Türkiye launches ‘Green Homeland’ mobilization with year-long tree planting campaign

ANKARA

Türkiye has launched a “Green Homeland” mobilization initiative ahead of Nov. 11 National Afforestation Day, a year-long campaign to plant millions of saplings and restore fire-damaged forests across the country.

In the capital Ankara, Agriculture and Forestry Minister İbrahim Yumaklı outlined the government’s ambitious goal. “We aim to bring 550 million saplings and seeds into the soil within one year,” he said.

“The first point of the mobilization will be National Afforestation Day on Nov. 11, when citizens across 81 provinces and 922 districts will plant trees together. This campaign will continue throughout the year,” he said.

Green Homeland is Türkiye’s long-term vision to protect, expand and restore its forests.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan noted that National Afforestation Day offers an opportunity to heal fire-damaged lands and leave a green legacy for children. “I invite all citizens to adopt saplings at gelecegenefes.gov.tr and join us in planting sites across the country,” he said, adding that the government has planted more than 7.5 billion saplings and seeds over the past 23 years.

Yumaklı highlighted the scale of Türkiye’s firefighting challenges, noting that 96 percent of wildfires are caused by human activity.

So far in 2025, the country has battled 7.092 fires, burning around 80,000 hectares, making it one of the most destructive years in recent memory.

“Burned areas cannot be opened to development; they must be reforested by the end of the following year,” Yumaklı underlined, announcing memorial forests for fallen firefighters, earthquake victims and victims of the war in Gaza.

The campaign leverages citizen engagement through the Geleceğe Nefes mobile app, allowing users to adopt saplings, choose planting locations and receive personalized certificates.

Concurrently, Istanbul Forest Innovation Week has opened on Oct. 20 under the theme “From Green Homeland to World Forestry,” bringing together 75 countries, 30 international organizations and 400 experts.

Organized by the ministry with UNFF and FAO, the event showcases Türkiye’s digital forestry practices, firefighting experience and sustainable forest management. Panels, workshops, field trips and bilateral meetings will shape global forestry polices, culminating in the Istanbul Declaration, to be presented at the 21st UNFF session.