For Retchie Sacapaño, the mangroves of Ibajay, Aklan, were once just a backdrop to her childhood — a place to catch crabs for dinner. It wasn’t until 2010 that she realized that these trees were the frontline of her community’s survival when she was offered a job to be a tour guide and learned more about the importance of mangroves. Today, as an active member of the peoples’ organization Bugtongbato Fisherfolk Association (BFA) protecting the Katunggan It Ibajay (KII) Mangrove Eco-tourism Park, Retchie isn’t just a witness to nature; she is one of its many stewards.

“I found out how essential the mangrove forests are to us,” Retchie shared. “We don’t just earn money; we also became tour guides and educate our visitors on why we must preserve our forests.” Through the One Meralco Foundation’s (OMF) One For Trees (OFT) program, Retchie and her community in 2023 planted 50,000 mangroves in a barren part of the forest, checking in every weekend to ensure its growth that her children and grandchildren will inherit in the years to come.

This local effort is part of a much larger environmental initiative. Since its launch in 2019, OFT planted and nurtured a total of 3,045,104 trees across 36 reforestation sites nationwide. In 2025 alone, OFT added 165,141 new trees to this growing tally, with a 92 percent survival rate. The program also directly benefits 2,492 tree farmers who serve as the primary guardians of these lands.

OMF puts the spotlight on environmental stewards whose actions and positive intentions for their communities made a major milestone possible. More than just a story of numbers, it is also a story of how reforestation is made impactful, ensuring that every seedling represents a lifeline for the people who call these ecosystems home.

Empowering communities

The bond between forests and the people who depend on it is something that cannot be severed. In many parts of the country, those who rely most on land are often the ones struggling most to get by. OFT helps address this by treating tree farmers as the true heart of the program, recognizing them as long-term partners whose success is the best guarantee for the forest’s survival.

In the Taguibo Watershed in Butuan City, Agusan del Norte, the Manobo tribe has long relied on the river for everything — from drinking water to food on their table. However, illegal logging turned the once-clear waters turbid, with senior citizen Danilo Dandanon Sr. seeing the river recede firsthand. Through OFT’s partnership with the Butuan City Water District (BCWD), Danilo alone has planted 600 seedlings, including fruit-bearing trees like durian and lanzones. In total, 48,000 trees have been planted and nurtured there, with members of the Anticala Watershed Farmers Producer Cooperative and Anticala Tribal Council of Elders and Leader Association Inc. being the main peoples’ organizations at the forefront of this initiative.