‘Tiny forests’ spring up in urban areas to combat climate change

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They often cover just a few square meters of urban space, and now they’re growing across Australia to cool neighborhoods down on hot days. “Tiny forests,” as they are called, also mature in 10 to 20 years, rather than the usual 100 years, because of the way they’re generated. And that could be a big benefit for Australia’s suburbs. A school in Perth is busy creating a tiny forest. “I love it the most because I love animals and nature,” says one student. This particular type of forest can be planted in the tiniest of spaces, such as a car parking spot, a tennis court, or even a strip of land next to a street. The students are being guided by Grey Coupland and they’re using the Miyawaki method to plant the forest. The method follows three central ideas. “It’s planting locally native species that are specifically adapted to the area in which you are planting them, the soil remediation, and the high-density planting,” explains Coupland. Another advantage is that these forests take very little time to grow and help cool urban areas. And, once they’re planted, the forests also become part of the school curriculum, which has benefits for the students. “The more they are immersed in nature, the more they care about it,” says teacher Cymbie Burgoyne. “The children who participate in this program, some have never played in the dirt before, some had never planted a plant before,” says Coupland. The project will also compare the health and well-being of students who take care of the forest, compared to students that don’t. “We want to re-engage children with nature,” says Coupland. “We’ve got children on one end of the spectrum who are really worried about the climate crisis and feel they can’t do anything about it. At the other end of the spectrum, we’ve got kids who are just on their iPads and their screens and totally disengaged.” This article was provided by The Associated Press.