"SUSTAINING FORESTS AND LIVELIHOOD IN A CHANGING WORLD"
"Trees reach the highest heavens and penetrate the deepest secrets of the earth.
Trees are the largest living beings on this planet.
Trees are in communion with the spiritual and the material.
Trees guard the forests and the sanctified places that must not be spoiled.
Trees watch over us and provide us with what we need to live on this planet.
Trees provide a focal point for meditation, enlightenment, guidance and inspiration.
Trees have a soul and a spirit.”
WHAT ARE FORESTS?
The forest is a complex ecosystem consisting mainly of trees that have formed a buffer for the earth to protect life forms.
The trees which make up the main area of the forest creates a special environment which, in turn affects the kinds of animals and plants that can exist in the forest.
From the air we breathe to the wood we use
Just think of how forests have affected your life today: Have you had your breakfast? Read a newspaper? Switched on a light? Travelled to work in a bus or car? Signed a cheque? Made a shopping list? Got a parking ticket?
Forest products are used in our daily lives. All the activities listed
above directly or
indirectly involve forests. Some are easy to figure out - fruits, paper and wood from trees, and so on. Others are less obvious - by-products that go into the manufacture of other everyday items like medicines, cosmetics and detergents.
indirectly involve forests. Some are easy to figure out - fruits, paper and wood from trees, and so on. Others are less obvious - by-products that go into the manufacture of other everyday items like medicines, cosmetics and detergents.
Forests are
vital to human survival. About 1.3 billion–1.6 billion people depend on forests
for food, energy, timber and many other uses.
For centuries,
forests have served as a kind of natural safety net for communities during
times of famine or other events that impact agricultural and food production;
they provide fruits, leaves, gum, nuts, timber, and wood for fuel. Forests feed
people and the animals they might depend on for trade or meals when crops fail.
Forests have a
central role to play as the world confronts the challenges of climate change,
food shortages, and improved livelihoods for a growing population.
Forests provide
many essential environmental services, from absorbing and stocking carbon that
would otherwise contribute to climate change, to regulating water cycles,
hosting 80 percent of the world’s terrestrial biodiversity (including pollinators
crucial to food security), maintaining soil quality, and reducing the risks of
natural disasters such as floods at a time when many of these systems are
coming under tremendous pressure.
Habitats for biodiversity and livelihood for humans
But looking at it beyond our narrow, human, not to mention urban, perspective, forests provide habitats to diverse animal species, and they also form the source of livelihood for many different human settlements as well as for governments.
They offer watershed protection, timber and non-timber products, and various recreational options. They prevent soil erosion, help in maintaining the water cycle, and check global warming by using carbon dioxide in photosynthesis.
Yet we are losing them
Over the past 50 years, about half the world's original forest cover has been lost, the most significant cause for that being humans beings' unsystematic use of its resources.
To reverse
deforestation trends requires a change in policies and laws, institutions, and
incentives, in and beyond the forestry sector. This “landscape” approach
embraces activities such as restoring degraded forest land, boosting
agricultural productivity, realigning farm and forest incentives to protect
forests from being converted into farmland, introducing trees on farms and
ranches, and involving local communities more directly in the design and
oversight of forest management.
Rampant
deforestation has meant the loss of nearly one half of the Earth’s tropical
forests cut over the past half a century. This puts pressure on policymakers,
local communities and private companies to find better and more sustainable
ways of using forest resources.
When we take away the forest, it is not just the trees that go. The entire
ecosystem begins to fall apart with dire consequences for all of us.
