School kids do their bit to improve city environment

A small group of schoolchildren made their contribution on Thursday, September 20, to the re-greening of Panama city where thousands of trees have been cut down in recent years to be replaced by concrete and glass towers.

To help adjust the imbalance 25 children from different schools of the capital city planted 200 seedlings of trees guayacán, oak and other species to help oxygenate the atmosphere.

The planting, which took place, near Centennial plaza, is part of a joint initiative between the consortium of Metro Line One, the Municipality of Panama, the National Environmental Authority (ANAM) and the Ministry Education.
According to Kenia de Guerra of the department of Community Responsibility of Metro Line One, the urban trees are made possible thanks to a training program, which includes workshops and the establishment of nurseries in 11 schools in the capital city.
The planting is the first step towards an ambitious target of planting 20,000 trees from Albrook to the roundabout at Centennial Plaza.
“What we are seeking,” said Guerra , is " to oxygenate the atmosphere and create in children, awareness of good environmental practices and to replicate them in their homes."
It plans to continue locating places accessible and available to continue the planting process. To date, 2,500 have been planted with another 200 scheduled for planting on Friday.