We aim to train 100 volunteers from our community to biosecurely and legally collect native tree seed from our local area which will be grown into the future woodlands of the southwest. We propose to run a programme whereby volunteers would be taught plant identification, how to assess tree health, public engagement, biosecurity, record keeping, permissions, best practice, logging and mapping. This programme will increase the numbers of trees grown in our community nurseries to meet the greater demand for woodland and hedgerow trees being planted in the southwest.

We aim to make volunteering more accessible to everyone, regardless of time, money, caring commitments, and schedules. We want volunteering to work for the volunteer - so that they can fit it into their own schedule and don't need to travel far (if at all!) to participate.

We would like to facilitate the involvement of more young people, young professionals and young families. We hope that of the volunteers we train, 30% will be from these backgrounds (as the amount of volunteers who currently represent these groups account for 10.6% of our volunteers).

Within our community we have high cases of preventable deaths and obesity in children. In South Hams, over 20,000 people have declared they have "low happiness", that they feel "low worthwhile", and over 12,000 have "low life satisfaction". Only 50% of local people agree that they have good access to community resources or activities and only 55% of people help out in their community.

Locals have said, "villages are becoming isolated", and that we need to "take more action regarding the climate emergency". Another said, "More support for people with mental health issues, particularly those who are employed" are needed.

We estimate that through Moor Trees' work we indirectly impact over 100,000 people each year through our engagement, community outreach, collaborative working with businesses, partnerships with other environmental organisations and groups, landowners, visitors, members, volunteers, and the public.

The product of our volunteer's time and devotion is 50,000 native trees which are grown in our community nurseries each year. These trees will go out to our local community and beyond to be planted as new woodland and hedgerow. To date we have planted over 112 new woodlands and planted 120,000 trees (equating to 240 football pitches!). With more seed being collected by our community the more trees we can grow!

By providing our volunteers with the skills and knowledge from our training programme, we are sure that it will rub off on others - their families, friends, neighbours, and colleagues. Improving the mental and physical health of one person does not just impact that one person alone - it changes the lives of those around them. They are more resilient, happier, more supportive and loving towards those around them. Their community will be all the better for it, and so will their local environment.

We bridge the gap between community, biodiversity, and carbon. We tackle 3 of the most pressing issues we face today by engaging our communities and providing a safe space for them to come together; we plant diverse, native species to combat the biodiversity crisis; and we sympathetically plant trees which sequester carbon, fighting climate change.