Tui Care Foundation plants trees in Peru

Peru is over 40 percent forested. However, ongoing deforestation threatens important habitats and worsens the livelihoods of indigenous communities in particular. Tui Forest Peru aims to restore and protect native forests in the high Andes. The initiative empowers local communities in the Vilcanota mountain range near Cusco to plant native trees and create new income opportunities.

The Tui Care Foundation, together with the international non-governmental organization Global Forest Generation and the local organization Asociación Ecosistemas Andinas, will enable the planting of a total of 1,9 million trees. The focus is on Polylepis trees, which are adapted to extreme altitudes of 4.000 meters and more. The Polylepis forests play an essential role in providing water to millions of people - both in the Andes and in lowland cities and villages, where glacial meltwater is an important water source. The forests are also a valuable habitat for numerous wild animals such as Andean condors, spectacled bears and pumas.

To achieve the initiative's ambitious goals, indigenous communities in the region are establishing and maintaining at least 20 tree nurseries. The tree nurseries each have a full-time tree nursery technician and are run together with the high Andean communities - where many people look after the growing seedlings. In total, over 800 hectares of forest will be restored.

Tui Forest Peru will also repair 40 kilometers of nature trails, equip them with information boards and expand the infrastructure of the popular Vilcanota trek. The trek is visited by a growing number of holidaymakers every year and is, after the Inca Trail - which leads to Machu Picchu - the most important tourist route through the Sacred Valley of the Incas. The investments will further increase the attractiveness of the hiking trail. In addition, more than 10.000 community members benefit who use the trails themselves and can create new sources of income through the income from campsites and other tourist activities. Tui Forest Peru also provides communities with management training for the Vilcanota Trek and protected areas in general, provides locally produced stoves and hosts environmental workshops.

The Tui Forest Peru is part of the global Tui Forests program of the Tui Care Foundation, which is also active in Mallorca, the Dominican Republic, Kenya and Zanzibar, among others. In addition to reforestation, it is about opening up opportunities for experiences in the forests and increasing awareness of the natural forest environment.