WASHINGTON, DC—In September 2022, the Forest Service Office of International Programs hosted partners from the Zimbabwean non-governmental organization, My Trees Trust, for a U.S. study tour focused on reforestation in the Pacific Northwest.

The study tour group spent 11 days meeting with natural resource professionals and visiting public and private facilities that ranged from low-tech, small native plant nurseries to a large-scale, highly industrialized conifer nursery. Common discussion topics included cultivating partnerships, quality controls to produce high-quality seedlings and community engagement. The tour succeeded in investigating key aspects of the reforestation pipeline and identifying practices that can be applied and scaled to the Zimbabwean context.

Forest Service technical assistance to support My Trees restoration programming is funded by the Zimbabwe Mission of the U.S. Agency for International Development. The study tour provided time for the Forest Service and My Trees Trust to develop a joint work plan for the new programming and to exchange knowledge on restoration practices.

“We think our problem is unique, so we need to solve it from scratch, but the problems aren’t unique. There are general solutions that can be customized to fit different situations,” said Clare Griffiths, ecologist with My Trees Trust.

Perhaps the most evident theme that emerged throughout the study tour was the importance of people and their passion for natural resource conservation and management. That passion enables organizations to overcome challenges, and it fuels success.

To the My Trees Trust team, Ndatenda (thank you in Shona), we look forward to working with your organization!