Celebrating the International Day of Forests at GIZ India

22 Mar, 2023

Forests and agroforests play a central role in standing sentry against various health threats leading to global health challenges. Therefore, the importance and correlation of restoring ecosystems, healthy forests, and reducing human health risks is very much apparent and intrinsic.

21^st March has been proclaimed as the International Day of Forests by the United Nations General Assembly since 2012, and the day celebrates and raises awareness regarding the importance of all types of forests. The theme for this year’s forest day was ‘Forests and Health’.

As part of celebrating this day coinciding with its theme, the Sustainable Management of Forest Ecosystem Services (FES) Project at GIZ India organised a weeklong campaign in collaboration with the Corporate Health Management (CHM) team to bring together and highlight the importance of managing forests and agroforests for boosting human health and what can be done to safeguard these natural resources for a healthy future

The campaign was launched with an interactive tree walk at Lodhi Garden, New Delhi which enthralled on bringing people together to understand the high medicinal and therapeutic value of various tree species.

An interesting session by Dr. Gurinderjit Singh Goraya, a 1983 batch Indian Forest Service Officer was held, where he shared his experiences on forests contributions to greater human wellbeing and his work concerning the medicinal plants conservation program in India.

Virtual quiz and sketch exercises on topics associated with forests and human health

Virtual quiz and sketch exercises on topics associated with the importance of forests for human health were conducted for colleagues from GIZ India.

Virtual exchange with the Forests and Climate Change (FORCLIME) Programme of GIZ Indonesia

The campaign was successfully concluded with a virtual exchange with the Forests and Climate Change (FORCLIME) Programme of GIZ Indonesia where emerging topics of common interest were discussed and shared for further possibilities of synergies.

Extempore speeches, painting and slogan writing competitions for school children at the project’s pilot sites in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand were also organised on the final day. The efforts of forest conservation through the action of local communities residing in these pilot sites are remarkable as they are the keepers and managers of these local forests.

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About the project

Integrating the lessons from HP-FES, a follow-up project on ‘Sustainable Management of Forest Ecosystem Services (FES)’ is being implemented by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, State Forest Departments of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and GIZ India on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). It aims to strengthen forest and agroforest management to integrate the Forest Ecosystem Services approach with a focus on water availability. Read More

For more information contact: biodiv.india@giz.de