Hi all people from this planet,
A forest for me is a place so dense with trees that you cannot just walk into it. It doesn’t matter how big or small they are. “Real” forests are an oasis of wilderness where nature can thrive without human interference. Once upon a time, before human intervention, most of the world we live in today was forest. Then we built up our cities on these forests, forgetting that we belong to nature as well as 8.4 billion other species on this planet.
We need to redefine our interactions with our surroundings towards a more sustainable and permanent cooperation of all living beings.
Let’s start with trees.
Therefore, I propose to completely reforest the Netherlands by the year 2060. Forests cover a third of all land on Earth, providing vital organic infrastructure for some of the planet's densest, most diverse collections of life. Functioning forest systems could be described as the largest living organisms on this planet. A factory of life, where countless biological processes create the most the base resource required for us humans to thrive: fertile soil.
Man lives by plants. Plants live in the soil. The forest is a kind of factory in which the life-force of plants is made by using plant biomaterial, assisted by bacteria and the elements of weather. This important resource is only effectively created by forests all over the world. And we as humans don’t even have to work for it. We just have to let forest grow.
Recently we can observe a new awareness for trees. Dutch cities try to re-green concrete jungles and even the Dutch Institution for forest and nature developed an action plan to increase the tree coverage of the Netherlands.
Yet these efforts are not enough. Currently, the surface area of the Netherlands is only 11% covered with trees and is one of Europe's least wooded countries. On the other hand, the Netherlands is extremely productive relative to its size as a food exporter. Therefore the Netherlands rely deeply on its high quality soil and innovation in the agricultural sector.
A lot of exciting new technologies are changing how we view agriculture; such as farming in silos, drone farmers, self-driving tractors and vertical farming, but I believe not every innovation has to be so flashy and futuristic. The latest trend of reshaping rural environments is pretty down to Earth. This trend is agroforestry, the art of planting trees.
Stay turned for more.