THE CAROL THAT FOUGHT DEFORESTATION
As lots of fir trees are being cut down, more or less legally, every year for Christmas in Romania, we teamed up with Fundația Conservation Carpathia in order to make people more aware of their annual Xmas tree shopping.
So we rewrote the famous 'Oh, Christmas Tree' carol to 'Woe, Christmas Tree'. With lyrics completely modified in 4 different languages (Romanian, English, French and German, all adapted to each language's own version of words for the carol, in 4 stanzas), to speak about the fir trees' sad fate for the Holidays.
Interpreted live by a renowned choir in a sold-out Christmas concert at the Romanian Athenaeum just two weeks before Xmas, it was widely covered by mass-media, on TV, radio and online.
Furthermore, the modified carol was featured on national radio playlists, re-sung by mainstream artists on their own social media channels and shared by several other famous NGOs and celebrities on their pages. When winter was over, authorities announced tens of thousands of illegal Xmas trees confiscated, as well as a decrease in general national deforestation of about 16%.
And if you're curious about the 4-language lyrics, here they are featured on the official programme of the Christmas concert (translated to English):
