A milestone was reached this week when philanthropist Charl du Toit, handed over the 20 000th tree to a school in Pretoria as part of the Save our Planet – Plant a Tree project. The occasion marked the continuing tree sponsorship to pupils in the Pretoria area.

Since the launch of the Save our Planet – Plant a Tree project a year ago Charl, CEO of The Success Academy, has visited 13 schools and given away 21 840 trees. Every child receives his/her own tree, beautifully wrapped and ready for planting. The trees have all been growing at the Willow Feather Farm for two years which is the optimal time needed to ensure the tree’s chances of survival after being planted.

The most recent tree ceremony was held at the Laer-and Hoërskool Garsfontein when 3 780 pupils waited in anticipation to receive their trees. During his speech, Charl spoke about the importance of building relationship with their trees. He always manages to raise a laugh when he tells them to name their trees and talk to them. “They will listen and become your friend for life,” he said.

The inspiration behind the Save our Planet – Plant a Tree project was sparked when Charl, who is passionate about trees and the environment, wanted to do something tangible and positive about saving the plant.

“I felt it was important to set in motion a process that would leave a lasting legacy while at the same time educate the pupils of the importance of greening the environment. A year down the line I am delighted at the enthusiastic response from the children and support from the schools particularly as all the trees are at no cost to the school and donated by The Success Academy,” he says.

But the challenge is ongoing and a never-ending journey. Charl has pledged to donate 150 000 trees to pupils over the next five years. With the milestone of 20 000 being reached he is well on the way to achieving this. “We still have a way to go but we are on track,” he says.

Hours of planning goes into preparing the trees for distribution. The 15 member team at Willow Feather Farm team spend three full days pulling the stock from the nursery and wrapping them. Once loaded onto the trucks they do multiple trips to and from the nursery to the school. “It’s highly labour intensive, but we have got it down to a fine art now. By example if one person had to gift 3 780 trees, it would take a month and half to complete the task,” says Barry Geyer, MD of Willow Feather Farm.

We were very happy yesterday to plant 40 trees at the Heartbeat Centre for Community Development, an after-school haven for orphaned children. We are 100% sure that the trees will go a long way in creating a pleasant environment for the children!

The Heartbeat after-school haven is a CSI initiative that Jacaranda FM has adopted following their initial Mandela Day visit in 2012. This haven helps to empower orphans and vulnerable children between the ages of 6 and 18 and those who support them, to be responsible leaders for the future. The school currently has 190 kids and 30 volunteers. The haven caters for those children whose parents have died and are left to their own devices or are in the care of a grandparent. They attend Jan-Kotlolo Primary and the after-school haven cares for them, supervises their homework and feeds them. They leave at 16.30.

Jacaranda FM’s general manager, Kevin Fine explains it this way: “As a station, we like to get to know our communities and where possible, assist in making a difference in their lives. The relationship that we have built with the kids at Heartbeat has been a tremendous privilege and we look forward to developing this in the years to come. Planting trees is a great opportunity to get closer to the kids while at the same time, doing something that is meaningful in terms of their environment.”

Charl du Toit, CEO of The Success Academy, who donated the 40 trees, is passionate about educating children in what they can do to help save the planet. He works very closely with Willow Feather Farm and is the driving force behind the Save Our Planet – Plant a Tree project.

To date Charl has visited ten schools and given away 18 000 trees! “But it’s more than just handing over a tree. We go to great lengths to explain why trees are important and the many advantages to living among them. Because kids are naturally curious, they soon realise that by reducing our carbon footprint, future generations will have a healthier environment in which to live,” he says.

Enthusiastic pupils at Laerskool Die Poort filed onto the playing fields recently, in anticipation of receiving their very own tree to plant. This event was part of the “Save our Planet – Plant a Tree” project sponsored by The Success Academy and Willow Feather Farm. The initiative was first launched a year ago to create awareness among school children of the importance of reducing the earth’s carbon footprint.

Charl du Toit, CEO of The Success Academy and his team gave away 840 trees, so that the pupils, together with their parents, could plant and care for them while they mature.

During his speech, Charl encouraged everyone to build a relationship with their trees; “Even give it a name,” he said. “Feed it and make it your friend and part of your family. After all, it will be with you for the rest of your life.”

He went on to point out that years ago people were inclined to chop trees indiscriminately without realising how damaging it was to the environment. The planet is suffering as a result and it is up to this generation to make good the damage of the past.

To date Charl has visited ten schools and given away 17 800 trees. “But it’s not just a case of handing over a tree. Children are naturally curious and they need to know the reason for keeping a tree alive. Our aim is to expose them to the many advantages of living among trees. Once they grasp the importance, the connection with nature motivates them to take responsibility. These young environmental ambassadors have already started establishing a healthier and safer future for generations to come,” he said.

‘Save our Planet – Plant a Tree’ is an ongoing project and Charl is staying true to his pledge of donating 150 000 trees over the next five years.

Another one of Charl’s initiatives is involving his tenants at The Success Academy’s office park in Highveld Technopark, Centurion who have rallied behind the company’s paper recycling project that also falls within the “Save our Planet – Plant a Tree” project.

Over a period of six months 10.1 tons of waste paper has been recycled. The proceeds generated from the sale have translated into 60 trees. These can now be seen growing on a vacant stand close to the office park for all the tenants to see.

The success of the campaign has exceeded Charl’s expectations. “This is a clear indication that more and more people are becoming environmentally aware and are keen to participate in initiatives that will benefit the ecology.”

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Charl du Toit CEO of The Success Academy in conjunction with Willow Feather Farm and his team gave a tree to each child so that, together with their parents, they can plant their trees and care for them while they mature. “Save our Planet – Plant a Tree” was first launched a year ago with the intention of creating awareness among school children of the importance of reducing our carbon footprint.

To date he has visited eight schools and given away 16 000 trees. “But it’s not just a case of handing over a tree. Children are naturally curious and they need to know the reason for keeping a tree alive. Our aim is to expose them to the many advantages of living among trees. Once they grasp the importance, the connection with nature motivates them to take responsibility for their trees. These young environmental ambassadors have already started establishing a healthier and safer future for generations to come,” he says.

‘Save our Planet – Plant a Tree’ is an ongoing project and Charl is staying true to his pledge of donating 150 000 trees over the next five years.

Another one of his initiatives is involving his tenants at The Success Academy’s office park in Highveld Technopark, Centurion who have rallied behind the company’s paper recycling project that also falls within the “Save our Planet – Plant a Tree” project.

Over a period of five months 8.5 tons of waste paper has been recycled. The proceeds generated from the sale have translated into 50 trees. These have now been planted on a vacant stand close to the office park in full view of his tenants.

The success of the campaign has exceeded Charl’s expectations. “This is a clear indication that more and more people are becoming environmentally aware and are keen to participate in initiatives that will benefit the ecology.”

‘Save our Planet – Plant a Tree’, in conjunction with Willow Feather Farm, was first launched a year ago with the intention of creating awareness among school children of the importance of reducing our carbon footprint.

This year Charl du Toit, CEO at The Success Academy, and his team will be visiting two local schools every month and giving a tree to each child so that, together with their parents, they can plant their trees and care for them while they mature. “These young environmental ambassadors have already started establishing a healthier and safer future for generations to come,” he says.

To date he has visited seven schools and given away 15 000 trees. But it’s not just a case of handing over a tree. Children are naturally curious and they need to know the reason for keeping a tree alive. Our aim is to expose them to the many advantages of living among trees. Once they grasp the importance, the connection with nature motivates them to take responsibility for their trees.

‘Save our Planet – Plant a Tree’ is an ongoing project and Charl is staying true to his pledge to donate 150 000 trees over the next five years. All the trees are sourced from Willow Feather Farm, a commercial nursery, family tea garden and animal farm in Irene.

MD of Willow Feather Farm, Barry Geyer and his brother, Brian together with a large team are responsible for the propagation of 100 000 indigenous trees every year. All are planted on the farm from seed or seedling and are, as a result accustomed to the harsh Highveld winter conditions.

Below are some pictures of today’s event that took place at Laerskool Hennopspark. The excitement and enthusiasm of the pupils moved us. We always cone away from these events feeling blessed and grateful to be part of something so inspirational!

Many small businesses start out from home offices. However, a time comes when having a home office does not provide you with the credibility you need to attract larger clients. When your business gets to this point it would be a good idea to pay us a visit to see what we can offer you.

When you rent serviced offices from us you can choose the exact amount of space you require to run your business enabling you to keep your overheads low. You also have peace of mind, knowing that as your business grows, you have the option of  simply relocating to a more suitable sized office in either Berkley, Cambridge or Oxford Office Parks, where we will be able to help you with anything from 75m² all the way to 1,500m²

Buying office furniture and equipment at the start of your business can dramatically impact your overheads. The bonus of using the Business Center is that the office furniture is included in each office which means you can save the cost and hassle of buying items you may not need right away.

At the Centre we also provide you with on-site IT support as well as a central secretarial service.

Why not come an take a look for yourself and lets talk about how we can help you transition your business into a corporate office environment.

(Charl with Sam Mngune, Sheli Skosana and Daniel Malebane)

“Taking the lead from former President Mandela when he planted the roots of our democracy 18 years ago we felt it would be appropriate to plant 94 trees in his honour. This was done in support of Madiba’s wish that ‘actions speak louder than words’. The trees were planted during the weekend over a period of three hours and our building team gladly gave of their time in support of Mandela Day.  Hopefully the trees will be an ongoing reminder of what he did for the country all those years ago.”

(Our building team after planting the trees on Saturday)

As a developer and manager of office parks in Highveld Techno Park, Charl is a dedicated environmentalist who believes that the carbon footprint created by high density living can be offset by planting trees.  Tree planting is considered the most efficient way of offsetting carbon emissions particularly where there is heavy traffic.

Recently it became clear that the single lane access road provided by the council to the Cambridge and Oxford office park developments was inadequate to cope with the volumes of traffic trying to enter the properties. At his own expense and for the convenience of his tenants Charl built a dual carriage-way along Oak Avenue to alleviate the traffic congestion.

It is along this portion of Oak Avenue, between Witch-Hazel and Bauhinia Streets, where the trees – all indigenous River Bush-willows have been planted.

“Not only will this initiative help to beautify the street and give shade, but it is a healthy option for those who travel to and from work every day. Air quality is improved by the leaves giving off oxygen, while at the same time absorbing air pollutants such as carbon monoxide, ozone and sulphur dioxide.  But most importantly, natural harmony is restored to the urban environment,” he says.

The Success Academy will manage the care and up-keep of the trees.

To date, Charl has given 4000 trees to school pupils in the Pretoria area and his goal is to donate 150 000 trees over the next five years as part of the Save our Planet – Plant a Tree project.

When arriving early on Friday morning this is what they found:

When they alerted us of the problem our onsite Maintenance Team immediately jumped into action to help take everything out of the offices as quickly as possible.

The team then drained all the water from the office and during the course of the day replaced the damaged carpets and drywall. The goal was to ensure that Prodoc experienced the least amount of business down-time and by Monday morning their office was as good as new!

The speed at which our Maintenance Team responded to the situation prompted the following comment from Richard Attwell of Prodoc on our internal tenant network:

One of our goals has always been to ensure that the businesses that rent office space from us can focus 100% on running their businesses while we take care of their physical environment.

Here is a short interview with Neels Grobbelaar who heads up our Maintenance Department:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.