Giel Boes (34) from Eindhoven thought that a playful action should be taken to make people more environmentally aware. That is why he decided not to say anything for ten days and to ask for donations. For Giel it is quite a challenge to be completely still. Like his girlfriend, he has ADHD and usually talks a lot. The proceeds go to his foundation Boes Bos and is used to plant trees.
But we don’t get to speak to him. On his LinkedIn page, he calls himself a “hyperactive tree planter” and a “green IT geek.” Fortunately, he also has a website on which he writes: “Our mission is to plant 1 tree per Dutch person.” And that’s not its only goal. The money will also go towards protecting the tropical rainforest and promoting more plant and animal species in the Netherlands.
Because Giel himself is not allowed to talk, he has taped his mouth shut. His girlfriend Dori van Hulst spoke on his behalf. “Normally he can’t even be quiet for a minute,” Dori laughs. “It is of course super cool to raise money with which these goals can be achieved, but for us it is mainly about awareness.”
“He wanted an action where he really had to get out of his comfort zone.”
As an example, she mentions the new sofa they recently bought. Although new… they have deliberately opted for a second-hand sofa. “We could buy a new one, but you have a choice. You have to ask yourself what the environmental consequences are of buying new stuff”, she says and Giel nods in agreement. According to him, buying a new sofa is just as bad for the environment as taking a car ride up and down to Spain.
But how did Giel come up with the idea of not saying anything for ten days? “He wanted an action where he really has to get out of his comfort zone to show how important this is to him. But he’s happy to talk about it and there are other ways to communicate.”
“I’m silent for the trees!”
“I thought it would not be too bad if Giel would be quiet, but he still wants to tell a lot.” That is why the conversations between Giel and Dori are in sign language and if they really do not come out, the speech function in Google Translate also offers a solution.
He just goes to work and he still sports, he explains in gestures. To make it clear to other people that he doesn’t talk, he put on a T-shirt that reads: ‘I’m silent to the trees!’ His boss is fine with it, but his colleagues sometimes tease him a bit.
Giel wants to raise 12,000 euros in these ten days. Giel writes his experiences daily on the Whydonate.nl site, where there is also a direct donation can be made. Foundation Boes is officially recognized as a charity and gifts are tax deductible. At the moment, his action has raised about 2700 euros.
