A 14-year old Felix Finkbeiner was in Singapore last week to promote the campaign he started – Plant for the Planet – and this week he will give a keynote speech on the future of mobility at the world biggest travel show, ITB Berlin Convention (7-9 March),  when well-known German PUMA manager Jochen Zeitz presents future sustainability scenarios. Adam Lyle met up with the young man who keeps saying “Stop Talking and Start Planting”.

Adam Lyle, Executive Director of Green Biz Check and Sustain Ability Showcase Asia (SASA) reports:

A young man who is already going places, Felix Finkbeiner is at the ripe young age of 14 and doesn’t hesitate to tell people to “Stop Talking and Stand Planting”.

Felix was in Singapore principally to address the Young Presidents Organization 2000 strong annual conference at Marina Bay Sands. He was one of the keynote speakers and was given a standing ovation when he took the stage!

He also took the opportunity to visit some schools here to tell his story and encourage other young people to get involved in his global campaign. There are even plans to open a regional office here for the global Plant for the Planet campaign.

Felix is an extraordinary person by any measure and he’s only 14. A gifted speaker and someone who we will see a lot more of over the years.  One cannot but feel a little intimidated by what this young man has done in 5 years compared to what many do in 50 years.

Positively, however, it reinforces that anything is possible if you have the passion and he has that in spades. So, as he says: “Stop Talking and Start Planting.”

The Plant-for-the-Planet Children´s Initiative was founded in January 2007. It has its origin in a school presentation about the climate crisis of the – back then – 9-year-old Felix Finkbeiner.

Inspired by Wangari Maathai, who planted 30 million trees in africa, Felix developed at the end of his presentation the vision that children could plant one million trees in each country of the world to create a CO2  balance therewith.

During the following years Plant-for-the-Planet developed to a worldwide move:  At present approximately  100,000 children in over 100 countries pursue this goal. They understand themselves as an initiative of world citizens which campaign for climate justice in the sense of total reduction of the emission of greenhouse gases and a homogeneous distribution of those emissions among all humans.

Since March 2011, Plant-for-the-Planet has a democratic structure with a Global Board which consists of 14 children from eight nations.

He has high hopes and a commitment, matched by his achievements to date. This 14 year old, founder of Plant-for-the-Planet, demands from every world citizen to plant 150 trees until 2020.

He has gained a lot of influence in his short time on the planet. So much so that the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has handed over running of its well- established “Billion Tree Campaign”  Felix and company of young people.

Together with children from various countries, Felix Finkbeiner, the founder of the initiative, accepted this assignment in the course of a festive event in the Moses Mabidha Stadium in Durban, South Africa at the time of the climate change conference in Durban last December . Prince Albert of Monaco, who launched the campaign in 2006 together with the late Wangari Maathai, also attended the ceremonial act.

Until now, more than 12.5 billion trees have been planted within the framework of the Billion Tree Campaign – that equals two trees per citizen.

The handover of this important campaign to the children from Plant-for-the-Planet constitutes an important decision, standing symbolically for the trust which the adults set into the activities of the children: the following generation will manage successfully continue this initiative and unite young people all over the world by taking over responsibility for the earth. Therefore the children set another ambitious goal: to plant 1,000 billion trees worldwide until 2020.

Achim Steiner, executive director of the UNEP, says: “Today we open a new chapter with the Plant-for-the-Planet foundation and its network of enthusiastic young people around the globe. I would encourage all those involved in the Billion Tree Campaign to now give the Plant-for-the-Planet Foundation and this network of young people the same kind of support they have given UNEP and the World Agroforestry Centre since 2006″, he added.

The children are proud and happy about the decision of the UNEP and consider it as great success of their present work – last but not least because the takeover of the campaign puts them into the position that the adults report to them.

“This is an enormous sign of confidence and a historical step”, Felix Finkbeiner says. “Now we children officially control the tree counter and together with the governments, companies and citizens we will let it increase quickly. We succeed this challenge with greatest dedication and we will do everything to continue the Billion Tree Campaign as defined by its late founder Wangari Maathai.”

The lately departed Kenian environmentalist and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Maathai who has planted 30 million trees within 30 years, has been the greatest role model for Felix from the beginning on. Her success inspired Felix to unite the children of the world and plant trees against the climate crisis.

1,000 billion trees for the whole world until 2020

The new goal of the children and youth, linked to the takeover of the Billion Tree Campaign, is to plant 1,000 billion trees worldwide until 2020. Through this great carbon reservoir an additional 10 billion tons can be bonded and therewith time is gained to finally decrease the CO2 emissions sustainable.

If each world citizen only planted 150 trees until 2020, this goal could be achieved.

Using a counter on the website of the campaign, which also merges to the area of responsibility of Plant-for-the-Planet, the current number of planted trees can be traced: http://www.unep.org/billiontreecampaign/

Until now, more than 12 billion trees have been planted in 193 countries.

Patron of the Plant-for-the-Planet Children Initiative is the UNEP’s former executive director Klaus Töpfer, patron of the “Billion Tree Campaign” is Prince Albert II of Monaco.

About Plant-for-the-Planet:

The Plant-for-the-Planet children initiative was founded in January 2007 and has its origin in a school presentation about the climate crisis of the – back then – 9-year-old Felix Finkbeiner. At the end of the presentation Felix developed the vision that children could plant one million trees in each country of the world to create a CO2  balance therewith. During the following years Plant-for-the-Planet developed to a worldwide move:  At present approx. 100,000 children in over 100 countries pursue this goal.

They understand themselves as an initiative of world citizens which campaign for climate justice in the sense of total reduction of the emission of greenhouse gases and an homogeneous distribution of those emissions among all humans.

Since March 2011 Plant-for-the-Planet has a democratic structure with a Global Board which consists of 14 children from eight nations.

The worldwide communication campaign of the children initiative is guided by the slogan “Stop talking. Start planting” and in 2010 was awarded the Social Effie in gold for efficient communication.

Plant-for-the-Planet is supported by the Global Marshall Plan Foundation, the AVINA Foundation, the Club of Rome and Leagas Delaney Hamburg. In Germany the following companies support the Academies for the education of the children: Toyota, Develey Senf & Feinkost, Hess Natur and Parador. The Academies in South Africa are being supported by Deutsche Post DHL and Toyota Financial Services South Africa.

In Germany,  the goal to plant one million trees was reached on 4th of May 2010. Of course, further trees are being planted in Germany beyond the one million goal.

Source: www.plant-for-the-planet.org