The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Sydney Office and Royal Thai Embassy in Sydney joined forces with the Koala Clancy Foundation to plant 1,000 trees in the Australian state of Victoria on Sunday, 31 July, 2022, on the occasion of Australia’s National Tree Day.
Mr. Yuthasak Supasorn, TAT Governor, said, “The tree planting event in Australia was aimed at creating more habitat for koalas, and it has synergy with the efforts in Thailand to restore elephant rainforest habitat and offset carbon emissions through the goal of planting one million trees.”
The tree planting was a joint effort by Team Thailand – comprising H.E. Ms. Busadee Santipitaks, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Thailand to Australia; Ms. Suladda Sarutilavan, TAT Sydney Director, and staff from the TAT Sydney Office and the Royal Thai Embassy – and Cr Belinda Moloney, Cr Ron Nelson, and Cr Anthony Aitken, all Councillors from the City of Greater Geelong, and a large group of volunteers.
The tree planting in cooperation with Team Thailand was carried out on a site at Mt. Rothwell provided by local land owner Mr. Michael Smith, for the purpose of revegetation to help create a more koala-friendly habitat. The 1,000 trees planted on 31 July, 2022, helped the Koala Clancy Foundation towards its 2022 target of planting 26,000 trees in the You Yangs region.
Volunteers on the day were treated to a lunch of delicious Thai cuisine before embarking on a koala-spotting walking tour of the You Yangs.
Sponsoring the event was Thailand’s Minor Hotels Group, which is known for its commitment to ethical and environmentally friendly practices, as well as social and cultural conservation. In Thailand, it is involved in the Golden Triangle Asian Elephant Foundation and the Mai Khao Marine Turtle Foundation.
The Koala Clancy Foundation is a not-for-profit incorporated association and registered charity that supports the wild koalas of the Western Plains of Victoria, particularly around the You Yangs and Brisbane Ranges, west of Melbourne. Since 2016, it has planted 77,000 koala trees and removed 2.8 million invasive weeds from koala habitat.
Thailand is aiming for more sustainable and more responsible tourism under its ‘Visit Thailand Year 2022: Amazing New Chapters’ campaign, and has introduced a number of initiatives toward this goal. TAT recently launched the 7 Greens campaign: Green Heart, Green Logistics, Green Attraction, Green Activity, Green Community, Green Service, and Green Plus, which encourages resorts and tourism operators to adopt, step by step, more sustainable strategies for the future.
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