Scotiabank invests in tree planting initiative, encourages students to be champions of the environment

April 27, 2022 – St. Ann, Jamaica – Scotiabank recently invested $700,000 to encourage Jamaican students to care for the environment and support the national strategies for climate change preparation.

The donation funded the United Way of Jamaica’s Trees for Life initiative, which is aimed at planting 1,000 trees as part of the Forestry Department's National Tree Planting Initiative to plant three million trees in three years to support national development in the areas of climate change and reforestation efforts. The programme is also aimed at increasing forest cover and establishing high value green spaces on the island.

Under this project, 1000 fruit and ornamental trees purchased from the Forestry Department will in collaboration with the National Secondary Students Council and other stakeholders be planted at over 100 primary and secondary schools across Jamaica.

The project was officially launched on Earth Day (Friday, April 22) in a brief ceremony held at the York Castle High School in Browns Town, St. Ann. Speaking at the launch, Frederick Green, Director, Credit Solutions at Scotiabank noted that the Bank is a champion for protecting the environment and lauded the participants for investing in the environment for a better tomorrow.

“Our support of this project and our partnership with the various stakeholders is important to us. We are happy to be able to instill in our youth the importance of green spaces within the environment and involving them in making an investment in their future,” Green, who is also a past student of the York Castle High School, said.

“With climate change being such a threat to our nation, it is important that we get all hands on deck to prepare ourselves and protect our beautiful island home,” Green added.

Stephi-Ann Wray, Projects and Programmes Coordinator at the UWJ, gave an overview of the project and outlined that

“Over the years, UWJ has used our network of volunteers to raise funds in support of projects in the areas of health, education, income generation and community development. We are happy to have Scotiabank on board for this project as we continue our work to enhance our country through this combination of education, community development and environmental preservation,” she said.

She continued: “Trees have an impact wherever they are planted trees support biodiversity, enhance soil nutrition and provide a buffer from natural disasters. These are things students should learn and take with them into adulthood so they can respect and care for our environment.”

The multi-sectoral tree planting initiative began on April 21.