theguardian.com
'I see them like my own children': reforesting Ethiopia with 50bn trees, one step at a time
When Halima Kedir first began planting trees, she was met with scepticism and even mockery. “My neighbours discouraged me,” she recalls, sitting on a wooden chair in her garden, which is lush with the trees and fruits she has planted – banana, olive and grevillea among them. “They thought I was striving for nothing, but with time, many are realising that trees can be part of the solution to our problems as a way to fight climate change and food insecurity,” she says. Kedir, 35, who lives in the Berbere district of Ethiopia’s Oromia region, became an accidental environmentalist after planting thousands of trees – she has lost count of how many – inspiring others to follow suit. In a nation with a history of large-scale deforestation, Kedir’s work has not been easy. It has required moral courage and practical endurance. As her trees took root and her surroundings became greener, the people who doubted began to respect what she was doing, she says. “Now, everything has changed. Those who tried to dissuade me are envious of my effort and commitment.” For Kedir, trees are more than just plants, they are living companions and part of a solution to some...
