Green Generation Initiative (GGI) planted 2,000 indigenous trees at Turaco Camp in Oloolua Forest on Saturday 10 October to mark Mazingira Day, and said the planting counts only if the seedlings survive.
The event was part of Conservation Is Fun, a GGI experience that brings people together to restore and protect nature through shared action, learning and play. The planting adds to Kenya’s goal of growing 15 billion trees by 2032, restoring degraded landscapes and lifting tree cover to 30 per cent.
Students, corporates and conservationists plant at Turaco Camp
Young people, students, environmental enthusiasts, conservation advocates and corporate teams joined the day, along with people from other walks of life. They planted trees, took a guided nature walk and joined games, colour activities, music, dance and performances. The day ended with participants sharing what they had learnt.
Government officials and hundreds of young people took part. Members of the Oloolua Forest Youth Guardians spent weeks preparing the planting sites. They led the exercise, showed correct planting techniques and explained the role of forests to participants.
Wathuti says care after planting decides survival
GGI Founder and CEO Elizabeth Wathuti, O.G.W, said the work does not end when the event does. “Our responsibility continues after the event, because the trees we plant need care to survive and grow,” she said.
She said GGI will keep running the platform across Kenya. “We want all citizens to find joy in caring for nature and feel part of a community that is restoring it,” she said. Conservation Is Fun puts a hands on role in restoration in the hands of young people, GGI said, so they carry conservation into their own communities.
GGI listed three conditions for survival: suitable species, correct planting techniques and steady aftercare. Oloolua Ward Member of County Assembly Eli Gor made the same point. He urged conservation groups to focus on nurturing planted trees rather than planting alone. He also asked the national government to revive the Kazi Mtaani programme to fund seedling production, planting and forest maintenance.
Wathuti made the argument in an October 2025 opinion piece in The Standard. She wrote that Mazingira Day should lead to an “everyday culture” of environmental action. Khusoko profiled her in April 2025. She founded GGI in 2016, and the group has planted more than 30,000 trees and works with schools.
Oloolua Forest needs the trees
Oloolua Forest sits in the Ngong Hills ecosystem and serves as a green space for Nairobi’s growing population. It was gazetted in 1932 and declared a central forest in 1964. Friends of Oloolua Forest counts 375 hectares of endemic forest, 109 hectares of degraded forest and 156 hectares of eucalyptus plantation.
The forest has lost ground to encroachment, illegal dumping and the Standard Gauge Railway’s route, The Standard reported. A fun run on 25 April aimed to raise KSh70 million for a fence along the 25 kilometre perimeter, and it drew four principal secretaries.
Principal Secretary Ephantus Kimotho, the forest’s patron, said the aim was “to protect every kilometre that remains unprotected for our next generation”. At the October event, officials said plans are under way to fence parts of the forest.
Kenya counts planted trees, and now checks survival
Mazingira Day capped a week of planting from 5 October under the theme “Our Environment, Our Responsibility”. The government set a target of 17.24 million trees for the week. Officials reported 3.3 million trees on the day itself and 4.41 million for the week, as tallies kept coming in.
Environment Cabinet Secretary Deborah Barasa said Kenya had planted 2.2 billion trees by 5 October, leaving 12.8 billion to reach the national target. Forest cover stands at 8.84 per cent and tree cover at about 12 per cent, The Standard reported. The ministry says each tree is to be counted, geotagged and certified, with 90 day survival checks. Mazingira Day became the October 10 observance in 2024, replacing Utamaduni Day, and the 15 billion tree programme began in December 2022.
GGI asked participants to carry the day forward: keep growing and caring for trees, protect ecosystems and bring others into conservation.
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