– Mohammed Talha
Bengaluru: It wasn’t a usual press conference. As I sat among a modest gathering of reporters, school principals, and community members at BIFT Hall in Darussalam building here, what unfolded before me was a rare and humbling experience – children, barely 10 to 13 years old, confidently addressing the media in three languages: Kannada, Urdu, and English.
Also watch multilingual video of this event here.
Their message was unified and urgent: “Plant a tree. Protect the Earth. Be proud.”
But their manner of delivery – measured, sincere, and surprisingly eloquent – left many in the room visibly moved.
This local press interaction was part of a nationwide environmental movement titled “Hands in Soil, Hearts with India”, launched by the Children Islamic Organisation (CIO). The goal is bold: to plant and care for one million trees across India in just 30 days, from June 25 to July 26, 2025. But as I saw that day, the campaign is about more than numbers – it’s about nurturing a national character rooted in ecological responsibility and moral leadership.
A Campaign Sown with Values
Unlike most symbolic plantation drives, CIO’s initiative begins with an Islamic ethic and ends with a civic one. Children are not only planting trees but naming them, befriending them, and nurturing them with the attention usually reserved for pets or personal diaries. They speak of their saplings with a tenderness that seems to spring from the heart.
“My tree is called Aman,” said a ten-year-old girl in Urdu, “because I want peace to grow in my city.”
Behind her, posters crafted by children hung from the walls – vibrant watercolours of trees, rivers, and slogans like:
“A leaf shall smile, every day shall bring greenery!”
The press conference highlighted how deeply CIO has embedded environmental awareness into the moral fabric of its children. Beyond plantations, the campaign includes Friday sermons on climate care, nature walks, eco-poetry contests, storytelling circles, and even short films created by the children themselves.
In Bengaluru alone, dozens of local schools – including Cambridge Modern Public School, Excellent English School, and government Urdu-medium institutions – have partnered with CIO for green drives. Collaborations with NGOs such as E-Cure Charitable Trust are ensuring technical support, sapling survival, and aftercare.
A Language Beyond Words
As a journalist, what struck me most wasn’t the plan or even the scale – but the authentic voice of the children. They weren’t parroting instructions. They were owning the mission.
In fluent Kannada, one boy explained how their school formed a “tree care squad.”
In Urdu, a young girl reminded reporters of the Quranic verse: “Do not spread corruption in the land after it has been set right.”
In English, another child concluded, “When we plant trees, we are also planting futures.”
The trilingual delivery reflected not just linguistic ability, but the plural, pan-Indian vision CIO is instilling. It was a microcosm of unity in diversity, with one common cause: safeguarding the Earth.
From Saplings to Stewardship
CIO’s convenor Hina Farhaan, in conversation with Radiance, shared the deeper philosophy:
“We are raising a generation that doesn’t just talk about climate change – they respond with action. This is tarbiyyah through trees, character-building through caretaking.”
Her words echo what I witnessed: this campaign is not performative, it’s formative.
As children across India – from Tamil Nadu to Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat to Assam – dip their fingers into the soil, they’re learning something that no classroom can fully teach: the value of life, the patience of growth, and the responsibility of guardianship.
Not Just a Campaign – A Cultural Reformation
In a world burdened by climate anxiety and ecological exhaustion, CIO’s green movement is offering something rare: hope, driven by sincerity. Not in policy briefs, but in playgrounds. Not in summit speeches, but in schoolyards.
And maybe that’s exactly where hope should live – in the quiet rustle of leaves planted by tiny hands, in the commitment of children who are too young to vote, but old enough to care.
As I left the hall, a phrase from a child’s placard stayed with me:
“Where every child plants a tree, a greener world will bloom.”
It’s not just a slogan – it’s a prophecy. And by the looks of it, it has already begun.
