Under the High patronage and in the presence of H.E. Ambassador Angelina Eichhorst, Head of the Delegation of the European Union to Lebanon, the NGO Jouzour Loubnan held its fourth fundraising annual dinner, “Sahriyet Jouzour Loubnan” on Thursday, June 4th, 2015 at Sultan Ibrahim Restaurant – Jounieh Bay. Celebrating 200.000 native trees planted and its 7th anniversary, this event gathered more than 500 friends of Jouzour Loubnan and supporters of reforestation in Lebanon and was marked by the launch of Jouzour Loubnan’s annual environmental Awareness Campaign under the theme of “بدي شجر لبنان! بتساعدوني؟” (“I want to plant trees in Lebanon! Help me!”).
“This year’s awareness campaign portrays a young optimistic girl whose dream is to plant a tree, care for it and make it grow as she is asking us to join and help her in her mission. Our campaign’s core message is to engage each and every one of us in our national reforestation efforts – and this young girl is leading by example”, explained in his welcome speech Mr. Raoul Nehme, President of Jouzour Loubnan.
H.E. Mrs. Angelina Eichhorst, Head of the Delegation of the European Union to Lebanon, highlighted in her speech that “all of the EU funded programmes on forestry promote sustainable forest management systems. Jouzour Loubnan is one of the six selected beneficiaries that, in addition to the fourteen associated municipalities, benefit from European Union forestry grants that amount to around €2 million all together”.
Mr. Nehme then proudly announced that “more than 200,000 native trees have been planted to date and are happily growing in our beloved Lebanese soil today thanks to all our supporters and donors who believe in us and our green mission for a healthier Lebanon”.
Several musicians, who had offered their talent, made this event a joyful celebration in which funds were collected for Jouzour Loubnan’s future plantation campaigns.
Founded in 2008, Jouzour Loubnan is an NGO whose mission is to participate in the restoration of Lebanese woodland and promote sustainable forestation mainly in arid regions. To date, around 200,000 native trees have been planted, irrigated and protected, across different regions of Lebanon. Jouzour Loubnan’s goal is to increase the woodland area and restore degraded high mountain ecosystems, empower local communities’ to protect, manage, and benefit from the projects and promote environmental awareness of natural resources amongst younger generations.