Context
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (UN-FAO) along with Arbor Day Foundation has recognized Hyderabad and Mumbai jointly as the ‘2021 Tree City of the World.’
About ‘Tree Cities of the World’ tag
- The programme was started by the UN-FAO and Arbor Day Foundation, an American non-profit organisation.
- The aim of starting this programme was to recognise towns and cities across the world that are committed to ensuring that their trees and urban forests are sustainably managed, properly maintained, and duly celebrated.
- Under this programme assistance, direction, and worldwide recognition is provided to those communities that are showing dedication to their urban forest.
- The programme also provides a framework for a sustainable and healthy urban forestry programme in a city or a town.
- A total of 138 cities have been recognised for the year 2021 under the programme. While Hyderabad planted more than 3.5 crore trees in 500 volunteer hours, Mumbai planted 42,5000 trees in 25,000 volunteer hours.
- The 138 cities planted 38,787,795 in 486,015 volunteer hours.
- The countries with maximum tree cities include the US, UK, and Canada, with 37, 19, and 18 cities respectively.
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Arbor Day Foundation
- The Arbor Day Foundation is a nonprofit conservation and education organization founded in 1972 in Nebraska, United States, by John Rosenow.
- It is the largest nonprofit membership organization dedicated to tree planting.
- Its vision is to help others understand and use trees as a solution to many of the global issues we face today, including air quality, water quality, a changing climate, deforestation, poverty, and hunger.
About Food and Agriculture Organization
- The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition and food security.
- Its motto is “let there be bread”.
- It was founded in October 1945.
- The FAO is composed of 197 member states.
- It is headquartered in Rome, Italy, and maintains regional and field offices around the world, operating in over 130 countries.
- It helps governments and development agencies coordinate their activities to improve and develop agriculture, forestry, fisheries, and land and water resources.
- It also conducts research, provides technical assistance to projects, operates educational and training programs, and collects data on agricultural output, production, and development.
- The FAO is governed by a biennial conference representing each member country and the European Union, which elects a 49-member executive council.
- FAO have pledged themselves to three main aims:
- to raise the levels of nutrition and the standards of living of their peoples
- to improve the production and distribution of all food and agricultural products
- to improve the condition of the rural population.
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