“The Plant of Hope” … a permanent exhibition of ornamental plants, in Homs

With scientific academic experience, the Environmental Development Foundation in Homs launched its permanent exhibition, The Plant of Hope, at its headquarters in the Akrama district.

The “Plant of Hope” exhibition displays about fifty varieties of various types of ornamental plants and roses covering an area of two hundred square meters, including cactuses, medicinal and aromatic plants, such as king’s crown, rosemary, olivera, hibiscus, and lavender, in addition to various indoor plants, yoga, jasmine, night perfume and others.

According to the director of the Environmental Development Foundation in Homs, Boulos Qassis, the exhibition aims to link academic education with practical reality by caring for plants, enhancing the practical expertise, as well as making the plants the seed for the ornamental plants sector in the ecological garden supervised by the Foundation and located at the southern entrance to Homs.

Kassis pointed out that visitors were provided with some information about a group of plants in the garden in order to spread agricultural and environmental culture, enhance environmental awareness, and add a touch of beauty to our environments, whether at home, the street or workplaces.

Laila Haj Younis, Executive Director of the Environmental Development Foundation in Homs, spoke about the coordination and cooperation that took place over a period of months with about twenty young volunteers who represent students, university graduates, and the Agricultural and Environmental Engineering Institute students, as each of them added their own touch and experience in the exhibition.

Samar Al-Biqa’i, the supervisor of the volunteers in the “Plant of Hope” project, highlighted the possibilities available to invest in the permanent garden through carrying out various environmental events and awareness activities, especially for schoolchildren. This helps to enhance the linking between theoretical information and practical reality for students, whether graduates, learners, or those with a passion and interest in roses and plants.

She stressed the need to involve women to restore the luster and beauty of home gardens, pointing out that the foundation’s garden was rehabilitated by young volunteers who underwent a training workshop on the concept of volunteering, team work, and the exchange of ideas and visions for the success of such permanent environmental exhibitions.

Young volunteers in the Foundation who contributed to the exhibition “The Plant of Hope” expressed their satisfaction with the success of their project as a preliminary step to apply their scientific knowledge and skills in a practical way with the possibility of developing it to the benefit of every student and interested in environmental and aesthetic affairs.

It is noteworthy that the Environmental Development Foundation in Homs was created in 2017 and aims to develop and develop a participatory environment with various segments of society. It has about a thousand volunteers, most of them young people.

Amal Farhat