Environmentalists from Nairobi, Lamu and Nakuru counties have launched a campaign to plant one million trees in honour of Teddy Githinji, who died in Lamu a month ago.
Githinji is freedom fighter Dedan Kimathi’s grandson.
A total of 30,000 were planted over the weekend in Mambo Sasa forest in Lamu West.
Githinji, a dancer and an ardent environmentalist, was on a tree planting venture in the company of 40 other conservationists from Nairobi and Nakuru to mark his 25th birthday when he died suddenly on May 18.
He is said to have fallen ill while in the company of his friends before he was rushed to the Mpeketoni subcounty hospital where he succumbed on the same day.
During that visit, Githinji had intended to plant 30,000 trees on his birthday but died before he could do so.
Prior to his death, the young Kimathi had spent the day planting more than 10,000 trees in Mpeketoni and Witu.
He was the only son to Dedan Kimathi's daughter Evelyn Wanjugu.
One month on and in honour of his son’s dream, Wanjugu decided to see his dream come fruition by leading the exercise, which targets to plant at least 30 million trees in Lamu in the next two years.
Wanjugu, the Dedan Kimathi Foundation CEO, is currently leading a campaign dubbed ‘1 million trees for Teddy’ in Lamu.
She said the initiative is also meant to boost the ongoing campaign to achieve the 10 per cent tree cover by 2022.
“I am doing this for Teddy and for the love of the environment that he had. He wanted to do one million trees for Lamu, but had only done 10,000 at his death," Wanjugu said.
"I will do the rest for him because I understand that his passion meant a better Kenya for all of us.”
Wanjugu recalled how her father Dedan Kimathi died in a forest during the struggle for freedom. “My father died for this country and so did my son. They all did good and died while at it. ”
She said that the Dedan Kimathi Foundation has continued to spearhead tree planting across Kenya as their contribution to combating climate change.
“We have so far done 1.5 million trees across Kenya. Our target is 30 million trees in the next two years,” she said.
The Kenya Forest Service (Witu division) manager Kadenge Mwathethe, whose office is partnering with the foundation, urged members of the public to set aside 10 per cent of their lands for tree planting.
The foundation team leader Kennedy Gichohi said they had come back to Lamu to complete what their late friend had started and called on the public to plant trees for a better future.
“Teddy had a dream and because he is not here, we stand in his place and try to do what he wanted for Lamu and for Kenya. A beautiful world where the environment is protected," Dedan Kimathi Foundation coordinator Peter Murathe said.
The trees being planted are donated by KFS and the Kenya Forest Research Institute.
More than 30 schools and police stations are among institutions set to benefit from the initiative.
(edited by Amol Awuor)
