Case study of
#00114 Fund native-species restoration through vetted local partners, and report multi-year survival — not seedlings planted
Çorum, Turkey
#00125
Implementer
Government of Turkey — Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry / General Directorate of Forestry
Timeline
Nov 11, 2019 – Jan 31, 2020
Location
Description
On 11 November 2019 ('National Forestation Day'), Turkey's government ran 'Breath for the Future,' planting roughly 11 million saplings at over 2,000 sites in a single day. At Çorum, volunteers set a Guinness World Record for most trees planted in one hour (~303,150 saplings). The agriculture-and-forestry workers' union (TARIM ORMAN-İŞ) conducted field inspections across six provinces 2–3 months later and reported up to ~90% of saplings had died, attributing deaths to planting in the wrong season (November), lack of rainfall, and absence of expert oversight. The union stated it had warned officials beforehand that a November campaign was very likely to fail, and that even under proper conditions the realistic success rate is ~65–70%. The ministry disputed the figure, claiming ~95% survival — a claim that could not be independently verified. No aftercare programme, survival monitoring, or species-to-site matching was reported.
Metrics
3Funding
Lessons learned
- Season and water availability dominate survival: planting in November without adequate rainfall produced reported mortality up to ~90% within months, regardless of volume planted.
- A Guinness record for 'most trees planted in one hour' rewards speed on planting day, not establishment — the stage where trees actually live or die.
- The forestry union warned officials before the campaign that November timing would likely fail; the warning was overridden by the spectacle-driven target, illustrating how political goals can bypass field expertise.
- Disputed survival figures (union: ~90% dead vs. ministry: ~95% alive) show why independent verification is a prerequisite — without it, large-scale failure is deniable.
- Even under good conditions the union cited a realistic establishment rate of ~65–70%, far below the implicit 100% in headline seedling counts — a gap that should be built into any replication plan.
Sources
3Documented Jun 29, 2026