The world this week celebrated World WildLife Day. It could not have come at a time when maturity, climate and conservation is something that ought to concern you and us on a large scale. More so in such times when we are the greatest enemies of our own nature. We have become so cruel just like a woman who labors for 9 months, gives birth to a beautiful child, then subjects the child to all kinds of massive maltreatment until the child succumbs to death. We have a great role to play if we are to secure a favorable and admirable future of our environmental wellbeing and harmonious living for the next coming generations. Unfortunately, many of us have chosen to close our ears to this alert in life. As mediascape news at streamline consults Ltd we are here to always fight for nature, to remind you about these areas of very much concern, because as always, we care for you to live in a green and well conserved pleasant and healthy environment that accommodates all God made creatures. Basing on such a background, we talked to Mourine Asiimwe, a young climate change activist in rural Kigezi of South Western Uganda where she is using the popular digital media platform Twitter to plant (https://twitter.com/
#MediaScapeNews: Briefly tell us about yourself
Asiimwe: My name is Asiimwe Mourine, a Ugandan Practical Climate Activist. I was Miss Conservation Kigezi 2019/20, the Kidepo Valley National Park Conservation Award Winner2018, Organizer “Plant a Tree Plant Hope Campaign” active member of One World Tree Plantingand currently the initiator “A Tree for Every Twitter Follower initiative” an online challenge where I plant a tree for every one of my Twitter follower(s)(@MourineAsiimwe).
#MediaScapeNews: What is that in-depth story of your life journey?
Asiimwe: I was born in Karukoba village in Buhara sub-County, Ndorwa East in Kabale district. I was raised in a humble family of six children. I am the last born. I went to Kabale Primary School, Kabale Brainstorm High School then joined Makerere University, to pursue a bachelor’s of Science in Business statistics, now I am in my third year. I feel humbled, for being offered bursaries for my studies all throughout until now. Master Card offered me a scholarship due to academic excellence after joining university. That way, it has been easy for me to continue with my studies at Makerere.
#MediaScapeNews: What drew you, a statistician, into planting trees?
Asiimwe: Regardless of the study program I was pursuing at the university, I have been passionate about environmental conservation since childhood.
In my second year at the university, I joined WILDRUN Uganda competitions and became one of the 2018 Kidepo Valley National Park Conservation Award winners. In my third year, I joined the Miss Tourism Kigezi pageant competition with the strong desire to come out as Miss Conservation. From the very stiff competitions, I won and I was crowned Miss Conservation Kigezi2019/20 on 24thAugust, 2019.
As a beauty queen for conservation, I didn’t receive any salary but my passion to conserve has been enough of a self-motivation to take practical actions to save mother earth. In September 2019, I started an active campaign of planting 10 million trees in Uganda named “Plant aTree Plant Hope” without any support.
#MediaScapeNews: How far is your 10 million trees journey?
Asiimwe: First, I lost time, money, I visited many Environmental Conservation bodies which didn’t help either but I remained strong and invested in myself as much as I could. I did reach out to many local communities with an aim of sensitization and also to persuade them to engage in tree planting activities to save the environment. By March of 2020, I had so far planted 205,700 trees in local communities.
#MediaScapeNews: What are some of these challenges you are talking about?
Asiimwe: More trees would have been planted and also carefully monitored till they are mature. However, I have been limited by unreliable transport means. I am still lacking a project Vehicle to aid the transporting of tree seedlings to different distant planting areas as well enable me carry out effective supervision.
I use motorcycles to transport tree seedlings but this transports a maximum of 100 seedlings meaning for me to transport 1,000 plus seedlings, I need 10 motorcycles.
This is costly, time consuming, exposes seedlings to getting damages, it also limits my movement in cases where I have to go far and it also increases the emissions of greenhouse gases.
#MediaScapeNews: This is a very innovative brilliant idea and project despite the challenges, what is your call for support?
Asiimwe: Regardless of all these project challenges, I am confident that if we could be helped with a project vehicle that can help in transporting tree seedlings in bulky and with convenience to distant places, help in monitoring and supervision for the already planted trees, go to far places for environmental conservation outreaches. Then the project would create more impact. A total of $57,000 is needed to have a brand-new double carbine that will have less carbon emissions to the atmosphere and with a longer lifespan.
#MediaScapeNews: “A TREE FOR EVERY TWITTER FOLLOWER” How did you come up with such an idea?
Asiimwe: A tree for every twitter follower is an online challenge where a tree is planted for every follower earned on twitter @MourineAsiimwe.
It’s a typical climate action through tree planting, interconnecting individual’s media presence with environmental protection and also helping to spread awareness about the importance of planting trees across the globe.
This initiative started on April 22, 2020 (Earth Day 2020) on the day I joined Twitter following a Twitter chat invite from Earth Day Network Uganda to talk to generations on how we can protect mother earth.
I had never been on twitter before and seeing people follow me from 1,2,3…. I am interested in having a twitter account. The experience was exciting. This platform gave me an open opportunity to further spread awareness on this subject. I could only do this by practically planting a tree for every follower earned.
This is how the initiative started and I plant these trees in ascending order of who followed first. I established a model garden where I plant these trees and others are planted in community land (churches, schools, health units, road reserves). I have so far planted 900 twitter trees which are slowly building to a #TwitterForest.
#MediaScapeNews: What tree species do you plant and what are your goals?
Asiimwe: I plant indigenous and fruit trees so that they act as a remedy against climate change, restoration of native tree species and for community economic empowerment in future, for instance, the sale of fruits. I wish to plant a forest named after twitter followers (Twitter Forest).
#MediaScapeNews: What is your critique on climate change in our country today?
Asiimwe: In the battle against global warming Climate crisis has become a global alarming challenge. Its effects are real and do not have a discrimination on age, gender, color, or even race, everyone on earth is being affected. It’s also true that the next generation will be much more affected with extreme increases in global temperature, droughts, and water crises, and heavy floods all leading to death. Hence, the need for urgency to act now.
A planted tree remains hope for the future. Trees remove carbon footprints from the atmosphere which helps to guard against climate change. Trees are always on our side in the battle against global warming among their other various uses.
Regardless of the other importance of trees, billions & millions of trees have been cut down without replacement.
Each year, Uganda loses 2% of its forest cover to loggers seeking fuel, building materials, land for agriculture, firewood etc.
If this continues, the country might have no more forests left in the years to come.
And yes, not everyone can manage to go to the fields to plant a tree.
#MediaScapeNews: Where do you draw your inspiration?
Asiimwe: Over the years, I have grown to love to care for mother earth.
When I was a little girl, I would watch my mother do great conservation work.
She was a community mobilizer for the International Council for Research in Agroforestry (ICRAF) then in early 2000.
I much loved and enjoyed giving her a helping hand in planting trees that ICRAF would offer. I fell in love deeply with conservation. I still remember we had many active environmental conservation organizations then. Communities are now no longer aware of what to do to protect natural resources. Our environment has been left helpless. There has been massive cutting down of native trees without replacement, we have lost these tree species, biodiversity and the whole ecosystem.
Climate Change is also alarming. We are now experiencing prolonged dry spells, increase in temperature, for instance, my own home area of Kabale district in South Western Uganda. This used to be the coldest place in Uganda but this is no more. We are heading for the worst conditions if we can’t act now.
#MediaScapeNews: Where do you get money to fund such a project?
Asiimwe: Planting a tree for every Twitter Follower is a 100% non-profit making project and still relies on donations from well-wishers.
The campaign started as a self-funded initiative. As earlier said, I happened to be one of the MasterCard Foundation Scholars at Makerere University. The foundation was very good to us and supported us with a monthly stipend of $200 only for the time period we would be schooling. Regardless of what this support was intended to do (help buy food & other personal needs), I would save part of it and it’s what I would use to buy tree seedlings to plant.
As the number of followers kept increasing, I failed to meet all the associated costs because this support from the foundation had stopped.
In the months of March and April 2021, I carried out my first fundraising and a total of $1031 was raised and I received $961.1 after the money transfer deductions.
This helped me to buy tree seedlings, project crates, cover Labor expenses and transportation fares for the April- May tree planting season.
#MediaScapeNews: What are some of the tremendous achievements you hold unto as per now?
Asiimwe: A total of 206,400 trees have been planted. 900 trees for twitter followers and 205,700 trees under Plant a Tree Plant Hope Campaign.
Secondly, In April 2021,”A Tree for Every Twitter Follower initiative merged to be one of the ShareYourself.Org grant winners under the category Innovate Against Climate Change Uganda and a fund of $500 was received that has helped in establishing a project tree nursery bed.
The third achievement that I am so much proud of is, I have been able to partner with Expedite Wildlife Tours to plant a tree(s) for each of the clients who travel with their company. This concept aims to help offset Carbon footprints left by moving vehicles while on a Safari.
Moreover, I was nominated as one of the Green Ambassadors for Climate in Africa2020
Lastly, I have worked hand in hand with Uganda National Road Authority (UNRA) Kabale Station to plant trees in road reserves along Kabale-Ntugamo road, Kabale-Katuna road and Kabale-Kisoro Road. These trees are now one year old.
#MediaScapeNews: Do you see the young generation emulating your work, what set plan do you have for them?
Asiimwe: I have worked so closely with the young generation especially the girls involving them in practices that would help to save our planet. I have considered them in tree planting activities, visited them in schools for inspirational talks, supported them to keep them in schools and besides this, I have trained a small group of young girls on how to upcycle plastics. I will continue making them love what I am doing, this way we can have a better world.
#MediaScapeNews: Are you involved in any of the climate movements?
Asiimwe: I am not involved in any climate movement at the moment.
Yeah, I appreciate Global Climate movements because they are helping to raise awareness about the current alarming Climate Crisis and much more.
However, the challenge is that the people they are communicating too to take actions for the planet aren’t doing anything on ground. They are instead enjoying the noise, reading about the movements and it stops there.
#MediaScapeNews: What are you doing for a living?
Asiimwe: I am currently concentrating on this project work.
# MediaScapeNews: What are your campaign social media hashtags?
Ans: Campaign social media Hashtags: #TwitterForest, #ClimateActionNow #