Did you know Thailand just gained 3,000 more trees! Honda Automobile recently invited the Ban Hua En community in Si Maha Phot District, Prachin Buri Province to plant over 3,000 trees across about 13 rai of community forest — and it's a genuine 'community forest' too!

Community forests are the lifeblood of many lives — serving as sources of food, medicine, and herbs that villagers have depended on for generations. They also act as natural buffers during heavy rain and floods. Simply put, community forests aren't just about trees — they're about the survival of the people living there.

But these forests haven't escaped the impact of increasingly severe climate change, and livelihood activities have degraded some areas. Despite community efforts to care for and restore them, it's not been enough — and it requires enormous labor and resources.

This is where Honda Automobile stepped in, providing additional support for the Ban Hua En community to restore over 13 rai of forest. The numbers might make it sound like just another tree-planting event, but look deeper and there's much more to it.

This is a community forest that villagers have been tending together for a long time. It's mostly mixed deciduous forest, with existing native trees like rosewood, maprang, yang, takhian, and khi-lek — but still in need of further restoration. 

Honda's involvement was like building on what the community already wanted to do. The trees selected weren't chosen at random — they're species truly suited to the area, ranging from fast-growing khi-lek, medium-growth teak and yang, to slow-growing payung and golden takhian. 

Crucially, they didn't just plant and leave — Honda planned together with the community to ensure the trees survive and grow over the long term. 

The community also has a forest committee where women and youth play active roles — building people at the same time as building the forest.

What's also notable is that Honda isn't doing this just to tick a CSR checkbox — it's connected to the company's major goal called Honda Target 2050, which commits that by the year 2050 

all its activities and products will achieve net-zero carbon emissions, while also eliminating road accident fatalities — a pollution-free and accident-free society in one. This tree-planting event is another small step walking in that direction.

If we see activities like this continue across many areas, the goal of a low-carbon society won't feel so out of reach anymore.