2022 is the year of Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and a project to provide a legacy has been launched called The Queen’s Green Canopy (QGC). It is a unique, UK-wide tree planting initiative inviting people to ‘Plant a Tree for the Jubilee’.
The project aim is to thank Her Majesty for her exceptional service, celebrate her Platinum Jubilee and promote the importance of trees to the environment through the encouragement of tree planting and tree preservation across the nation. The Queen’s Green Canopy is an inclusive and far-reaching initiative which will offer a chance for all people, backgrounds and faiths to unite in celebration of The Queen’s lifetime of service and ‘green’ their local communities.
Everyone from individuals to community groups, villages, towns, cities, counties, schools, universities and corporates will be encouraged to play their part in enhancing our environment by planting trees from October, when the tree planting season begins, through to the end of the Platinum Jubilee year.
The Queen’s Green Canopy will encourage people to come together in celebration and with the common purpose of ‘greening’ their local and national environments.
With a focus on planting sustainably, the QGC will encourage planting of trees to create a legacy in honour of The Queen’s leadership of the nation, to benefit future generations. As well as inviting the planting of new trees, The Queen’s Green Canopy will dedicate a network of 70 Ancient Woodlands across the United Kingdom and identify 70 Ancient Trees to celebrate the Queen’s 70 years’ service.
A number of companies are already taking part in the QGC initiative as official supporters, but all UK companies and businesses are invited to participate. What might this look like in Northamptonshire?
- One or more Platinum Jubilee Avenue of medium-sized or large trees. Ideal for towns, large estates, new housing developments and parishes
- Platinum Jubilee Copses on private land or land allocated by the county or council
- Platinum School Trees – schools in the UK will be offered a tree for the students to plant
- Platinum Jubilee Community planting project for youth groups, parishes, residents associations.
- Ancient woodlands and veteran trees with historic links will also be preserved through dedication to The Queen’s Green Canopy
- Focus on supporting the most disadvantaged communities to plant trees
- The benefits for participating firms include:
- A positive message to workforce and stakeholders
- An opportunity to work with the local community
- Enhancing the company’s CSR obligations and impacts
- Good PR
Pin your national Jubilee Tree map
If you do decide to get involved, from October, you can add your Jubilee Tree to The Queen’s Green Canopy map. The interactive map will showcase all instances of tree planting across the UK. Her Majesty and The Prince of Wales planted the first Jubilee Tree in the grounds of Windsor Castle in March, to mark the launch of the QGC. Commemorative plaques will also be available from September.
Find out more – plan, plant and protect!
Why not get a project team together, and not only plant a tree but work with local community groups or organisations to plant several trees? While you may be keen to start planting, to give your tree the best chance of thriving, it is important to do some planning first. Guided by an ethos of sustainable planting, the QGC website will help you to learn about the tree planting season, where to plant and how to secure and protect a healthy tree which is right for your location.
The QGC project is being co-ordinated in Northamptonshire, on behalf of the Lord-Lieutenant James Saunders Watson, by Paul Parsons, the immediate past High Sherriff of Northamptonshire and a local farmer and conservationist. He would welcome hearing from any businesses interested in sponsorship or otherwise engaging with The Queen’s Green Canopy project.
For more information about The Queen’s Green Canopy see www.queensgreencanopy.org
Paul Parsons can be contacted via paul@southfieldshouse.co.uk or 07891 043137
–
Contact Adrian Pryce at adrian.pryce@northampton.ac.uk or call 07720 297402
