{"id":6672,"date":"2026-07-25T15:00:10","date_gmt":"2026-07-25T08:00:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nature.org.vn\/en\/?p=6672"},"modified":"2026-10-03T15:12:15","modified_gmt":"2026-10-03T08:12:15","slug":"leaves-for-forests-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nature.org.vn\/en\/leaves-for-forests-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Leaves for Forests 2026 to Restore 72 Hectares of Natural Forest in Northwest Vietnam"},"content":{"rendered":"

On 24 July, nearly 100 representatives of local communities, authorities, forest rangers, businesses and partner organizations gathered in Pa Cop Village, Van Ho Commune, Son La Province, to launch Leaves for Forests 2026.<\/p>\n

Organized by PanNature in collaboration with Vietnam Airlines, MoMo, local authorities, Forest Ranger Unit X and the Van Ho Commune Youth Union, the event was held ahead of World Nature Conservation Day on 28 July. This year, the initiative aims to restore 72 hectares of degraded forest across Van Ho and Chieng Son communes in Son La Province and Pa Co Commune in Phu Tho Province, with approximately 43,400 native trees to be planted.<\/p>\n

The restoration effort is intended to support biodiversity conservation, improve forest ecosystem resilience and contribute to the long-term stewardship of forest landscapes by local communities and partners.<\/p>\n

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Mr. Nguyen Huu Hung, Deputy Head of the Economic Division of the Van Ho Commune People\u2019s Committee, emphasized the importance of forests for local livelihoods, water resources and biodiversity conservation. He welcomed the continued cooperation among PanNature, Vietnam Airlines, MoMo and local partners, and stressed the need for long-term care and protection so that the restored areas can develop into healthy forests for future generations.<\/p>\n

A representative of Forest Ranger Unit X also noted that successful restoration depends not only on planting trees, but on sustained cooperation among local authorities, forest rangers, businesses and communities.<\/p>\n

From Tree Planting to Forest Restoration<\/strong><\/p>\n

Leaves for Forests was launched by Vietnam Airlines and MoMo, with PanNature providing ecological and technical support since 2024.<\/p>\n

In its first year, the initiative exceeded its original target by planting approximately 35,000 native trees within the forest landscape linking Van Ho and Hang Kia\u2013Pa Co. In 2025, activities expanded to the Pha Luong Protection Forest in Chieng Son Commune, Son La Province, where more than 60,000 native trees were planted.<\/p>\n

These efforts contribute to a longer-term ambition to restore more than 100 hectares of degraded forest.<\/p>\n

Building on the experience of previous years, the 2026 programme places greater emphasis on what happens after planting. Restoration sites will require continued tending, monitoring, protection and, where necessary, supplementary planting. The objective is not simply to increase tree numbers, but to support the recovery of more diverse, structurally complex and resilient forest ecosystems.<\/p>\n

Restoring Habitat and Ecological Connectivity<\/strong><\/p>\n

Following the opening ceremony, participants planted 3,000 native trees in the community forest of Pa Cop Village.<\/p>\n

The area forms part of an important forest landscape that provides habitat for the Critically Endangered Northern White-cheeked Gibbon (Nomascus leucogenys), as well as many other wildlife species.<\/p>\n

Native tree species were selected according to local ecological conditions and restoration objectives. They include Magnolia conifera, Canarium species, Parashorea chinensis, Cinnamomum balansae and native chestnut species. Using a diverse mix of locally appropriate native trees can improve establishment and survival while supporting the gradual recovery of the multi-layered structure and ecological functions of natural forest.<\/p>\n

The restoration sites are also located within the wider landscape between Xuan Nha Nature Reserve and Hang Kia\u2013Pa Co Nature Reserve. Protecting remaining forest, restoring degraded areas and improving connections among forest patches can help maintain habitat connectivity and provide more continuous space for wildlife to move, feed and reproduce.<\/p>\n

For species such as the Northern White-cheeked Gibbon, which depend on increasingly fragmented forest habitat, maintaining and restoring such connectivity is particularly important.<\/p>\n

A Long-term Commitment to Forest Recovery<\/strong><\/p>\n

Planting trees is only the beginning of forest restoration. Whether a planted area develops into a functioning forest depends on survival, natural regeneration, species diversity, forest structure and long-term protection.<\/p>\n

For this reason, PanNature and its partners are increasingly approaching tree planting as part of a broader restoration process rather than as an end in itself.<\/p>\n

Leaves for Forests is one of the flagship initiatives under PanNature\u2019s Regreening Forest programme, launched in 2022 to connect businesses, communities and conservation partners in restoring degraded natural forests.<\/p>\n

By combining native-tree restoration with long-term stewardship and community participation, the programme seeks to recover biodiversity, strengthen ecological connectivity and improve the resilience of forest landscapes to climate change, while supporting local communities in caring for the forests on which they depend.<\/p>\n

Photos from the event:<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On 24 July, nearly 100 representatives of local communities, authorities, forest rangers, businesses and partner organizations gathered in Pa Cop Village, Van Ho Commune, Son La Province, to launch Leaves for Forests 2026. Organized by PanNature in collaboration with Vietnam Airlines, MoMo, local authorities, Forest Ranger Unit X and the Van Ho Commune Youth Union,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":6677,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,7],"tags":[],"post_series":[],"class_list":["post-6672","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-projects","entry","has-media"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nature.org.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6672","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nature.org.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nature.org.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nature.org.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nature.org.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6672"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.nature.org.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6672\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6727,"href":"https:\/\/www.nature.org.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6672\/revisions\/6727"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nature.org.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6677"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nature.org.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6672"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nature.org.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6672"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nature.org.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6672"},{"taxonomy":"post_series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nature.org.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_series?post=6672"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}