The tree, a disease resistant elm, has found its home on the grounds of St Thomas’ Hospital, Westminster. Standing opposite the Houses of Parliament, this tree is a symbol of what can be done by people wanting to make a positive change, and around 100,000 have helped us plant the 999,999 before this one.  

This was a milestone worth celebrating, and Sir Michael Palin, an old friend of ours came along to plant the tree with us, over 20 years after he planted his first in Gospel Oak. He said:

A million trees is a staggering amount, but we never intended to stop there. So, straight after it was planted, we got onto the millionth and first. One generation passed the baton to another, with pupils from Dormers Wells Infants School planting the first of a new breed of urban trees in the hospital playground, a reminder that today’s children are growing into the future leaders and decision makers that will take on responsibility for the planet. 

And they’re already taking the mantle. In 2018, Greta Thunberg spearheaded the first strike for the climate outside the Riksdagshuset, the house of Sweden’s parliament. On 15th March, only a few months after Greta’s first strike, she was joined by over a million more young people in 2,000 cities across the globe. Together they marched to make it clear that “we need to treat the climate crisis as a crisis”

When air quality is declining, temperatures are rising, and a water shortage is predicted to befall us in as little as 25 years, action is needed. And there is room to make it happen. Recent research found that there is space on the earth’s surface to plant 1.2 trillion new trees that could absorb more carbon than humans produce each year. On top of this, these trillion trees would improve biodiversity, providing a home to countless species, ease soil erosion in parts of the world where local communities depend on farming to provide for themselves and their families, curb a water shortage so we can still have access to a vital resource, and so much more. We need more trees, so we will keep planting them. 

150 young people from the global coordination group of the climate strike issued an open letter saying “the youth of this world has started to move and we will not rest again”. Their message is one to listen to, and planting trees is part of a well-reasoned response.

A million trees is a staggering amount, and we couldn't have done it without our volunteers and partners. We'd especially like to thank the players of People's Postcode Lottery for helping us reach the milestone.