The Kids are Alright

The students at New Hinksey Primary School heard about RAIN and our work helping students in Brazil to regenerate the Atlantic Forest. They decided to do a "Dress like a Tree" day as a fundraiser for RAIN.

This connection was made via the Oxford branch of Parents For Future, a group of parents supporting their children who are striking for the climate. Co-organiser April Jones described the day:

So many of us are concerned about what we hear of the state of the environment nowadays, and want to do something to alleviate the mess the world seems to be in - yet it's hard to know what we can individually do.

Reforestation, helping nature to heal its own wounds, seems such a simple and natural way to contribute. So, at New Hinksey Primary School, Oxford, we organised a 'dress like a tree' day to raise money for reforestation, and when we heard about RAIN, which is so hopeful and inspiring in involving children in the regeneration of the world they will inherit, it was the obvious place to send the money we raised.

We're hoping it will be just the start of a collaboration that will help our children to understand more about the situation in other parts of the world, and to realise that they can personally be part of the change we need.

The funds they raised are going towards reforesting the riparian zone along the edge of stream that runs through the town of Cachoeira - (read more about the project).

Like April, we hope this is the beginning of further collaborations with New Hinksey. RAIN has partnered with Saint Brendan’s Sixth Form College in Bristol to raise funds for student-led reforestation projects in Brazil. With the generous support of Bristol-based company SXS Events and the knowhow of the Woodland Trust, the school will be building its own sapling nursery so students can reforest degraded areas closer to home.

Several other schools in several other towns have been in touch and are starting to build nurseries. Perhaps a decentralised network of young people learning about each others’ lives and developing friendships can solve the problems that the rest of us have failed to.

If you are a parent, a student or a teacher connected to a school that would like to partner with a school in Brazil, we have made it easy for you.

Download the step-by-step guide to becoming a Twinned School, fill out the form and we'll take it from there.