Stewart Wills is a man who has spent his life travelling the world. Conscious that many hundreds of flights had stacked up a significant amount of 'carbon debt', he was inspired by articles in the press at the time of the Climate Change Conference in Paris last year, to contact the National Forest Company (NFC) and discuss making a personal donation.

Mr Wills, who lives in Bowdon, Cheshire, wanted to 'pay back' the amount he has calculated to be more or less equivalent to the carbon debt from his travels thus far.

He has made a substantial donation to the NFC to help create The National Forest, and an equivalent one to the Woodland Trust to help look after ancient woodlands as well.

“Stewart Wills' generous gift is already making a difference, creating a new woodland grove,” explained Lynne Richards, Head of Fundraising for the NFC. “It is a creative and thoughtful way of offsetting his lifetime of travel in a very dynamic way. We are very grateful.”

Stewart Wills said: “As soon as one donates, something is planted in the ground and it starts working to pay back what is owed. It feels extremely good to settle the debt in this way. I had been thinking about this for quite a while, but the time to do it is definitely now – there is no time like the present to pay back what we owe the planet.”

He continued: “I am not wanting to make an ideological statement; it simply feels like a very practical solution to the problem that modern travel presents. By planting trees and looking after ancient woodlands I'm helping lock up carbon in the environment, as well as enabling all the other benefits trees provide: wildlife habitats, shelter, shade, taking up water and alleviating flooding, timber for manufacturing and fuel.

“I'd be very happy if this encouraged other people to make a donation to offset the travel in their lives.”

For further information on the work of the National Forest Company, visit www.nationalforest.org

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Media contact: Carol Rowntree Jones, Media Relations Officer, National Forest Company on 01283 551211/ 07870 568628 email: crowntreejones@nationalforest.org

Stewart Wills is available for interview; please contact Carol Rowntree Jones as above.

NOTES TO EDITORS:

1. The National Forest area covers 200 square miles of the counties of Leicestershire, Derbyshire and Staffordshire. Its objective is to increase woodland cover within its boundaries from an initial six per cent to about a third. No multi-purpose forest on this scale has been created in the UK for one thousand years. To date the proportion of woodland cover in the Forest has more than trebled to 20 per cent and in 2012 HRH the Duke of Cambridge planted the eight millionth tree in the Forest.
   
   
2. Year by year, The National Forest has been steadily turning what was once one of the least wooded areas of England into a multi-purpose, sustainable forest.  The National Forest provides environmental, social and economic benefits, including landscape enhancement, creation of new wildlife habitats and major new access and leisure opportunities. It is an excellent example of sustainable development – with environmental improvement providing a stimulus both to economic regeneration and to community pride and activity.
   
   
3. To achieve these objectives, the National Forest Company leads the creation of The National Forest, working in partnership with landowners, local authorities, private business, voluntary organisations and local communities and has strong support from Government, politicians and the public. The Company receives grant in aid from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
4. The National Forest Company's Triennial Review by Central Government in 2013 stated: “Many [stakeholders] stressed the need for the continued role of the NFC to maintain momentum and ensure that the long term aims for The National Forest are achieved. The importance of a 'truly sustainable landscape scale project' was stressed, with the need for continued objectives across a wide agenda including economic growth, woodland culture and habitat networks.”