Introduction by Ian
Mount Kilimanjaro lies on the border of Tanzania and Kenya, and when our friend Josh came to EA with his plan to go back to Loitokitok, Kenya and invest in tree nurseries and tree planting it was a no-brainer for us to support him. Kenya has suffered with severe deforestation in the past, so right now there are various initiatives to restore degraded land, increase forest cover, protect habitats and tackle climate change. The trees will also improve the agricultural fortunes of the community.
So in Feb 2023 Josh was there, in Loitoktok, a remote Masai region, donning EA merchandise to represent us, and planting trees that we donated. We’ve seen it first-hand ourselves in various countries, but once again I am humbled and amazed to see communities with apparently so little, caring about the environment, we need to change our mindset in the West and learn from people like Joe and others that Josh is working with.
Josh tells the story . . .
“When I was chatting with Ian about my plan to plant some trees in Kenya, to my amazement, he instantly offered Ethical Addictions full support by funding all the 200 mature trees I had in mind. When I arrived back in Kenya this year I was struck by the severe dryness, it has been 3 years since my last visit and the impact of the heat and the lack of rain was shocking.
As I entered the village, Mt Kilimanjaro came into view and slowly we saw the place begin to get a little greener. I got together with my close friends in Loitokitok and began to dig holes, all day, whilst roasting in the sun.
One week later all 200 holes were dug and we began to plant the trees EA had sponsored.
During the planting, we had drawn attention around the village and so by the end of the week I managed to gather 22 men who would commit to regularly continuing the work. They would meet as a prayer group each week and also create a tree nursery. This kickstarted by planting 15,000 seedlings, received from other organisations meaning watering the seedlings and continuing to plant more is possible.
Both myself, Joe and the community in Loitoktok want to say a huge thank you to Ian and EA – not only for the sponsoring of the trees, but the fact that he has set a passion in me for planting trees where the world and our people who live on our planet need them most. Without him saying yes to giving me the opportunity to plant these trees, none of this would have been possible. Thank you.”
– Joshua Metcalf (Friend to EA, Project Lead, and all-round good guy)
