In a bid to contribute to the national and global call to take urgent actions towards climate change adaptation, the students and management of the Accra Technical University (ATU) have planted trees at their new campus.

The school, aside from the tree planting at the campus at Mpehuasem in the Ga West Municipal in Accra, would also undertake other natural landscaping activities to improve the quality of air by filtering it.

For the start, the team planted about 200 seedlings of Delonix Regia an ornamental tree that grows at an average height of between two to three meters and produces beautiful red flowers.

Professor Amevi Acakpvi, Pro Vice-Chancellor of ATU speaking at a brief ceremony to commence the exercise said the activity formed part of the school’s 70th Anniversary celebration.

The anniversary, on the theme: “70 Years of Innovative Education, A Path towards Excellence’’ is aimed at bringing together alumni, staff and students, corporate Ghana, friends and well-wishers to celebrate strides the university had made in technical education.

Prof Acakpvi explained that the activity would also contribute to the fulfillment of the Sustainable Development Goal 13, and Ghana’s 31 Nationally Determined Contributions mitigation and adaptation actions in response to the Lima Call for Action.

In all, there are 20 mitigation and 11 adaptation actions in seven priority sectors, which would be implemented between 2020 and 2030. The priority sectors include sustainable land use including food security climate-proof infrastructure, equitable social development, and sustainable forest management.

He said the health the planet was vital to human’s health, wellbeing, hence, the need to protect and preserve them especially in the wake of the growing concerns about the effects of climate change.

According to the WHO statistics, Prof Acakpvi said about 203 out of every 100,000 deaths in Ghana were air pollution-related and that trees planted in urban areas could remove harmful particles, and ensure the inhalation of quality air.

He stated that “Since the beginning of creation, trees have furnished us with two of life’s essentials, food and oxygen. As we evolved, they provide additional necessities such as shelter, medicine, and tools. Today, their value continues to increase and more benefits of trees are being discovered as their role expands to satisfy the needs created by our modern lifestyles.”