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One Sapling at a Time

Is a non-government organization run by teenagers across the globe as "we are the future" and "we" are the first step to a positive "change".

The initiative of planting "One Sapling at a Time" is the vision of a 16-year-old striving to make a change by connecting students from around the world to "get their hands dirty" in order to sustain the present and future generations. 

 

The establishment of "One Sapling at a Time" helps individuals attain a sustainable and healthy livelihood by supporting afforestation, urban forestry, indoor planting, and kitchen gardening whlist tackling climate change and global warming by “thinking globally and acting locally”. Moreover, leaving behind a "Green Footprint" across the world on a personal level. 

Through "your" donations and support from following us on our Instagram to being a part of our plantation drives, you can help us change the world.

Let's join hands for a better tomorrow, making our "Earth" green, "One Sapling at a Time". - Hriday Goyal

@onesaplingatatime
  • Instagram
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"Our Mission"

We at One Sapling at a Time are dedicated to working actively towards planting saplings. According to the Journal of Nature & Science, approximately 42 million trees are cut down every day (15 billion trees each year). As a result, we have set a viable goal that we believe we can accomplish in the near future. In the short term "Our Mission" is to plant 10000+ saplings varying from tree saplings to vegetable saplings around the world. Through our demographical and culturally diverse team, we assure you that we will try our level best to make a change both tangible and intangible, through the prosperity of our saplings and impact on the mindset of the youth.

 

In the long term, we aim in becoming a platform where the youth is enabled to showcase their admiration for mother nature and ecosystems. Consequently following a healthy livelihood by promoting sustainable and social activities such as kitchen farming, urban forestry, and forest restoration. As we grow our ambitions grow, resulting in our mission being updated accordingly.

 

One day we would look back at the memories we have built in our community as we witness our saplings grow into mature trees being the bearers of life. Be a part of our community to celebrate our accomplishments, "One Sapling at a Time". 

Hriday Goyal - "Founder & CEO" of One Sapling at a Time

"Why Saplings?"

  • Planting saplings is cost-effective

  • Easily transportable

  • Low-effort planting (do it yourself because it’s quick and easy)

  • A tiny planting hole means less disturbance to nearby established tree roots

  • Able to develop a healthy root collar

  • Growth can be equal to, or faster than, a tree

  • Easy to find locally sourced (local ecotype) saplings, from your local nurseries

  • Easy to start a tree from a sapling yourself

  • Environmentally greener: greenhouse gas emissions during transportation. 

 

It is also scientifically proven to be more efficient than planting matured trees because saplings have a greater future potential for carbon storage. Moreover, trees are of invaluable importance to our environment and human well-being by providing oxygen, improving air quality, climate amelioration, conserving water, preserving soil, supporting wildlife and so much more on a social, personal, environmental, and economic value. 

Picture of a Fir sapling. Fir trees support life by absorbing carbon dioxide and other gases and emitting fresh oxygen. The farms that grow Fir Trees stabilize soil, protect water supplies and provide refuge for wildlife while creating scenic green belts.

"CCC"
(Combatting Climate Change)

As trees grow, they help stop climate change by removing carbon dioxide from the air, storing carbon in the trees and soil, and releasing oxygen into the atmosphere. Excess CO2 emissions contribute to global heating/warming, climate change, ozone layer depletion, species extinction, lung diseases and so much more. Trees use sunlight energy to do photosynthesis – a process that uses carbon dioxide and water to create energy (glucose) for their cells. In the end, trees end up feeding themselves with the carbon we desperately need to avoid getting into the atmosphere.

 

Trees provide many benefits to us, every day. They offer cooling shade, block cold winter winds, attract birds and wildlife, purify our air, prevent soil erosion, clean our water, and add grace and beauty to our homes and communities.

"Afforestation"

Today we are standing at the threshold of an imminent crisis with rapid climate change, global warming, and the greenhouse effect. The earth is gradually losing its biodiversity as more and more animals are forced out of their natural habitat. The only way to counter these adverse effects is afforestation. Forests are incredibly important for the planet. Many of them get destroyed due to human activities for agricultural use, land development, and forest fires. To help maintain forests and bring them back, afforestation is a viable solution undertaken. FYI afforestation is defined as, “the action of planting trees on an area of land in order to make a forest.” The benefits of afforestation are endless, here's a glimpse of it: habitat restoration & improving biodiversity, carbon mitigation, balancing oxygen & carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, combatting global warming & climate change, avoiding ozone layer depletion, preventing soil erosion, maintaining the water cycle, and fertilizing the soil. Pheww! Trees are undoubtedly a gift from God.

"Urban Forestry"

The benefits of Urban forests can be categorized into 3 sections social, environmental, and economic. Here's a brief... 

 

Social benefits of "Urban Forests": 

  • Promotes mental well-being and reduces stress, heart rate, blood pressure

  • Promotes healing – people in hospital rooms with views of trees heal faster (research conducted by Cooper Marcus, 2007)

  • Provides shade to people and animals

  • Beautifies cities 

  • Increases road safety by slowing traffic and improving driver attention

  • Promotes social interactions and stimulates a sense of community, including stronger ties to neighbors, a greater sense of safety, and more use of outdoor public spaces

 

Environmental benefits of "Urban Forests": 

  • Air and noise pollution abatement

  • Provides oxygen

  • Reduces the urban heat island effect and reduces the temperature of cities, helping cities adapt to climate change

  • Reduces buildings’ energy use, including heating costs

  •  Improves water filtration, stores water, and reduces stormwater runoff

  • Provides habitat for wildlife and helps preserve biodiversity

 

Economic benefits of "Urban Forests":

  • Increases property values

  • Creates attractive business districts and improves visitors’ perceptions of them

  • Has a positive influence on visitors’ perceptions of a city 

  • Provides space for recreation and a healthy working environment

  • Provides water waste management and watershed protection

"Kitchen Gardening"

With the rapid growth of cities and urban populations around the world, there is enormous demand for urban food supply. Growing greener cities is the road ahead, says the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO). To repair our ecological foundations, reduce temperatures, and strengthen a city’s resilience to climate change.

Kitchen gardening is a sustainable method all of us can do to make our cities greener. It’s a garden where you grow your own food: herbs, vegetables, fruits. What’s more, it gives city dwellers a chance to produce their own food—fresher, healthier—and learn in the process about local varieties.

 

Fruits and vegetables grown in your own garden will promote health, because they will be rich in nutrients, especially phytochemicals, antioxidants, fibers, and vitamins C & A, without the risk of adulteration and pesticides. Your kitchen garden can be as ambitious as your imagination allows it to be. This is how you stand to gain by growing your own kitchen garden:

  • Clean air: Your balcony, terrace or courtyard can become your green lungs amidst the dust and dirt around you. The more you plant, the more fresh air with good oxygen you get.

  • Herbs detox: Herbs are quite essential in our food which helps in detoxifying and healing properties in our body. Few herbs and plants that are easy to maintain in a kitchen garden are lemon grass, coriander, cilantro, mint, tulsi, celery, fenugreek, and spinach.

  • Aesthetics matter: Plants make your home greener, and more peaceful, uplift your mood, and make you feel more positive (such as vertical gardening)

  • Stay grounded: Modernisation uproots us from the mother earth. As the ancient sages say, our body is made of five components that include Earth, water, fire, air, and ether. So it is very important to stay connected with the earth.

  • Organic vegetables: Growing own fruits and vegetables can offer the opportunity to reduce the number of pesticides that are used commercially, making them healthier.

  • Compost your waste: Plant fertilizers, made from decaying organic materials, like kitchen wastes, will help your plants grow faster while helping you to get rid of your garbage

  • Cheap and easy: Kitchen gardens can help you grow things at home and bring down the need to buy from the market, hence, saving money on food purchases.

  • Recycle and re-use: You can recycle vegetables in your kitchen garden. For example, you can collect your unwanted vegetables and make compost for it and use it again for compost, growing new vegetables and herbs.

  • Combats greenhouse emissions: Instead of going to buy fruits and vegetables, you save the environment by reducing your carbon footprint through kitchen gardening.

  • Health friendly: It is a great way to engage the whole family in physical activity. Gardening is known to reduce levels of stress hormones.

Moreover, it's a sustainable solution to the world food crisis, as we become independent individuals, by improving our well-being and lifestyle into a happy, healthy, and eco-friendly one.

"Indoor Plants"

Indoor plants are good for your health — and not just for their visual beauty. Why? They essentially do the opposite of what we do when we breathe: release oxygen and absorb carbon dioxide. This not only freshens up the air but also eliminates harmful toxins. Extensive research by NASA has revealed that indoor plants can remove up to 87 percent of air toxins in 24 hours. Studies have also proven that indoor plants improve concentration and productivity (by up to 15 percent!), reduce stress levels, and boost your mood — making them perfect for not just your home but your workspace, too.

Indoor plants serve a practical and aesthetic purpose and will enhance your life. They also help regulate humidity and increase levels of positivity — seeing greenery and nature will help you feel more relaxed and calm, which in turn benefits your everyday mood. 

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Like, share, follow, and be a part of our movement. Here at One Sapling at a Time, we offer a wide range of activities and experiences to empower the youth to get out of their comfort zone and work towards a sustainable future. Our valued team consists of individuals ranging from 5 to 20 years from across the globe and diverse platforms enable students to exercise their brains and their bodies. 

You would also get all the latest updates about our plantation drives and individual contribution. 

We value all the support we could get. You could also DM us on our official Instagram page to be a part of our team.

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