Published September 29, 2026
BY SPARROW PICARD
Roots in Motion, a Carmel High School club focused on youth’s plant-oriented environmental impact, is thriving through community partnerships with MEarth and Friends of Carmel Forest and plans to fundraise for the global nonprofit, One Tree Planted.
“The purpose of Roots in Motion is to bring awareness to deforestation issues and the loss of native plants—locally, but also globally,” says junior copresident Jasmine Jin, the club’s founder. “It’s also to get the youth more involved in helping plant trees.”
Volunteer opportunities are scheduled to be weekly or biweekly for one to two hours and will focus on trail restoration, monitoring sponsored trees, planting in the fall and tree siting, or finding the best locations for trees. Timing will be catered to students’ availability.
“We have wanted to partner with a group from Carmel High School for years, and our board, comprised of basically retired residents, is aging out,” says Ramie Allard, president of Friends of Carmel Forest.
Friends of Carmel Forest, Roots in Motion’s main partner, is an organization dedicated to protecting, enhancing and sustaining Carmel’s forest and canopy. They consider it a gift that this club sprung to life.
“I’ve only seen one [meeting], but there was a guest speaker from a local nonprofit that replants trees in Carmel and a lot of interest from the students,” says CHS science teacher and club adviser Victoria Deckelmann.
Friends of Carmel Forest president Ramie Allard (left) and Roots in Motion founder Jasmine Jin share details regarding volunteer opportunities. photo by SPARROW PICARD
The idea of the club arose after Jin’s deforestation research for her English project last year. Originally hesitant on the idea, she accredits CHS sophomore copresident Sophia Wetzel with helping take initiative.
Inspired by Jin’s passion for the environment, the club is quickly amassing members of environmentally conscious youth.
“I joined it to make an impact in the world,” says CHS sophomore Ava Ruskell. “I want to go into veterinary medicine when I’m older because I think the environment is really important, and I want to help restore nature.”
Meetings occur every Friday at lunch in Room 34 to discuss incoming volunteer opportunities and events, aiming in the short term to help locally and aspiring to make a positive global footprint in the future.
