Small but mighty forests
Powerful mini forests, kittens in danger, & young evangelicals making waves
GOOD NEWS
All around the world, people are planting tiny forests full of native plants on plots of land as small as a tennis court. These tiny forests — also called pocket forests, mini forests, and, in the U.K., “wee” forests — are based on principles developed in the 1970s by a Japanese botanist named Akira Miyawaki.
When I first heard about the Miyawaki forest being planted by middle-schoolers in California, I was amazed. "The reason we are planting the Miyawaki forests and using the Miyawaki method is to address climate change," teacher Neelam Patil explained. By densely planting these small plots with native trees and shrubs, the competition between these plants for sunlight means that nearly a century’s worth of growth can be achieved in just a few decades.
Greening urban areas carries a host of benefits. These dense tiny forests cool their surrounding area, mitigating the urban heat island effect. The trees also filter pollution from the air, soak up floodwaters during heavy downpours, and provide a rich habitat for local wildlife. Because they're so dense, these forests store more carbon than conventionally farmed trees would. And, as fifth-grader Lydia says here, “When I look at it, I feel very proud and I am happy that I'm helping the world." That’s six wins!
Over 3000 projects around the world have already been created using Miyawaki's methods, according to the British nonprofit Creating Tomorrow’s Forests. In Canada, six mini forests were planted last year while Amman, Jordan already has five mini forests and another in the works. Work on a new one on New York City’s small Roosevelt Island will begin this spring and an elementary school in McAllen, Texas is also getting one soon.
Want to learn more? Watch this video on the first tiny forest in Massachusetts, and consider starting one where you live. It’s a great project for neighbourhoods, communities and schools!
NOT-SO-GOOD NEWS
I love kittens – but even our cats Dr. Evil and Mr. Jekyll (pictured above) agree that a world with a longer, more active kitten season isn’t good for anyone.
Feral cats are typically most fertile when it's warm out, and unfortunately, each year kitten season seems to be starting earlier and ending later. This means more kittens for already overloaded shelters, more feral cats, and more threats to biodiversity. One study estimated that outdoor, mostly unhomed, cats kill between 1 to 4 billion birds and 6 to 22 billion small mammals in the U.S. alone every year.
As you might guess, climate change - with its milder winters and earlier springtime – is likely responsible. Milder winters may mean more food, and so cats start mating earlier in the year than they have in the past. “No animal is going to breed unless they can survive,” says Christopher Lepczyk, an ecologist at Auburn University who studies free-ranging cats. Milder winters mean that last year’s kittens may survive in larger numbers, too. “I would argue that temperature really matters,” Lepczyk said.
And animal shelters cannot keep up. The Humane Society of America already likens each kitten season to a “natural disaster.” “As the population continues to explode, how do we address all these little lives that need our help?” asks Ann Dunn, director of Oakland Animal Services. “We’re giving this everything we have.”
INSPIRATION OF THE MONTH
Young people across the world, and in the United States, are generally more concerned about climate change – and in the U.S., this holds true of young evangelicals as well.
Since they were founded over a decade ago, I’ve served as a science advisor for Young Evangelicals For Climate Action. Today, there are thousands of these under-30s working on campuses and in churches across the U.S., helping shift the conversation on climate change from divisive arguments to hopeful action. Many, like Elsa Barron, considered leaving their faith due to the opposition to climate change they find in the broader U.S. evangelical community – but ultimately opted to stay, and fight to raise awareness about climate change despite opposition from their elders.
Others, like Michelle Frazer, are focusing on climate science as I do. Currently a postdoctoral fellow at Rice University, Michelle studies cloud feedbacks in climate models. Like Jessica Moerman and I, her faith informs her work. “God commands us to love – to have compassion for other people – and that should motivate us to care about climate change,” she says.
To learn about more inspirational YECA members, check out these profiles by Rolling Stone and 5280. To hear more from Michelle, check out this episode of the What In God’s Name podcast she appeared on with my friend and fellow climate scientist Thomas Ackermann. And as always, don’t forget to share what you learn with friends and family!
Mon Apr 9 at 7:30pm EDT - Christians, Climate, and Our Culture Around the World hosted by the Affiliation of Christian Biologists - virtual
Mon Apr 22 at 9pm EDT (6pm PDT) - Good News and Just Responses to Climate Change hosted by Seattle Pacific University - virtual
Wed Apr 24 at 5pm EDT - New Climate Solutions and Galvanizing for Action, the 22nd Peter M. Wege Lecture on Sustainability at the University of Michigan - in person, in Ann Arbor MI
What a fabulous idea! Just watched Rob Lewis in conversation with Dougald Hine, talking about “land change,” climate change’s largely unreported twin. Trees and soil have a major effect on local and global climate. Land must be part of climate action if we are to save the places we love.
I hadn't head about mini-forests until today, such amazing projects around the world. I do know about Wangari Maathai who planted trees through her green belt movement and was an adopter of the Japanese philosophy of reduce, reuse recycle.
On the topic of cats, this reminds of the book 'Last chance to see' by Adam Douglas where I learned that the endemic bird population in Australia and New Zealand was killed by feral cats. I was especially touched by a bird species called kakapo that now survives in extremely small numbers in areas strictly protected.
Regarding attitudes toward nature in world religions I'm reading a great book called 'Ecological Imaginations in the World Religions: An Ethnographic Analysis' by Tony Watling where he talks about the importance of religion in fighting against climate change. So wonderful to read that thousands of young people take action to influence their religious communities to value nature more.
Wonderful article!