According to the World Health Organization (WHO), India is home to six of the world’s worst ten cities in terms of air pollution, including the top 3 most polluted — Delhi, Patna, and Gwalior, respectively.

But just last week, the nation — which boasts the world’s second largest population at over 1.2 billion — decided to band together and work to combat the problem.

An astounding 800,000+ volunteers supported their country by participating in a nationwide tree plant. Designed to break the world record for the most number of trees planted in a 24 hour period, the organized event far exceeded even these expectations.

While the official number is still yet to be released by Guinness, early projections suggest that the volunteers planted approximately 50 million trees, completely smashing the previous record of 847,275 planted by Pakistan in 2013. Pakistan, like India, was in desperate need of the community effort, as they hold 3 of the remaining 4 spots on the previously mentioned list released by the WHO.

This initiative was largely funded by the Indian government, which has dedicated $6 billionto the creation of new forests over the coming years.

Whether the potential Guinness World Record played a key role in motivating volunteers or not, this feat is an incredible reminder of our power as a collective. In just 24 hours, a nation was able to substantially increase their total tree count, hopefully improving their air quality, and their citizens’ health, for many years to come.

Even if you don’t have the power or connections to organize such a massive event, let this inspire you to take action on one of your community’s needs. Just last year, several of us from the Collective Evolution team took the time to clean up our local parks after being inspired by the work of Tommy Kleyn.

There are plenty of ways for us to contribute to a healthier world. Be sure to share any and all ideas that you may have via the comment section below.

Sources:

http://www.sciencealert.com/india-planted-50-million-trees-in-just-24-hours-last-week