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2023

The Big Give Campaign – A BIG Thank You!

  • by TCW

A BIG thank you to everyone who participated in the Big Give Green Match Fund and helped us raise £16,990 for further habitat restoration and development of community renewable energy projects in India! It was great to be part of the week-long fundraise campaign with Big Give and to be fundraising alongside other important green-minded projects. There is much to do!

India is ranked as the 7th country most vulnerable to climate change and its future effects, scoring 16.67 on the Climate Risk Index (2019). In 2019, India had the highest fatalities as well as the highest financial losses adjusted for Purchase Power Parity while as a developing country. India’s electricity consumption has increased 459% since 1990, and emissions have increased by 335% as India remains a fossil fuel power based country where at least 70% of the electricity still comes from coal power plants – emitting high levels of CO2 and creating high levels of air and water pollution that cause long term health issues for locals.

The Converging World believes that global problems need global solutions. Investing in renewable energy in India captures the growing need for clean energy and an even bigger impact on carbon avoidance. Our investment in 4.2MW wind turbines deliver c8,000 tonnes carbon avoidance impact per annum – 4 times that in the UK. The profits from sale of clean energy to local communities and businesses are then used to support programs for community empowerment, habitat restoration and providing employment opportunities for women.

Donations received from the Green Match Fund will help us enhance our climate action through our core charitable objectives of access to sustainable and affordable energy, ecological restoration and poverty alleviation. We plan on working closely with our partners – Pitchandikulam Forest – to deliver holistic sustainable development projects for climate vulnerable communities in South India.

Stay tuned for updates on our activities and progress!

2020

Colston’s School: Plant Trees for Students

  • by TCW

About:

The Converging World has been working alongside Colston’s School to deliver a tree planting initiative that is beneficial to both people and the planet, through educational and ecological objectives.

This initiative would not be possible without the generous involvement of the Society of Merchant Venturers (SMV) Social Enterprise Committee that has committed to £2.8K in donation funds to the cause.

100percent of these funds are going directly to TCW’s reforestation partners in India. There are currently 800 students across Colston’s Upper and Lower School. At £3.50 per tree, these funds will enable a tree to be planted on behalf of every one of these students.

By engaging a Bristol based charity with a Bristol based school, to plant trees in India, this initiative reflects the widely celebrated ‘think global, act local’ecological mantra.

 

Educational Objectives:

 

Our hope is that by planting one tree on behalf of every Colston’s student, we can foster a sense of personal connection amongst the students with reforestation in the tropics. In addition, facilitating a sense of empowerment by enabling these students to assume an active role in the fight to combat climate change.

Direct engagement from the students is essential in achieving these outcomes. Due to the covid-19 pandemic that has come to define this moment in time, TCW was not able to visit the school and deliver an in-person presentation to the students about the project. In light of this, we resorted to delivering the educational dimension of the project in the form of a video that would be shown to students during their assembly.

The student charity committee, made of up 8 students, came up with their own list of questions for TCW about the project and ecological restoration more broadly. These were answered over a video call in the style of an interview between the students and a TCW representative.

Allowing the students to come up with their own questions, based on their existing knowledge of the issues, allowed for an educational video that was tailored to the age cohort and ensured they got the most out of the experience.

 

Ecological Impacts:

Each tree planted is estimated to sequester 1.1tonnes of CO2 over its 100-year lifetime. The majority of which will take place in the first 20-50 years of growth.

By planting 800 trees, Colston’s School, in conjuncture with the SMV and TCW, will help sequester 880tonnes of CO2 from the atmosphere. This is the equivalent of balancing the carbon footprint of 166 UK citizens in 2020. In addition, these 800 trees will generate 8000 square meters of Tropical Dry Evergreen Forest (TDEF) cover – a forest the size of 1.5 football fields.

 

Overall Project Outcomes:

 We hope this successful pilot project can serve as an example going forward for further school involvement in reforestation and ecological restoration efforts across the globe.

2018

The Forest the Size of Universities

  • by TCW

We believe universities can be a major part of ‘The Forest the Size of Anywhere’ movement. Universities are some of the UK’s longest standing institutions, proud to be world leaders in the objective of making the world a better place, whether that’s in science, medicine, human rights, or technology. Now they have the opportunity to be world leaders in sustainability; can British universities become globally renowned institutions in directing money and resources to parts of the world in need of reforestation? With The Forest the Size of Anywhere now is the chance!

Read more “The Forest the Size of Universities” →