Mon 11 November 2019:
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Monday kick-started Turkey’s mass tree planting event, which aims to break a world record by planting the highest number of saplings in an hour.
More than 11 million saplings will be planted during the “Breath for the Future” campaign organized by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.
Speaking at the event, President Erdoğan said the event was being watched by officials from Guinness World Records and the campaign would set an example for the world.
Erdoğan said the mass tree plantation event would be repeated every year on Nov. 11, which was declared as National Forestation Day last week.
The mass tree planting event made headlines in July when Erdoğan responded to Abdullah Enes Şahin, an environmental activist who urged state officials to designate a specific day for planting trees. Welcoming the suggestion, Erdoğan said he would make it happen.
Soon after Şahin’s message went viral, the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry launched the campaign in August. The campaign initially aimed to plant 3 million saplings in one go and to make it into the Guinness Book of World Records, but the number quickly grew as the campaign drew large amounts of interest from citizens.
Agriculture and Forestry Minister Bekir Pakdemirli said Turkish people expressed immense interest in the Nov. 11 event, with the slogan “For a Greener Turkey.” So far 13 million trees have been adopted, and millions of people are set to take part in the mass planting.
