By Christopher Tetteh, GNA
Fiapre (Bono), July 31, GNA – Mrs Betty Boante Abeyie, a Senior Project Officer at the Knowledge for World Conservation and Women in Timber Ghana Association (KWC), has called for conscious efforts to re-greening the environment and conserve nature.
She urged everybody to protect trees and to sustain the ecosystem, explaining that the KWC was a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) that advanced sustainable forest management, climate resilient, and biodiversity conservation.
Mrs Abeyie said that the NGO sought to achieve biodiversity conservation through research, partnership, capacity building, and community action.
She noted that human being largely depended on the forest for survival, stressing that: “Our actions should contribute positively to forest conservation”, urging support to tackle the rapid depletion of the forest and vegetative covers as well as degradation of the environment. Mrs Abeyie
made the call at a forum to mark the 2026 World Nature Conservation and Forest Day at Fiapre on the theme: “Bringing Forest science to the doorstep of the people: Conserving nature for climate resilient and sustainable future”.
The event, attended by students, stakeholders in the environment and forestry sectors as well as nature conservation reflected the broader importance of forest and nature for human beings.
It highlighted the need and approach to protect the natural environment for future generations to inherit a richer and better ecosystem, prioritizing ecosystem sustainability.
The Department of Forest Science and School of Natural Resources of the University of Energy and Natural Resources (UENR) in collaboration with the KWC organised the forum.
Mrs Abeyie expressed concern about the rapid depletion of forest resources and pollution and destruction of water bodies due to human activities like illegal mining and chainsaw operations.
She said those unlawful activities threatened sustainability of the forest reserves, trees, water bodies, biodiversity conservation, soil fertility improvement, wildlife, clean air, water supply, and food security.
“That puts entire nation at health and wellness risks if we don’t tackle those threats urgently and with conscious efforts,” Mrs Abeyie stated.
Dr Esi Kane, a lecture at the Department of Forest Science of the UENR, emphasised that trees played a significant role in flood prevention, saying that: “losing the tree means we are paving the way for disasters to engulf us”.
She noted that illegal activities in the forest reserves depleted the forest zone and threatened sustenance of nature for the future.
“As we consciously cut trees, we should consciously plant replacements to make the environment more livable”, she urged.
Dr Michael Asigbaase, a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Forest Science of the UENR, also urged everybody to plant and nurture at least an indigenous tree or economic tree at their homes to help conserve the environment.
“Integrating trees in our lives remain in addressing climate change impacts and disaster prevention,” he stated, saying that: “It will rather take a century to regain the lost forest if we don’t plant now for restoration”, Dr Asigbaase stated.
GNA
Edited by Dennis Peprah/ Christabel Addo
Reporter: Christopher Tetteh, GNA
Email: [email protected]