Thornhill eco-team presentation wows in Riyadh as Rev. David Latimer addresses COP16

Utchang Kang, Departmental Head of the UN’s Convention to Combat Desertification, attended this prestigious event in the Guildhall and, in a key-note speech, shared details of the United Nation’s Peace Forest Initiative and the possibility of this being introduced to the Derry-Donegal region of Ireland.

Primarily, the UN’s Peace Forest Initiative seeks to develop a movement aimed at focussing on the twin goals of fostering peace and environmental restoration.

The UN is currently attracted to Ireland, which has some of the lowest levels of woodland and tree cover in Europe. This shortage of trees impacts public health and climate resilience, especially in underserved communities.

Clearly an opportunity is emerging for Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland to be trail blazers for a project that would attract diverse communities to move closer together and simultaneously serve to extend Ireland’s tree canopy.

Ever since the UN’s Peace Tree Initiative was first muted in 2013 a range of partners comprising cross border Local Authorities, Tree Council of Ireland, Forest Services NI, Woodland Trust NI, cross border post Primary schools and American Forests.

These key stakeholders have come together to explore ways to design and develop tree planting initiatives in cities and towns across NI & ROI that would foster cross community collaboration aligning with the UN’s Peace Forest Initiative.

Impressed by the vision developing around their Peace Forest Initiative in Derry-Londonderry the UN extended an invitation to David Latimer to attend the High-Level Roundtable Event at COP16 in Riyadh.

Undeniably, this provided the perfect platform to inform a global audience of Government support, the formation of cross border alliances along with enthusiasm for the UN’s Peace Forest initiative beginning in Derry-Londonderry.

Of particular significance to the audience was news of American Forests coming on board to assist with mapping the entire island of Ireland. This data driven tool compliments the UN Initiative by identifying disparities in urban tree cover and thereby guiding local communities with tree planting projects.

Recognising a pivotal role for the young in the UN’s Peace Forest Initiative led David Latimer to visit Thornhill College to enquire from Head of Geography, Emmet McClafferty, if pupils would be willing to record their ideas for a Peace Forest.

The seven member Geo Eco-Ambassadors Team stepped up to the plate and in quick time recorded a four-minute video message entitled, ‘Planting Seeds of Peace’

The video was played onto six large screens at the close of my presentation. Eloquently and effectively the seven strong team from Thornhill College shared their ideas and, judging by sustained applause at the end, massively impressed everyone.

The girls were inspirational and added value to an enjoyable and worthwhile High-Level Roundtable Event.

Early in the New Year, the evolving network of local, national and international partners are set to re-group to map out the next stage of the journey for Derry-Londonderry involvement in the UN’s Peace Forest Initiative.

Rev. David Latimer receives the freedom of the City of London