Tower Hamlets has been awarded ‘Tree Cities of the World’ status for the second year in a row for our greening work, including tree-planting, increasing biodiversity, and expanding and nurturing urban and community forestry.
Tower Hamlets joins the 168 cities from 21 countries across the world to be recognised by the global programme this year, run by Arbor Day Foundation and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
Since being recognised last year, Tower Hamlets Council has planted over 3,000 new trees in our streets and parks. This has been helped by the Mayor’s pledge to plant 1,000 new trees over the next 3 years.
In addition to these trees, the council is working closely with its partners to deliver community led tree planting across parks. Trees for Cities, who regularly facilitate tree-planting and tree maintenance events across the borough, have recently hosted several planting events with the help of dedicated volunteers. This has seen 100 new trees planted in Victoria Park, 50 in Weavers Fields and 12 in Bethnal Green Gardens.
Our residents and local businesses have also been getting involved by sponsoring trees around the borough with our partner Trees for Streets. As one of the first councils in the UK to join the innovative tree sponsorship programme in June 2021, residents and businesses have so far sponsored over 200 trees.
Lutfur Rahman, Mayor of Tower Hamlets, said:
“We are delighted that the borough has been recognised for the second year in a row as a Tree City of the World.
“The council is committed to planting even more trees in our borough, with a £1 million fund for tree-planting and a pledge to plant more than 1,000 trees in the next three years.
“In an urban environment, like our borough, trees play a central role in enhancing our streets and our beautiful green spaces. Most significantly, trees are critical in the local fight against climate change. We will continue our dedication to greening our borough.”
For more information about trees in Tower Hamlets, visit the website. For more information about tree-planting in Tower Hamlets, please visit our website to view our 2020-2025 Tree Management Plan.
If local residents or businesses are interested in getting involved and sponsoring tree-planting projects in their local communities, please visit the Tower Hamlets Trees for Streets page.
Posted on Monday 17th April 2023