International Day of Forests 2022 at the G20 Green Garden
by Dr QU Dongyu, FAO Director-General
21/03/2022
International Day of Forests 2022 at the G20 Green Garden
Speaking Points
For
Dr QU Dongyu, FAO Director-General
As prepared
21 March 2022
Dear Friends,
1. I am pleased to be with you today as we mark the International Day of Forests 2022 in the G20 Green Garden.
2. We are celebrating this special occasion on the first day of Spring with a tree-planting event.
3. Spring represents the season of new beginnings and change.
4. To plant trees is to add new life today, for a more sustainable tomorrow.
5. I wish to thank all our partners and friends who contributed to bringing this idea to life.
6. In particular, I wish to thank Mr Fabio Cassese from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, and Ms Sabrina Alfonsi, representing the Mayor of Rome and the Lazio Region, for joining us today.
7. Historically, human beings have always had close connections with forests and trees – physically, culturally and symbolically.
8. Forests provide us with clean water and air, as well as wood, shelter, medicine, fuel, food, fiber and fodder for people, animals and the planet.
9. The trees we are planting today have been donated by the Lazio Region, as part of the OSSIGENO (Oxygen) project, and I wish to convey appreciation for this generosity.
10. I am so pleased to see how the G20 Green Garden has grown since its launch last June.
11. The Italian Presidency of the G20 has ended, but this garden lives on and brings us together here today to renew our commitment to creating a better and more sustainable future for people, planet and prosperity.
12. The garden leaves a distinct legacy for the SDGs, for education and for sustainability.
13. We need to value this space we have created and continue the great work we have started together.
14. Working together with many partners, this important initiative celebrates nature, while making our city more sustainable for everyone, especially our youth, as we plant a better, greener future.
15. I am pleased to be joined by the President of the Appia Antica Regional Park, Mr Mario Tozzi, with whom we’ve organized other events at the G20 Garden over the past months,
16. And I especially wish to welcome the students from the Cannizzaro High School.
17. You are the future – the change makers who will shape our world.
18. In October last year, we planted trees in this Garden,
19. And today we will plant more trees, to leave a legacy of the Green Future we want.
20. It is also an opportunity to better connect citizens – young and old - with nature,
21. And bring the work of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations to the public so you can all join in and take action.
22. I hope that through the G20 Green Garden students, families and tourists will learn about FAO’s vision of a sustainable and food secure world for all,
23. Through the transformation to more efficient, more inclusive, more resilient and more sustainable agrifood systems,
24. For better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life for all, leaving no one behind.
25. Thank you.