Birthday Trees: a Ugandan teenager's way to replant forests
Ugandan teenager Leah Namugerwa marked her 15th birthday by planting 200 trees, then started Birthday Trees, inviting others to celebrate birthdays by planting trees.
The small thing
For her 15th birthday in 2019, instead of a party, Namugerwa planted 200 trees and offered trees to others to plant on their own birthdays.
The problem
Uganda's forest cover has fallen sharply since the 1990s, from about 24% to 8% according to figures reported by Africanews. Plastic bag litter was also a concern; Namugerwa linked plastic bags to cholera in Kampala's informal settlements (UN-Habitat).
Why Leah started
Namugerwa began campaigning against plastic bags in 2018 and, inspired by Greta Thunberg, started striking alone for the climate on 1 February 2019 (UN-Habitat). She told reporters she set up Birthday Trees as a way of restoring Uganda's lost forest cover.
What they did
Namugerwa planted 200 trees for her 15th birthday and 500 for her 16th, and plants trees on behalf of people who want to mark their birthdays this way (Africanews). Alongside this she helped lead Fridays for Future activities in Uganda, including weekly strikes, lakeshore clean-ups and school awareness work, and petitioned for a ban on plastic bags (UN-Habitat; Africanews).
What changed
Africanews reported in 2021 that she aimed to plant one million trees and that people in other countries had taken up the birthday idea; she said she had been joined by others, including a young woman who found her on social media. She was named one of UN-Habitat's youth delegates in 2019 and later joined its Youth Advisory Board. The survival rate of the trees planted has not been independently measured.
What they learned
Namugerwa has said that each time she plants trees, more people come to help, and that her father supported her decision from the start.
“I celebrated my birthday in 2019 by planting 200 trees.”Leah Namugerwa, as quoted by Africanews
Copy this idea
Practical guidance written by our editors from the sources below. Adapt it to your place, and check local rules and safety first.
- Problem addressed
- Local tree loss and few chances for young people to take part in restoration.
- What to do
- Mark birthdays or other milestones by planting native trees, and invite friends and family to do the same.
- Materials and resources
- Native seedlings from a local nursery or forestry office, spades, water, stakes or guards, permission for the planting site.
- Approximate cost
- Low
- Skills
- Basic planting and aftercare; knowledge of suitable local species (ask a nursery or forestry officer).
- Time
- A morning to plant; regular watering and checks for the first year or two.
- People needed
- One person can start; a school, faith group or youth club can sustain it.
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Risks and limitations
- Planting the wrong species or in the wrong place can harm ecosystems; get landowner and local authority permission and follow local advice. Many seedlings die without aftercare.
- How to adapt it
- Plant for weddings, graduations or memorials; partner with a school to look after the trees.
- Lessons learned
- Count trees that survive, not just trees planted, and make it easy for others to join.
Why it matters
A few hundred trees a year will not reverse Uganda's forest loss. But tying tree planting to birthdays turns a personal celebration into a repeatable act that friends and strangers can copy, and it shows how young people can start local restoration without waiting for permission.
What didn't work
She began her climate strikes alone, and in 2019 she was unable to attend the UN Youth Climate Summit because her visa did not arrive in time (UN-Habitat). Her one-million-tree goal was described in 2021 as still a long way off (Africanews).
Editor's note
In April 2024 UN-Habitat listed her as a 19-year-old climate and child rights activist serving on its Youth Advisory Board. Tree-planting totals after 2021 were not independently confirmed. She lives in the Kampala area (Mukono); planting has included a forest in Entebbe.
Sources: how do we know?
Evidence level: Documented. Supported by reliable published sources such as UN agencies, award bodies and reputable journalism. Not yet independently re-verified by our editors. What the person says and what independent sources establish are attributed separately in the text.
- un agency
Young women take the lead in the fight against climate change — UN-Habitat, 26 September 2019Supports: 2018 plastic petition; first strike on 1 February 2019 inspired by Greta Thunberg; 200 trees for her birthday; youth delegate and visa problem; father's support. - reputable journalism
16-year old climate activist on mission to replant trees in Uganda — Africanews, 22 April 2021Supports: 200 trees at 15 and 500 at 16; Birthday Trees idea taken up abroad; one-million-tree goal; planting in Entebbe; Uganda forest cover figures; Fridays for Future activities; quotes. - reputable journalism
Earth Day: Teen plans to replant one million forest trees — Astro Awani, April 2021Supports: Project named Birthday Trees, started to restore Uganda's lost forest cover; plants trees on behalf of people marking birthdays; Fridays for Future group activities. - un agency
Emerging Youth Forum 2024: speakers and moderators — UN-Habitat Youth, 10 April 2024Supports: Still active in 2024; serves on the UN-Habitat Youth Advisory Board.