Tree planting event commemorates Guru Nanak's 550th birth anniversary

MORE than 550 native trees and shrubs have been planted throughout Coventry’s parks and green spaces to commemorate the 550th birth anniversary of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the founder of Sikhism.

On Monday (4), a tree planting ceremony took place at Longford Park, Foleshill that was attended by Linda Bigham, Lord mayor of Coventry and Jon Davis, Dynamic City Senior Producer Coventry City of Culture 2021.

Also present were Lady Godiva, Pru Porretta and Sarah Pearson from the Woodland Trust, and Palvinder Singh Chana, chairman of Sikh Union.

Hundreds of students from Longford Park, Grange Hurst and Joseph Cash Primary Schools planted saplings.

Praising the initiative Bigham said: “The growing of a woodland in Longford Park, began when our family noticed a faded plaque within some trees, with the words, “Recognise all the human race as one” Guru Gobind Singh Ji.

“We went on to discover that three hundred trees had been planted in 1999 by Sikh staff at Marconi as a contribution to the Millennium Forest

“From these humble beginnings, a unique partnership has developed between the Friends of Longford Park, the Sikh Union, local school children, and they City Council’s Park Wardens.

“The last few years has seen the planting of a community orchard and 1500 new trees with under planting. This will now be added to by another 550 trees this year to celebrate the 550th birth anniversary of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji.”

Chana extolled the need for preserving the environment, saying: “Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the first embodiment of Divine Light in the Sikh religion, laid the foundation for our sacred vision for the environment stated: ‘Air is our Guru, water is our father, the earth is our mother. They give us life, we sleep in their laps night and day, in which the entire world plays.’ (Guru Granth Sahib p.8)*

“We honour this wisdom by believing that all humans have an intrinsic sensitivity to the natural world, and that a sustainable, more just society is possible, where water, air, land, forests, and biodiversity remain vibrant, living systems for our generation and future generations.”

The initiative is part of a wider global effort by Eco-Sikh, an environmental organisation based in Washington, USA to plant over 1 million trees around the planet to mark the 550th birth-anniversary of Guru Nanak.