On the 19th of November 2021, the German ambassador to Thailand, Georg Schmidt visited the CDSC Forest in Mae Rim where 1,500 trees were planted by the students of the Christian German School Chiang Mai (CDSC) in 2020 and 2021.
The ambassador was welcomed by David Nescholta, the chairman of the CDSC school board, and Markus Brandtner, the principal of CDSC, at the CDSC Forest in Ban Mae Mae, Mae Rim, Chiang Mai. The CDSC Forest started as a school project to celebrate the school’s 25th anniversary in 2019. Since then, 1,500 trees have been planted to offset the school community’s carbon footprint with the support from the project partners, the Forest Restoration Research Unit (FORRU, Chiang Mai University) and the Watershed Management Chiang Mai Division. The little seeds that were collected by the students from Doi Suthep two years ago have now grown to two to eight metres tall.
After enjoying the green scenery and clean air at the CDSC Forest, the ambassador visited the Pong Khrai Watershed Management Unit where the CDSC students were learning about how to protect the environment and planting 600 seeds that will be planted in the CDSC Forest in June 2022. Schmidt said “It’s great to see how goals of the COP26 summit in Glasgow are implemented on a local level, as our children are planting trees for the future even though it’s a very difficult time for everyone due to the current situation. Planting trees is not only a great education for the students but it’s also a very practical and effective solution to save the environment.” The planted seeds were taken with the students back to the school ground and they will take care of the seeds in the tree nursery until they are ready to be planted in the forest.
