HAGGiS tour group at Trees for Life's Dundreggan Estate
During 2011, the UN’s International Year of Forests, the new scheme will involve more than 80 HAGGiS Adventures tour buses stopping to plant a tree at Trees for Life’s Dundreggan Estate in Glen Moriston near Loch Ness, Inverness-shire. This will involve more than 3,000 people from all over the world.
With 2011 also being the European Year of Volunteering, HAGGiS Adventures is encouraging people to spend a day carrying out practical conservation action on Dundreggan as part of their tour, donating £30 to Trees for Life for everyone who does so.
Alan Watson Featherstone, Executive Director of Trees for Life, said: “We are delighted to announce this new initiative with HAGGiS Adventures on the birthday of Robert Burns, whose work is full of a love of nature, and the day when the most haggis is eaten in Scotland each year!
“This tree-mendous support from HAGGiS Adventures represents a real boost to our natural heritage and also provides an opportunity to inform
thousands of visitors to Scotland about the importance of restoring the
Caledonian Forest.”
Graeme Ward, Managing Director of HAGGiS Adventures, said: “We love
Scotland, but we would love Scotland even more with the Caledonian Forest restored. The forest is a key part in the Scotland Story that our guides passionately give to our passengers.
“Actually involving HAGGiS travellers in a project which means they can
get up close and personal to these beautiful ecosystems will bring this
story to life, resulting in a positive permanent addition to Scotland and
assisting Trees for Life in its fantastic work.”
HAGGiS Adventures will donate £35 to Trees for Life for each tour, and is creating a wall of tree certificates in its independent hostel in Fort
Augustus, Morag’s Lodge. It is also including information about Trees for Life’s work in its brochure, which is distributed worldwide.
A launch party is to be held by HAGGiS Adventures in Sydney, Australia in March, at which guests will be presented with personal certificates for trees planted by Trees for Life on their behalf.
Through Trees for Life, people can mark the International Year of Forests and their own special occasions by funding dedicated trees and groves in the Caledonian Forest. See www.treesforlife.org.uk for details.
