Once again
"accadis goes green"! On Wednesday, July 7, 2021, the municipality of
Schmitten passed a resolution in parliament to release an approximately
one-hectare sized forest area near the Homburger Haus in Schmitten for the
"Bildungswald" (educational forest) project. accadis Bildung GmbH has
agreed with the project's initiators that it will donate one tree per new
student at accadis International School Bad Homburg and another tree for each
newly enrolled student at accadis Hochschule Bad Homburg to the reforestation
project for each new academic and school year.
Next spring,
pupils and students will plant the donated trees of wild cherry, sycamore
maple, wild pear and wild apple in the forest area already cleared by the bark
beetle infestation. accadis students in four groups have already developed concepts for the future planting activities in the newly emerging "educational forest". The concept of group 2 will be implemented, supplemented by ideas from the other proposals.
Fighting
climate change with wild cherries and sycamore maples
If you look
into the Taunus, you will see increasingly dry, brown forest areas in the
region's green lung. "Weather patterns such as those seen in 2018 to 2020,
with enormously hot and dry summers and mild winters coupled with an increase
in extreme events such as storms, are to be expected more frequently in the
future as a consequence of climate change," says Brigitta Brüning-Bibo,
initiator of Herzenswald Schmitten. "Like many other harmful pests, bark
beetles benefit from these conditions. They reproduce en masse. It is important
to make the forest fit for the future. Tree species that can cope with the
changed conditions will help. This is the only way to ensure that the forest
will continue to serve future generations as a climate protector, timber supplier,
recreational area and habitat. We are pursuing this goal with our 'Herzenswald'
(heart forest) project, for which we are planting trees such as wild cherry,
wild apple, wild pear, juneberry, sweet chestnut and walnut. We are very
pleased to make another important contribution to biodiversity and sustainable
nature conservation in the Taunus region with accadis Bildung GmbH," says
Brigitta Brüning-Bibo.
From LED
lighting to trees
"The
'Bildungswald' project fits very well with our sustainability motto 'accadis
goes green'," says Gerda Meinl-Kexel, Managing Partner of accadis Bildung
GmbH. "With virtually paperless communication, energy-saving LED lighting
technology, recyclable beverage cups, charging stations for electric cars, and
now trees in the Taunus, we are setting a good example for our students and
pupils."
The accadis
education expert plans to celebrate the first planting event with the students
in spring 2022. "Each accadis ISB student will also receive a certificate
of tree sponsorship in the 'educational forest'."
The forest
area where the trees will be planted is within walking distance of a small
parking lot about 100 yards away. "We will use this for day trips for our
students. The 'educational forest' project will provide them with knowledge and
raise their awareness for nature."