Swami Vivekananda Fruit-Trees Expansion Mission for environment adaptation by waghhm

This is a very good idea. Fruit trees provide multiple adaptation benefits, including food, but also nutrients to soil, shade (for humans, livestock, other crops) and much more. Planting and selectively fostering fruit bearing trees in both smallholder agricultural landscapes, and forests, has been contributing to human resilience for millennia. A targeted approach, engaging communities, with expected CC impacts accounted for (ie planting species that are robust to potential future temperature and hydrological change) in a specific region could be very useful. Some suggestions: I would remove the various references to and photos of famous personalities such as the Swami, MLK Jr, Abraham Lincoln, indeed all of them. I would suggest citing the work of ICRAF on agroforestry.

Hi! I am supporting this project. In my experience trees sprouted from seeds of commercially grown fruit tend to take a very long time to fruit themselves (in some cases never). Growers get around this by grafting already producing trees into the seedlings. Perhaps this proposal may be enhanced by promoting further practical education on how to graft and tend to trees to ensure they fruit to their fullest! This proposal, if adopted globally, can have significant effect to reduce climate change and also to help put food on people's tables! Have you seen the work the folks at https://www.opentreemap.org have been doing? All the best. RicardoMachado Hi waghhm, This a good and highly feasible proposal. The implementation seems not demanding in terms of economic and human resources. The project when implemented can be easily scale up. Just like one of the comments above, you may wish to be specific on the nature and type of seeds to be planted. At the national level, a particular school may need supports from the relevant horticultural or agronomy unit. Also, school premises may be considered as a site for commencing this activity. This is a project which may have an expected impact after a long time, since fruiting of the planted trees will start some years later. It is suggested that each school should have a committee consisting of teachers and students who will always sensitize new entrants of each school about this proposed project. This can contribute in part to the sustainability of your idea when the implementation begins. Best wishes, Olawale MIT Climate CoLab Catalyst Kindly see https://www.climatecolab.org/web/guest/plans/-/plans/contestId/1301416/phaseId/1303167/planId/1310401/tab/COMMENTS

Respected Pete Epanchin, I am very thankful to you for your detailed comments. Before the emergence of centralized, organized production of grain seeds, the farmers, since prehistorical periods, used to keep with them the best of their grains as seeds for future use. This bit of knowledge combined with Professor Amartya Sen's suggestion to put to use the wasted fruit seeds prompted me to think. I have already included the monitoring part. Kindly go through the "what Actions do You Propose" section. I suggested the inclusion of Students in monitoring as they would learn many things by being part of monitoring process. I wrote, "District collector, local bodies, education officer, agriculture officer, horticulture officer, and forest officer to coordinate and monitor program. School-children and college students to be part of monitoring system as well." The activity of survey is undertaken regularly by forest, agriculture, horticulture departments and the satelite based monitoring systems for green cover measurements are available so adding a survey component would I feel be reduplication which is not the thrust of my suggestions. About "germinating the seeds and giving them a head start in a more controlled environment", I already included this aspect saying, "Only minimum suggested, people most welcome to do more, like growing saplings, planting, grafting( special method followed by horticulturists, not needed initially, difficult to implement in a mass program at least initially), pruning etc." About "Proof of Concept", I humbly point it out that the forests are a living testimony to this concept. My personal observations support me here. There are many types of fruit trees in India which grow without any cultivational efforts on part of humans. Even those fruit trees which are grown from seeds of commercially produced fruits do in the end bear fruits in ample amounts. A delay of a few years in the fruit yielding may adversely affect for profit horticulture but would not have any adverse impact when primary thrust is not the fruit-production-for-profit. Sir, I hope to have answered adequately your querries pertaining to this proposal. Kindly let me know if any further clarification is needed about any aspect. My sincere thanks and sincere regards.

This idea is already being put into practice in my area. Its more relevent that it spreads and takes the form of a more organized social movement of sorts that would benefit people & planet.

All The fruits obtained from a cultivar aren't alike in appearance, colour, size of edible/inedible parts, aroma, taste etc. The variations occur within the cultivars. The issue of biodiversity of fruit trees is very difficult to resolve unless we seek the help of mother nature; here this mission would help.

Respected tfb2015, I am very grateful to you for your comments. You have indeed summed up the essence of my proposal in just a few yet very touching sentences. Kindly accept my sincere regards.