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To get Wales as a nation to help protect an area of tropical forest the size of Wales as part of our response to the challenge of climate change.
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“An area the size of Wales” is frequently used to emphasise how fast forest is being lost. Half the world’s forests have gone already and only 10% of what is left has any protection. Through a project called “Rainforest- the size of Wales”, we are trying to turn that on its head and encourage Wales, as a nation, to help protect existing rainforest and help communities in sub- Saharan Africa to increase forest cover where they believe it will be beneficial to the people, wildlife and soils of the area. Forests are essential to regulation of the world’s climate. We hear a lot of talk about the need to reduce fossil fuel use to combat climate change but 15-20% of man made carbon emissions are from deforestation and degradation. We must find ways to reduce deforestation, especially in the tropics, this project aims to engage Wales in doing that and in time, to challenge other countries to do the same. The project will work in several ways in several places – in Africa to start with because Wales already has many links with Africa from primary schools twinning up to Welsh Assembly Government’s Wales for Africa Fund. We will be bringing together and building on the work that is already taking place and then taking it much further and encouraging more and more people to get involved. Raising awareness in Wales is as much part of the project as supporting work on the ground in Africa. During 2010 we will identify a wide range of projects that people and businesses in Wales can get involved in, through sponsorship, community linking, sharing expertise and through responsible purchasing. It is a partnership project, with partnerships in Wales and between Wales and Africa. Financial details: The project has core funding for the first two years of approximately £70,000. The first project we are supporting is the Mpingo Conservation Project in Tanzania. Funds raised will go towards helping additional villages to register and secure their land rights over the forest around their villages.