Tree Planting
Last week, the Dawoodi Bohras of London held a tree planting ceremony in honour of HRH The Prince Philip. The head of the local Bohra community, Dr Idris Zainuddin, was joined by Mayor of Ealing Cllr Munir Ahmed and Ealing Councilor Tariq Mahmood to plant a maple tree in the grounds of the masjid – or mosque – in memory of the sacrifice and duty undertaken by His Royal Highness, The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.
Tree plantings are regularly undertaken by Dawoodi Bohra communities all over the world. In 2017, His Holiness Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin initiated a worldwide program to plant 200,000 saplings as a means of conserving the environment and raising awareness of environmental issues. In that year alone, the Dawoodi Bohras planted 500 trees across the UK.
The Queen’s Green Canopy Scheme – a unique tree planting initiative created to mark Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022 which invites people from across the UK to “Plant a Tree for the Jubilee” – has sparked a renewed interest in tree planting for London Bohras. For example, Sarah Engineer of the London Dawoodi Bohra community has pledged to plant 50 trees over the next year. To start her initiative, Sarah and her husband planted their first rose tree at the masjid entrance.
Street Clean-Up
The tree planting was in conjunction with an environmental clean up in which over 250 members of the Dawoodi Bohras of London branched outward from the Husainy Masjid located in Northolt to pick up litter from Rowdell Road, Fort Road, Belvue Park, and both sides of Kensington Road leading up to Northala Fields.
The clean-up was part of the Dawoodi Bohras’ global Project Rise initiative to improve life for the less fortunate among us via a wide range of initiatives in healthcare, nutrition, water and sanitation, environmental responsibility and conservation, and education. Project Rise strives to support local communities and foster sustainable relationships with local governments, councils and neighbours. Past environmental projects under this banner include beach and river clean ups, tree plantation drives, park and local neighbourhood clean ups, wildlife conservation, and recycling initiatives.
The Dawoodi Bohras of London – like many other Bohra communities around the world – regularly hold street clean-ups, while raising awareness of the need to live more sustainably.