Yes We Plant
About this good practice
The "Yes We Plant" project in Wallonia is an initiative launched by the Walloon government to encourage the planting of trees and hedges. The main goal was to plant 4,000 km of hedges and 1 million trees by 2024. This project aims to improve biodiversity, strengthen ecosystem resilience to climate change, and enhance the Walloon landscape.
To achieve these goals, the project offers various forms of support to citizens, farmers, businesses, schools, and public organizations. This includes financial subsidies for planting live hedges, linear coppices, and tree alignments, as well as for maintaining pollarded trees and planting fruit trees. In 2020, the amount of subsidies was increased and the application procedures were simplified.
The project also provides free personalized advice through "Hedge Advisors," which helps design and launch planting projects. Additionally, the "Co-planting" platform connects people who want to participate in planting work with those who need labor.
Finally, Wallonia encourages the local purchase of plants adapted to the soil and climate of the region through the "Local Plant production" charter. Every autumn, plants are distributed free of charge to farmers, municipalities, and individuals with large-scale planting projects.
Expert opinion
Resources needed
- Dedicated working groups (sectoral and support: land management, mapping, seedling production, communication, etc.)
- Strong sponsorship at the political level
- Personalized advice
- The annual budget is about 1 million € for an average of more than 50,000 plants planted
Evidence of success
Counters count the number of km of hedges and the number of trees planted.
Since the launch of "Yes We Plant," Farmers have been supported in planting nearly 250 km of hedges and around 10,000 fruit trees. Many municipalities have already planted km of hedges . The Infrastructure Directorate of Public Service of Wallonia will soon have planted more than 260,000 trees. Already, 450,000 Walloon plants have been distributed for large-scale projects.
Potential for learning or transfer
The "Yes We Plant" project aims to promote tree planting and connectivity restoration. The potential for transfer should consider the following points:
Understanding the local context is crucial. Each region has unique conditions, including climate, biodiversity, and available resources. Adapt the project to meet specific needs, considering these factors. The collaboration with local organizations, governments, NGOs, and communities is a key factor as well. Building partnerships ensures local support and increases the project's chances of success. Workshops, awareness campaigns, and community engagement play a vital role in achieving project goals while educating the local population about the importance of tree planting.
The efficiency of a real time monitoring will contribute to actors’ motivation and to assessment of environmental benefits.
Further information
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Good practice owner
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