Make Our Blue Planet Green: World Environment Day 2011

The Star : Sunday June 17, 2007
http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2007/6/17/sundaymetro/17954324&sec=sundaymetro


 
segar's green mission

A freight forwarder has pledged to plant at least a million trees in doing his bit for the environment.


WHILE most of us mark special occasions in our lives by cutting a cake, Segar Krishnan plants trees. Be it weddings, birthdays or Christmas, Segar, or better known as the ‘Green Man’, finds a way to express his love for the environment.
“On my wedding day, my wife and I planted a palm tree in the church compound. The tree is now 12 years old and our church usually use the leaves on Palm Sunday.
“On Christmas day, I would go around in my green Santa outfit and start planting trees. And birthdays in my house is normally celebrated by planting a tree. My eldest son planted his first tree when he turned one,” said the father of three.
me people may think he is weird, but for 42-year-old Segar, there is nothing more satisfying than doing his bit for Mother Nature. Segar, who is a nature lover, used to read a lot about animals and plants. That was when he learnt about the dangers of pollution and effects of global warming and the importance of plants.
“I wanted to do something about it. I couldn’t just sit back and watch the earth fall into ruins. Of course, at that time, people thought I was being unrealistic. Some laughed at me while others thought I had lost it,” said Segar, who founded Future In Our Hands (FIOH) in 1987, an organisation that looks into creating awareness on environmental issues.
But the negative remarks did not hurt him as he knew that these people would thank him one day.
“Convincing people to join the organisation was quite a challenge then. It took almost a year before I managed to win them over,” added Segar.
“But it was definitely worth it as we have planted over 8,000 trees in Malaysia and all my friends and relatives are now environmentalists in their own ways,” said the managing director of a freight forwarding company in Port Klang, Selangor.
Starting them young: Segar’s children (from left) Carissha Leena, 4, Elisha Elvin, 11 and Simon Alison, 7, happily circling around the tree they planted for World Environment Day.

His achievements include launching an environmental walk from Port Klang to Klang, initiating a project of planting mangrove trees in Pantai Bagan Lalang in Sepang under the Rotary Club of Nilai, producing a documentary on mangroves and initiating numerous tree planting campaigns in Klang.
“Planting a tree has tremendous influence on the community. It enhances our health, cools the environment and prevents soil erosions. It is a practical step to reducing global warming.”
Segar’s first project was planting neem trees outside Sekolah Rendah Methodist in Port Klang.
“It was JaSegar said the seeds, bark and leaves of the tree contain compounds called limonoids with proven antiseptic, antiviral, antipyretic, anti-inflammatory, anti-ulcer and anti-fungal properties.
He has been giving talks and holding exhibitions on neem trees, and has even distributed 5,000 saplings to schools.
“The fact is, when you talk about planting trees, no one is interested. The normal response would be that it is not their job but the local council’s, or that it is a waste of time. But people are more receptive to neem as it benefits them in many ways,” he said.
Segar is one of the few Malaysians who segregates his household and office wastes for recycling.
“I try and recycle everything I can – from paper to electronics. As for organic waste, I have a huge pot made out of clay that I use to decompose kitchen waste. The decomposed waste would then turn into high quality soil which I use as fertiliser,” he said.
For World Environment Day recently, Segar planted three neem trees at Taman Rakyat in Andalas, Klang. He also pledged to plant at least a million trees during his lifetime.
n 1, 1992. I still remember the date clearly because it was also the day when The Star’s mast head was green as it was the day they started using recycled materials in their newsprint and ink,” said Segar, who is also known as the ‘Neem King’ because he is believed to be the first Malaysian to grow neem trees in the country.
“The reason I choose to plant neem is because of its benefits to mankind. Neem, or scientifically called Azadirachta indica, is a wonder tree. Even the United Nations has classified it as the tree of the 21st century because of its multiple uses,” he said.