‘Plant a Tree: Give Life to the Planet’ Reforestation Campaign

The initiative is intended for residents of Irkutsk, but people from nearby settlements take part in it each year. Participants include schoolchildren from the villages of Urik and Olonki, as well as representatives of the towns of Angarsk and Shelekhov. For the second consecutive year, international students from Baikal State University joined the initiative. This year, a team from the Chancellery of the Embassy of the Kyrgyz Republic in Russia also took part.

As part of the initiative, 2,500 pine saplings were planted, and cooperation agreements were signed with 12 organizations.

Over the first nine years of the project, citywide planting efforts have helped restore natural areas in Irkutsk, specifically the Kayskaya Grove and Sinyushina Hill. Since the project’s inception, roughly 44,450 trees have been planted on an area exceeding 20 hectares, with more than 15,000 people taking part in the planting activities.

Noticeable results have been observed at the Kayskaya Grove: the vegetation cover has recovered, shrubs have grown, squirrels have returned, and berries and mushrooms have reappeared. The fact that pinecones have grown on the pine trees that were planted is a key indicator of successful reforestation and signals that the proper conditions are taking shape for the forest to continue its natural regeneration.

Over the duration of the project, trees have been planted in the following natural areas of Irkutsk:

• Kayskaya Grove – 2012, 2024
• Sinyushina Hill – 2019–2020
• Ushakovsky Urban Forest – 2021
• Water protection zone of Yershovsky Bay (Yakobi) – 2022
• Kayskaya Grove Botanical Garden and Specially Protected Natural Area – 2023
• Veresovsky Forest (Veresovka Microdistrict) – starting in 2025