Tree planting challenge from bigFIG, Africa Geographic

"We will plant more than 2500 indigenous trees in 2011 and will match or better this number in the years going forward," said bigFIG CEO Simon Espley while digging holes for some 20 trees at the Lady Michaelis Community Health Centre in Plumstead, Cape Town.

"The company has teamed up with Africa Geographic to plant trees in partnership with communities, NGOs and government departments, thereby ensuring that our trees are suitable for the area, make a meaningful contribution to communities and are well-looked after."

The small team of 10 editors, designers, tech and marketing personnel visits their projects regularly, to make sure the efforts are not in vain.

Protecting Cape parrots

"Our most exciting project for 2011 will be planting some 2000 yellowwood trees in the Amatola mountain area of the Eastern Cape in collaboration with Africa Geographic, Wilderness Safaris, the Wild Bird Trust, the Cape Parrot Project, BirdLife South Africa, Rance Timber and local communities," he says.

There is an urgent need to rehabilitate the last-remaining intact Afromontane forest patches in order to save the fewer than 1000 critically endangered Cape Parrots remaining in the wild. Aptly named iziKhenene (meaning Cape Parrot in Zulu/Xhosa), this tree planting project will focus mainly on South Africa's national tree, the real Yellowwood Podocarpus latifolius.

"We have purchased the entire stock of saplings from two community-run nurseries and local women from the surrounding communities will be paid to plant and care for the saplings. We are also looking to continue this project into the future, thus providing sustainable income for the community.

"In addition to the Amatola project we support the Slanghoek Mountain Resort near Rawsonville with its riverine habitat regeneration project and get involved twice a year in local ad-hoc projects.

"In December 2010, we planted over 20 trees at the Lady Michaelis Community Health Centre in Plumstead, Cape Town, which will provide much-needed shade for the clinic's patients in the futurre. Our NGO partner on that day was Greenpop, a non-profit community greening initiative."

For more information go to www.bigfig.com/#sustain-sustain2 bigFIG.