Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1542776
6 gozotoday | FRIDAY • 23 JANUARY 2026 NEWS Sigar Gozo e-NGO celebrates Arbor Day with LAST week staff and pupils at Gozo College Roża Ma- gro Xewkija Primary School teamed up with volunteers from 'Siġar', a registered en- vironmental NGO (VO/2518) to plant seven locally grown, indigenous trees in the school grounds. The event was held in part- nership with the Ministry for Gozo and Planning and was attended by Joseph Cutajar, Director from the EcoGozo Di- rectorate and Simona Refalo, the Mayor of Xewkija. This was the latest school- based tree-planting event or- ganised by Siġar' and coincided with Arbor Day, known as "Jum is-Siġar" in Maltese (Day of the Trees) which is dedicated to planting trees and promoting environmental conservation. The day is celebrated annually on January 15th to raise wider public awareness about the im- portance of trees in helping to maintain the ecological balance across the Maltese Islands. At the educational 'hands-on' tree planting session, pupils from the school's EkoSkola Na- ture Trust - FEE Malta school group learnt how to correctly prepare the site to plant the right tree, in the right place, in the right way. Seven locally grown trees were planted in holes dug to the correct size and depth. These included 2 Almond, 2 Lentisk (Pistacia), 1 Carob, 1 Judas Tree and 1 Mediterranean Elm tree. Pu- pils and staff also learnt about the importance of regular wa- tering, mulching, maintenance and after care to ensure the newly planted trees not only survive but thrive. Siġar continues to extend its work on the island with lo- cal schools and councils by offering free, small scale, ed- ucational tree planting and watering sessions in villages across Gozo. A further aim is to provide local residents with the opportunity to become vol- unteer 'tree champions', learn- ing how to successfully plant and water the young trees in Gozo's challenging climatic conditions. So far, Siġar has hosted 13 planting sessions, planted 42 trees, in Gozo and held 5 ed- ucational visits and clean up events, with more activities planned for the 2026 growing season. To date, all the trees planted by Siġar and their community partners have suc- cessfully grown in their first season. In a couple of new initia- tives Siġar volunteers Sigar recently took part in the suc- cessful removal of invasive African Fountain Grass plants on Gozo, in partnership with EcoGozo, and are taking part as Citizen Scientists in the 'Wild For Orchids Community Project' dedicated to exploring, identifying, mapping and cele- brating the wild orchid species of the Maltese Islands! Sigar thanks Corporate Sponsors and Individual Supporters The e-ngo wishes to acknowl- edge the generous support from those individuals who made personal donations to Siġar and from the following Corporate Sponsors – The Al- fred Mizzi Foundation, Bank of Valletta (BOV), the Gozo Re- gional Development Authority and the Ministry for Gozo and Planning. Why Gozo Needs More Trees Evidence shows that planting indigenous trees, particular- ly in urban settings, can help in the fight against climate change and support biodiversi- ty. Trees absorb carbon emis- sions, release clean energy, de- crease temperatures, provide The event was held in partnership with the Ministry for Gozo and Planning and was attended by Joseph Cutajar, Director from the EcoGozo Directorate and Simona Refalo, the Mayor of Xewkija