![Students from the Adventist Educational System in the North Mexican Union prepare the ground to plant several trees as part of a regional reforestation initiative. [Credit - North Mexican Union/SEA]](https://cdn.adventistcontent.org/images/5df200974469ba078555eb4c/d4f2c82b624368d01088c38ba16834fc7115b6ab/1200x/kWa1660117626858.jpg)
Students from across the 19 Seventh-day Adventist primary and secondary schools throughout the North Mexican Union recently took part in a week-long campaign to plant 400 trees throughout various parks and communities.
The initiative, coined “Planting Hope,” was part of a series of activities that engaged students, teachers, principals, and parents in the planting of hundreds of trees that will provide shade and grow fruits and colorful flowers in green areas and public spaces where schools are located, organizers said.
![A preschooler from the Juan Escutia Adventist School in Saltillo, Coahuila,Mexico, waters a recently potted plant during the reforestation and beautification initiative across communities near Adventist school grounds. [Credit - North Mexican Union/SEA]](https://cdn.adventistcontent.org/images/5df200974469ba078555eb4c/fb059649f7baf5b7b3a092d020cb84579ce158cb/30x/wrA1660117984821.jpg)
A preschooler from the Juan Escutia Adventist School in Saltillo, Coahuila,Mexico, waters a recently potted plant during the reforestation and beautification initiative across communities near Adventist school grounds. [Credit - North Mexican Union/SEA]
“We wanted to take part in reaffirming the vision and commitment of the Adventist Educational System in the North Mexican Union to educate the new generations in the preservation and care of the environment,” said Enrique Dzul, academic vice president of Adventist Education in the North Mexican Union. This was the first time Adventist Education organized coordinated efforts in reforestation across the territory.
Before the planting of the trees, about 700 students took part in cleaning and restoring green areas and schools surrounding public spaces, said Dzul. The initiative was part of commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Inter-American Division being organized in 1922, he added.
Many schools took a full day of cleaning and planting, while others took several days to engage the students and their families in the reforestation projects.
![A student from the Soledad Acevedo de los Reyes Adventist School helps plant a tree in Montemorelos, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. [Credit - North Mexican Union/SEA]](https://cdn.adventistcontent.org/images/5df200974469ba078555eb4c/ad4a85700cf2e787683c1284c908084ba7e76168/30x/Xl11660118082159.png)
A student from the Soledad Acevedo de los Reyes Adventist School helps plant a tree in Montemorelos, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. [Credit - North Mexican Union/SEA]
“Each school appointed a special committee to organize and coordinate each activity, following specific guidelines to implement and carry out the activity,” said Dzul. “Through this important activity, we endorse the commitment to preserve and take care of the environment, and our students enjoyed an excellent opportunity to serve and testify in their communities.”
As part of the initiative, students distributed Adventist literature and prayed with people.
Adventist Education in the North Mexican Union oversees 34 schools at the preschool, primary, and secondary levels.
To learn more about the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the North Mexican Union, go to adventistasumn.org.