In a significant effort to promote environmental conservation, the Rotary Club of Sonde has intensified its campaign against climate change by launching a project to restore a forest corridor in Lazarus Forest, Nandere, Luwero District.
The initiative is a collaboration with Bethany Land Institute, Tree Adoption Uganda, and Roofing Uganda. The project officially began with the planting of 1,000 trees as the first step in the club's 2025–2026 environmental conservation plan.
The Club President, Christine Benadet Alupo, emphasized that environmental conservation is a key global priority for Rotary and a central part of their club's work. The 300-acre Lazarus Forest had been severely degraded by human activity. The Rotary Club of Sonde has pledged to continue restoration work annually until the forest is fully revived.
The project actively involved RotaKids (Rotary club members for primary school children). The children demonstrated a clear understanding of the importance of trees, citing benefits like preventing soil erosion, providing income, cleaning the air, and protecting the community.
Dr. Charles Olaro, a former President of the club, highlighted that a healthy forest contributes to community well-being by improving food security, reducing diseases like malaria, and preventing natural disasters. Opata Peter Paul, the Director of Service Projects, stressed the need for such partnerships across Uganda, with the club ready to extend its efforts from schools in Sonde to communities in Kapir and Moroto.
Sarah Fintetine, President of the Rotaract Club of Sonde, committed to mobilizing various organizations and residents for the cause. Kavuma Derick from Bethany Land Institute acknowledged the past destruction of the forest but expressed optimism that partnerships like this are bringing it back to life. The institute itself has a long-term vision to plant millions of trees by 2050, aligning with Rotary's goal of restoring Uganda's environment.
The project coincides with the global "Season of Creation," underscoring the spiritual and moral responsibility to protect the environment. President Alupo framed sustainability as a duty to future generations, stating, "Our children are here with us because they will inherit the good from our work or the devastation from our failure."
With a goal to plant over 20,000 trees this year alone, the Rotary Club of Sonde promises that its environmental conservation drive will be even more impactful in the coming years.
