Japanese ‘eco-voluntourists’ plant gardens at Bay schools
26 November 2010
Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism (NMBT) marketing manager, Titus Chuene, endorsed the project saying the Japanese group was leading by example.
“We wish more people could show this kind of initiative as tourists – not only did they come here on their own steam, but they are contributing to internationalisation, leaving their mark – quite literally – on the Nelson Mandela Bay landscape and committing to sustainable and responsible tourism,” said Chuene, who spent two hours on Sunday at Siyaphambili Public Middle School in support of the project.
The group of “eco-voluntourists” – coordinated by the Wonderful World Tree Planting Festival, a Japanese based organisation – teamed up with Food & Trees For Africa (FTFA), South Africa’s greening, climate change action and food security organisation, and travelled the Western and Eastern Cape planting trees and food gardens in disadvantaged communities.
Zwide’s Emfundweni School and Siyaphambili Public Middle School in Motherwell pulled out all the stops to welcome their international guests, who were dressed in ‘eco-costume’ to get planting with children and teachers. “There are so many lessons to learn from Japan in the areas of science and technology and the promotion of sustainability – I just want to express our gratitude and appreciation to the sponsors and everyone who made this initiative possible. It’s in moments like this that we learn that faster economic growth can be achieved alongside the sustainable management of our natural resources,” said Gcinumzi Nqweni, principal of Siyaphambili, where the volunteers transformed a barren schoolyard into an indigenous garden on Sunday.
At Emfundweni, on Saturday over 500 school children, teachers and members of the community sang to entertain the guests, who were “blown away” by the experience.
“This is my second trip to South Africa and we are so glad we came to Nelson Mandela Bay this time, the reception we got – hours of singing and helping plant the gardens – and awesome experiences with amazing South Africans will remain a wonderful memory, just as the plants will grow to remind those here of our commitment to sustainable living,” said Konomi Kikuchi, one of the Japanese organisers.
Amongst the leaders of the group were Earthwalker Paul Coleman, who has walked over 47 000 km, through 39 nations – including from Bloukrans to Queenstown eight years ago – spreading the environmental message, and Hiromitsu Noriyasu (Tentsukuman), a well-known Japanese comedian and radio personality.
The Japanese volunteers of The Wonderful World Tree Planting Festival planted over 3 000 fruit and indigenous trees, shrubs and a variety of medicinal and nutritional plants whilst on their trip. The group played a soccer match with some Bay United players and visited the Nelson Mandela Bay Multi-purpose Stadium on Sunday as part of their activities
“These tourists have given a lot of themselves – and are making an impact on lives and the environment. Their objectives are aligned with Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism’s green goals, and so we did our best to assist them in their mission and also to engage in mutual learning,” added Chuene. NMBT also assisted with support and translation when one of the members of the group took ill and had to have an emergency operation.
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