'Inspiring' tree planters praised by Nile Rodgers

Music legend Nile Rodgers has praised the "inspiring" work of young people working to restore Northern Ireland's woodlands after helping to plant trees on the outskirts of Londonderry.

Earlier this month, the Chic star and his partner Nancy Hunt joined the group of volunteers to help plant 30 new native trees in the Faughan Valley.

The planting – part of celebrations marking 30 years of the Woodland Trust in Northern Ireland - was funded by a donation of £35,000 from the couple's We Are Family Foundation (WAFF).

Rodgers said he was struck by the commitment of the young people involved in working to restore the woodlands.

"Our team felt a deep connection while planting those 30 trees in the Faughan Valley," he said.

"The young people at WAFF and the people we met from the Trust are inspiring. Standing on the ground that will become the We Are Family Grove in Northern Ireland, I felt a strong sense of hope.

"We are family, and together we're making better choices for our future."

Rodgers added: "Nothing but love for The Woodland Trust on their 30th anniversary."

A significant proportion of Northern Ireland's ancient woodlands are scattered throughout Faughan Valley in County Londonderry.

For 20 years the Woodland Trust has worked "to connect these fragments of forest," Woodland Trust Northern Ireland Director, John Martin, said.

"We are grateful to Nile Rodgers and the We Are Family Foundation for their amazing support for our native woodland," he added.

With ancient woodland covering just 0.04% of Northern Ireland's landscape, Martin said the WAFF funding is "essential to the Woodland Trust Northern Ireland's work as we restore and create native woodland."

The Chic co-founder, a Grammy Hall of Fame recipient, is one of the most successful and influential figures in music.

The songwriter, producer and arranger has enjoyed a 50-year career, creating hit after hit with his bands Chic and Sister Sledge and in collaboration with artists like Diana Ross, David Bowie, Duran Duran and Daft Punk.

"It's not every day that you get to plant a tree with a music legend but then the work here in the Faughan Valley is so inspirational," the Woodland Trust's Darren Moorcroft said.

The Faughan Valley's network of woodlands includes Burntollet wood, Oaks wood, Killaloo wood and Brackfield Farm Wood.