Gearóid McEvoy grew up on a mixed farm of cattle, goats, pigs and turkeys in Termonfeckin, County Louth.
Perhaps it was the unusual mix of animals on the farm that gave Gearóid his very unique outlook, but something certainly set him on a mission.
He accepts that he might not be able to change the world but he feels strongly that he will be able to improve it, one tree at a time.
Gearóid studied wildlife biology at the Institute of Technology in Tralee, now Munster Technological University, but long before then - from the age of around six, he said - he has been fascinated by nature and people like David Attenborough.
Two years ago Gearóid set up what he describes as a social enterprise called Reforest Nation, through which businesses and the public can contribute to purchase and plant native species of trees.
Since then, he said, Reforest Nation has raised enough to plant 100,000 trees: 35,000 in Ireland and the remainder in Africa, Asia and Central America.
Reforest Nation aims to restore Ireland's native woodlands, one tree at a time. Its goal is to plant one million trees across the world by 2024.
This weekend, that work is continuing in Killarney, Co Kerry, trying to repair the damage caused when gorse fires burned through and extensively damaged 2,500 hectares of priority habitat in Killarney National Park last April.
Scots pine, birch and oak are among around a dozen species of native trees being planted. More than 50 volunteers are helping the work, some of them travelling from as far away as France.
Gearóid said he took nothing from Reforest Nation in its first year, with all monies raised going directly to buying and planting saplings.
This year he said he will take a small wage - less than €20,000 - and he promised to publish accounts by the end of this year.
He said he appreciates the need for transparency, and described Reforest Nation's aims as "crazily ambitious".
At 17, Gearóid spent a summer volunteering with Louth Nature Trust and Birdwatch Ireland on their little tern conservation project.
He spent 2019 volunteering for the Greek society for the protection of sea turtles, and in 2021 he worked in an animal rescue centre in Costa Rica, rehabilitating injured jungle animals. Along the way, he also spent four years studying wildlife biology in Tralee.
He had planned to return to Costa Rica a year earlier, but Covid intervened. On his father's suggestion, he set up Reforest Nation.
"I thought that, in my short time, I can do as much good to restore the natural woodlands as possible, because I know how much they have been damaged and I cannot think of anything more meaningful for me in my life than to restore our woodlands and encourage others to do it too," Gearóid said.
"If we can create a forest diverse in native tree species, this can help facilitate diversity in all levels of the ecosystem."
"I spent four years in Tralee studying Wildlife Biology. Almost every two or three weeks we would head out to the national park in Killarney, so I became very familiar with it and developed a real love and connection with the place.
"I knew with this project I wanted to contribute to Kerry, I remember always imagining the vast scots pine/oak forests which once covered the Slieve Mish and mountains of the Iveragh peninsula."
Last weekend, Gearóid and a small team of volunteers planted 2,500 native species trees in the foothills of the McGillycuddy Reeks, in the shadow of Ireland's highest mountain, Carrauntoohil.
This weekend they are planting another 3,500.
The trees are being planted on a four-acre site at Carrauntoohil Eco Farm, owned by Vikki Cullen. The area is perfect for reforestation: Vikki runs a camping and glamping site on the 10-acre farm. The trees will provide protection from the elements, as well as enhancing the wildlife habitat there.
"It's about giving something back to nature and the environment," Vikki said.
Gearóid's work in Killarney won't finish with this weekend's effort. He said he will be back soon, planting one tree at a time.
"After seeing how the fires had destroyed much of the places I spent time in, I was compelled to want to do more. This is why we began our campaign to plant 6,000 trees in Killarney," he added.
