As Kenya races against time to meet its ambitious target of planting 15 billion trees by 2032, a quiet but powerful argument is taking root in the corridors of economic planning within the Forestry Department - the real revolution must begin at home. "It's not just about planting trees," says Lawrence Mwiti Muthamia, an economic planning expert at the Ministry of Environment and Forestry. "It's about planting a culture." Standing at the center of a treeless playing field at Kiamweri Primary School, which is a few meters from his ancestral home in Meru County, Muthamia outlines what he calls a "ground-up strategy" - a bold shift that urges the country to turn its gaze away from the overburdened public forests and focus instead on family land, community spaces, and the hearts of children.
According to the latest forest audit, Kenya's public forests, from the Mau Complex to Mt Kenya and Kakamega, are nearing their optimal tree density.
Therefore, further planting in these spaces could strain existing biodiversity or upset ecological balances. "The forests already have enough trees," Muthamia explains. "If we're serious about 15 billion trees, we must go beyond the forests." His proposition is that every household should be turned into a forest front, encourage children to plant trees at school, and motivate families to dedicate parts of their private land to fruit trees, indigenous species, or fast-growing timber trees.
His approach emphasizes behavior change and early education. "When a child grows up nurturing a tree, they grow up respecting nature.
