RE-LEAFing our island One Tree at a Time
The Forestry Department is inviting Jamaicans to join the effort to reforest denuded lands across the island as the country seeks to restore its forest cover following significant damage caused by Hurricane Melissa.
When Hurricane Melissa carved its corridor of destruction across our island on October 28, 2025, it left hillsides bare, watersheds exposed, coastal communities vulnerable, and agricultural systems ravaged. Forests that had quietly protected us were devastated.
The Forestry Department responded swiftly, creating RE-LEAF, the Reforestation, Ecological Enhancement and Landscape Framework, which is Jamaica's bold national initiative to restore forests and strengthen climate resilience in the wake of that devastation. This is not a ceremonial planting. This is nation-building that extends beyond tree planting into a robust system that fosters a sustainable environment supporting all facets of society from food production to tourism to domestic living.
Ainsley A. Henry, CEO & Conservator of Forests, says Hurricane Melissa taught us critical lessons about the need to protect and care for our environment. “This hurricane was a wake-up call. It opened many people’s eyes to the value of trees and forests, and now, we as a country can take protecting and sustaining these resources more seriously.” He continued by saying, “Concern for our environment should not be expressed on a whim; it endures and supports us only as long as we take care of it.”
RE-LEAF was announced in January by the Honourable Matthew Samuda, Minister of Water, Environment and Climate Change and officially launched on March 25. Under Phase 1, running January through June 2026, the Forestry Department is replanting 300,000 seedlings, prioritising 170,000 in key watersheds, 50,000 in urban and peri-urban areas, and 30,000 fruit trees to support food security and community livelihoods. Already, private and public entities, as well as RE-LEAF volunteers, have joined hands with the Forestry Department to plant approximately 20,000 trees across communities and degraded forests island-wide.
This Earth Day, we invite every Jamaican to be part of that drive to reforest our country. Visit forestry.gov.jm (Latest Updates) to register as a volunteer. Over 1,000 volunteers have already signed up, and we need more. Sign up and come out with your church, your school, your service club, your business, your workplace to join the replanting effort. There are also opportunities for persons to adopt damaged forest areas and help us restore them by funding tree planting and maintenance.
Jamaica's communities and forests are rising again. Join us in re-leafing our beautiful island one tree at a time.
Photo caption: Looking on is Honourable Matthew Samuda, Minister of Water, Environment and Climate Change as Prime Minister Andrew Holness plants a Jamaican Mahogany tree (Swietenia mahagonii) with Miss Earth Jamaica, Brianna Foster (left) and a RE-LEAF volunteer representing the Mary Seacole Hall at University of the West Indies, Mona, during the official launch of the RE-LEAF Initiative (Reforestation, Ecological Enhancement and Landscape Framework) on Wednesday, March 25, 2026 at the Pike and Ravens Forest Reserve, Trelawny.
