Restore Our Earth with
Reforestation
An interview with EARTHDAY.ORG
President Kathleen Rogers
People don’t pay much attention to trees. Sometimes we are reminded
that tropical rainforests are still being cleared for agriculture. But
deforestation is much more serious than most of us realize.
 Deforestation
Deforestation is the intentional, permanent removal of forests for
other uses.
“We’ve obviously clear-cut huge parts of the planet’s surface and
as a result, we’ve lost huge amounts of biodiversity, we now find
ourselves with polluted waterways, because the roots of trees and
plants obviously prevent that from happening. Or maybe it’s not so
obvious and that’s why they do it,” says Kathleen Rogers, CEO and
president of EARTHDAY.ORG.
It’s estimated that
half of North America’s forests had already been destroyed by the
beginning of the 20th century. Globally, the World Bank
estimates that about 3.9 million square miles of forest have been
lost since the beginning of the 20th century – about 20% of the
world’s canopy. In 2018,
The Guardian reported that every second, a chunk of forest the
size of a soccer field is lost. Farming, grazing of livestock, mining,
and drilling account for
more than half of all deforestation.
We're fighting for the planet by replanting
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 Forests and Climate Change
According to the UN’s
2018 State of the World’s Forests report, healthy and productive
forests are essential to sustainable agriculture. Forests and trees
contribute to water quality, future energy needs, and to sustainable,
healthy cities. Forests are home to 80% of the terrestrial
biodiversity of plants, animals, and microbes. About
250 million people, mostly the rural poor, depend on forests
directly for subsistence and income. But perhaps the most significant
role forests play is in climate regulation. The United Nations FAO
says that deforestation is the
second-leading cause of climate change after burning fossil fuels.
It accounts for nearly 20% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
The United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity has called on
world governments to
protect 30% of lands and oceans worldwide by the end of the decade
to combat climate change. In January of 2021, President Biden
committed the United States to this goal.
Help protect our planet by helping us plant
trees to fight climate change: $1 plants 1 tree.
 Reforestation
Scientists and activists alike agree that “30 by 30” is a valid
goal. But with so much forestland already destroyed, some land needs
to be restored before it can be preserved. Reforestation is the
process of planting trees in a forest where the number of trees has
been decreasing.
“Reforestation, whether it’s in areas where bamboo naturally occurs
or trying to support old-growth forest to come back or new trees that
we’re planting in communities is an attempt to use the Earth’s natural
systems to give us back our oxygen and to protect our water and
biodiversity,” says Rogers.
Although it will take billions of trees, reforestation is also one
of the cheapest ways to sequester atmospheric carbon and tackle the
climate crisis.
The Canopy Project
It’s more straightforward than other forms of carbon sequestration,
but reforestation is not
easy, and there are pitfalls
to avoid. Climate change has already made it harder for forests to
regrow without active management, and many reforestation projects fail
because nearby communities harvest the saplings for wood. Learning
from historical reforestation failures, EARTHDAY.ORG developed The
Canopy Project.
“The Canopy Project has a significant education component. So we’re
not just planting the trees, we’re working with communities to make
sure they are benefiting from it and that they understand the value.
So they end up protecting the trees themselves,” says Rogers.
EARTHDAY.ORG works with global partners in areas that are most
at-risk from climate change and environmental degradation, and in
areas where environmental disasters have already struck. In Canopy
Project forests, nursery-grown saplings are maintained for the first
years after planting. Whenever possible, local workers are trained and
employed as stewards of the restored habitat.
You can donate directly to The Canopy Project,
where $1 plants 1 tree.
Republished with permission of Earth911.
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