TAKING into consideration the ongoing global health concerns, the Boy Scouts of the Philippines has launched the Scouts Go Green Challenge which involves tree -planting activities aimed at resuming the re-greening project initiated by the BSP before the pandemic.
The Go Green Project is open to all registered Scout units from all over the country.
The units must plant trees in their respective home, public plaza, coastal areas, forests or watershed areas, campsites and other places suitable for planting trees, and nurture them until they become ready to be left alone to grow.
“COVID or no COVID, Scouts should continue BSP’s tree-planting advocacy. Let us not allow the pandemic to affect our effort athelping save of what has been left of the environment,” BSP National President Reberto M. Pagdanganan said at the launching.
Pagdanganan, however, added that Scouts on mission should not let their guards down specially in observing health protocols issued by the Inter Agency Task Force of the government.
“The pandemic is real, but the horror of environment destruction and its effect on the world and its occupants are also real,” he said.
B Pagdanganan said the BSP should not stop thinking of ways to help contribute to the betterment of the country and the world by planting trees.
The BSP recently launched its own Urban Agriculture Project, an offshoot of the project initiated by the Department of agriculture. The project aims to teach Scouts to plant vegetable plants at their respective homes.
Pagdanganan said Scouts need not have big plots of land to plant.
“Planting vegetable-bearing plants even in makeshift pots made of recyclable materials like plastic containers can be a good activity for Scouts in this time of the pandemic,” he said.
Pagdanganan bared the BSP has constructed model gardens in its various camps, including the national office, to inspire Scouts to do their own urban gardening. He said experimental gardens have already been conducted in some areas and “are now bearing fruits.”
Aside from pictorials of the actual tree-planting, Scouts who will participate in the project are required to submit narrative reports indicating the number of trees planted, the name of the participating Scouts, places where trees are planted, and relevant information about the activities held from October 15 to December 15.
The Local Council shall verify all the information before it could be submitted to the National Office for judging.
Scouting units may coordinate with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) through the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office and Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office for the seedlings and saplings required for the tree planting.
