National Parks Board Supports Green Wave 2013 - Highest Number of Schools Participating with Record Number of Trees Planted 22 May 2013 Singapore, 22 May 2013 - For the fifth consecutive year, the National Parks Board (NParks) has supported Green Wave, a worldwide biodiversity campaign to educate children and youth about the importance of protecting our natural environment. Held annually on 22 May in conjunction with International Day of Biological Diversity, this year's Green Wave saw 237 schools in Singapore, the highest number to date, plant a record number of over 630 trees within their compounds. To commemorate 50 Years of Greening Singapore this year, each school was able to select and plant more than the usual one tree provided by NParks. The planting of trees is a platform for the schools to showcase and share their gardening and conservation efforts. The focus is to plant locally significant trees such as Heritage Tree species, fruit trees and spice trees. Mr Ng Cheow Kheng, Director, Horticulture and Community Gardening, NParks said, "By having the students plant and care for the trees in their schools, we hope that they will come to feel a greater sense of ownership for our City in a Garden and be inspired to co-create a greener Singapore. We are also very encouraged to see that the number of schools participating in Green Wave has increased by more than 25% compared to last year. It is especially meaningful to receive such strong support from the school community as we commemorate 50 Years of Greening Singapore." The 237 schools included 77 primary schools; 83 secondary schools; 14 junior colleges/pre-university institutes/polytechnics; 9 international/private schools, 9 Special Schools, and 45 kindergartens. At 10.00am today, students in Singapore and around the world planted trees in their school compounds, creating a figurative "green wave" starting in the Far East and travelling West around the world. Schools were encouraged to organise activities to celebrate Green Wave and were invited to share their Green Wave experience and upload photos on NParks' Facebook page at www.nparks.gov.sg/nparksbuzz.