March 12, 2009 is China’s thirty-first Arbor Day, or Trees Planting Day. Designated by the National People’s Congress (NPC, China’s top legislature) in 1979, the day commemorates the passing of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, China’s democratic revolution forerunner, who died on March 12, 1925. A subsequent 1981 NPC resolution stated that “all able-bodied Chinese citizens older than age 11 have an obligation to plant three to five trees every year”. Many Chinese people have participated in trees planting over the past two decades as a event hosted by their employers or schools that have been required by the government.

However, a recent survey pointed out that on average, less than 50% of people in China fulfill this obligation. As for the corporation units which are a very important structure in China, about 64% organize their employees to plant trees annually, 26% do so sometimes, and 10% never.

This year, China Green Foundation (CGF), China Population Welfare Foundation and the SETV co-organized the first “China Online Trees Planting Festival” in Beijing. The number of Chinese using internet has exceeded 300 million and become No.1 in the world. Therefore, the organizers of Online Trees Planting Festival expect that the wide coverage of internet can not only bring about great changes to the society and life, but also create diverse and convenient platforms for the greenery and philanthropy career.

China Green Foundation  is a national non-profit organization focused on supporting and developing forestation in China. CGF raises and utilizes funds to expand green land, plant trees, and contribute to the development of a global ecological balance. It claimed 120 million trees planting in 2007 and more than 150 million in 2008.

The CGF initiated the New Green Carbon Fund two years ago, mobilizing enterprises, organizations and individuals to join forest protection activities to sequestrate carbon dioxide. Forest is the largest carbon storage in terrestrial ecosystem, serving to absorb carbon dioxide from atmosphere via photosynthesis and alleviate worldwide climate change. It is reported that each cubic meter grew of tree can absorb 1.83 tons of carbon dioxide and release 1.62 tons of oxygen. The idea of “purchasing carbon currency online” generated from this New Green Carbon Fund became a crucial inspiration fountain for the current Online Tree Planting Festival.

People can easily register on the website, fill in the number of trees they want to “be responsible for” (5 Yuan for each tree), and pay the fees by credit or debit cards online. The money raised by this way is allocated to trees planting in Western China. After donation, people will “get” a virtual tree online, and they must “water” it regularly toward fruition and receive supervision and comment from others. Up till now, 2117 people, 80 organizations have contributed to over 800 thousand Yuan and 150 thousand trees. The data is under frequent update.

So where on earth are the trees actually planted? The answer is Tongwei County, Gansu Province. The local eco-environment in Gansu Province has deteriorated seriously. About 94% of the land in this place has been encroached by desert and the sand dunes are still advancing in a speed of 3 to 4 meters per year toward the green land. At the same time, Gansu residents are inflicted by poverty, thus forming a vicious loop. CGF chooses to plant Hippophae rhamnoides here and let local communities take care of them. Hippophae rhamnoides is suitable for growing in semi-dry regions and boasts very high medical functions and economic values. Therefore, local people can expect future profits from the trees they are looking after now. In one word, people can kill two birds with one stone, or solve two problems with one wise policy.

Compared with forestation activities performed by the government, the survival rate and preservation rate of the voluntary-planted trees are relatively low. The reason is that people put more emphasis on how many trees have been planted and neglect whether the proper species of trees have been planted according to local natural conditions and the subsequent management. From this perspective, the novel form of online trees planting which separates the subjects of donating and implementing might help to get rid of the limitations of time, space, knowledge, optimize the allocation of resources and avoid such problems.

(Translated and compiled by Shen Yongmei, edited by Xing)