I was fortunate enough to celebrate National Tree Day with the Friends of Lake Claremont (FOLC) group in Perth this year. We embraced the brilliant Perth sunshine and got our hands dirty, planting a range of native seedlings at Lake Claremont, in an area which was once a rubbish tip and golf course.
Among the passionate and dedicated group of volunteers that make up FOLC is the truly inspiring centenarian, Joan Tocock. Last month, Joan celebrated her 100th birthday and attributes her long and healthy life to time spent in nature and caring for the planet, especially in the company of her fellow FOLC members.
Joan’s love of the Western Australian environment is infectious and she was once again heavily involved in National Tree Day, spending the day connecting with her community and facilitating the planting event.
Joan has been a member of the FOLC group since its inception in 1987. She has lived in the Claremont area for the majority of her life and has spent decades getting involved in nature care activities and supporting the Claremont community. She still attends all planting events to record volunteer numbers and was planting trees until well into her nineties!
FOLC are the first recipients of a Seedling Bank grant from Planet Ark and Toyota Australia, allowing them to continue to plant native seedlings and revegetate this important site. Lake Claremont is located within the internationally recognised Southwest Australian biodiversity hotspot, so we at Planet Ark are thrilled to be able to support this group and their environmental activities.
Positive Action
- Take a leaf out of Joan’s book and get your hands dirty and plant trees. In addition to creating habitat and combating climate change, you may also benefit from the health benefits of spending time in nature.
- If you would like to support groups like this getting plants in the ground, why not make a contribution to the National Tree Day Seedling Bank.
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Positive Environment News has been compiled using publicly available information. Planet Ark does not take responsibility for the accuracy of the original information and encourages readers to check the references before using this information for their own purposes.