Etihad, Marriott to plant 12,000 mangrove trees in Jubail Island

Etihad, Marriott to plant 12,000 mangrove trees in Jubail Island

Etihad Airways, the national carrier of the UAE and global hospitality company Marriott International are collaborating to plant 12,000 mangrove trees at Jubail Island.

The initiative is part of a broader campaign to establish the Etihad Marriott Mangrove Forest and support the UAE’s sustainability efforts. Spread across more than 150 sq km of the UAE's coastline, the Etihad Marriott Mangrove Forest will make up part of the only evergreen forest in the GCC region providing a natural habitat for marine and terrestrial species.

During the first phase of the two-month project, teams from Etihad and Marriott International planted the first set of Jubail Island mangrove trees.

The collaboration with Marriott International is part of the broader Etihad Forest initiative, which is targeted to plant 182,000 mangrove trees in the first quarter of 2023, before the programme expands to plant forests across international destinations the airline operates to.

Kim Hardaker, VP Loyalty and Partnerships, Etihad Airways said: “As a long-term loyalty partner, the Etihad team is thrilled to collaborate with Marriott International to plant 12,000 mangroves in Abu Dhabi in 2023. Mangrove forests are a natural feature of Abu Dhabi’s beautiful coastline. Mangroves store around four times more carbon than other terrestrial forests which is