professionals.) 

Please visit https://bit.ly/50-100Campaign. Click on the donate button and join our team of climate champions today. Again, visit https://bit.ly/50-100Campaign. Click on the donate button and join our team of climate champions today. And if you want to start your own team of climate champions, reach out to us at info@34.203.12.8. We’ll help you put together your own small group of climate champions to make a massive impact on the planet in a short amount of time. 

(Planting 10 thousand trees–a 20-acre forest!) 

Wouldn’t it be great to be the change you want to see in the world? Go to https://bit.ly/50-100Campaign and become part of something special. Become a climate champion.  Thank you!!

DEEPER DIVE: 50/100 Campaign, Trillion Tree Project