WeForest 🌿

“Daddy, you broke the planet. Fix it.” This heartfelt plea from a daughter to her father ignited Bill Liao's mission to repair our world, leading to the founding of WeForest 🌳 In this short film CEO Marie-Noëlle Keijzer details WeForest's transformation from an initial concept into a significant global movement, propelled by passion, scientific research, and the dedication of supporters like you. 🎥: N. Van Ingen, Ruben Foquet, The Rusty Mokoro, D.V Corstanje. #sustainability #reforestation #everydayclimatechange #protecttheenvironment

Thousands of you have already signed up to our 'Seeds of change' newsletter 🌱 The July edition is here, featuring inspiring stories and highlights straight from the field. We’re sharing big news, before/after transformations, and honey badgers 🦡 We hope you enjoy it! Don't forget to subscribe to our new LinkedIn newsletter for updates on our global projects for people, nature, and climate.

We’re #hiring a Geospatial Data Scientist! 🥼 This role will involve performing geospatial analysis to understand landscape dynamics in our projects. You'll be assessing past changes in forest or agricultural land cover to support new project designs, and evaluating forest cover increase during and after projects. Please share far and wide with your network for anyone interested in #conservationjobs and #greenjobs 🌳 🌿: https://lnkd.in/er_b_zD7

Honey badgers spotted in Katanino 🍯🦡 Five years ago, sights like this were very uncommon in the heavily degraded Katanino Forest Reserve. Now we can see the amazing impact of our ecological restoration, as wildlife returns! These honey badgers (Mellivora capensis) may look cuddly, but don’t get too close – they’re one of Africa’s most ferocious animals, and have even been known to attack lions when threatened. Just look at that scamper! #reforestation #restoration #wildlife

What are the United Nations SDGs? Some people might know exactly what they are and can name all 17. Other people might never have heard of them. We’re really keen to break down terminology and phrases used in the environmental sector, so here’s a quick explanation. If you have any other terms you’d like us to break down, you know what to do ⬇️💭 #UnitedNations #GenerationRestoration #SDGs

It’s time for our favorite type of post - another before and after 🌱➡️🌳 This time we’re in Ethiopia with photos taken on our site in Desa’a. We’re working here to reverse land degradation and poverty through forest landscape restoration. The results speak for themselves, but we have some great numbers to go with them: 🌱 18 million trees protected and growing 🌱 4 500 people trained to protect their forest  🌱 10 000 families reaping the rewards A huge thank you to our team on the ground and the local communities we work with to make this happen 👏 📷: Aklilu Negussie Mekuria (PhD) #restoration #trees #FLR

It’s official for Desa'a… 🌳 WeForest's largest restoration initiative, the Desa'a project in Ethiopia's Tigray region, has achieved verification under Preferred by Nature's Ecosystem Restoration Standard (ERS). The verification confirms that the project is well on track to achieve its goal of protecting and restoring 38 000 hectares of forest, which will help bring water back to a region directly threatened by desertification. It also confirms that WeForest’s comprehensive Forest and Landscape Restoration approach and intense engagement of stakeholders is contributing to lifting rural communities out of poverty by providing alternative sources of income from activities such as sustainable agriculture, agroforestry and beekeeping. In 2021, WeForest was one of the first organizations to receive this verification for two projects in Zambia. This latest verification for Desa'a places the project among a select group of globally recognized efforts adhering to comprehensive Forest and Landscape Restoration principles. Despite regional conflicts, the project excelled, meeting an astonishing 92% of the ERS indicators during the audit, which involves rigorous scrutiny through assessment and evaluation based on documentation, observation and interviews. Congratulations to our team on the ground and the local communities we work with who made this happen 👏 More info can be found below ⬇️ 📸: DVCorstanje #restoration #reforestation #trees

Our latest article delves into the role of Complex Systems Science (CSS) in understanding and managing the intricate relationships within ecosystems for restoration efforts 📄🌳 The post stems from the recent scientific paper “Explore Before You Restore”, authored by WeForest’s Rachel Cohen and Sybryn Maes among others, which advocates for restoration that recognises ecosystems’ capacity to self-organize and evolve in response to external pressures, such as climate change or human activity. Head over to the news page to learn more about how to ensure that restoration efforts incorporating CSS are more adaptable, flexible, and ultimately more effective. Head to the comments for the story 📰 #reforestation #restoration #climatescience

Exciting news! Our restoration project in Zambia has been featured in a recent article in Mongabay 📰 In 2019, after Katanino Forest Reserve had lost over 58% of its tree cover in just 20 years due to charcoal production, we began working with the Zambian Forestry Department and local communities. The Mongabay article, ‘Zambian forest reserve rebounds with a little assistance’, explores the incredible work of our team on the ground and these communities, who have restored over 500 hectares of the Katanino Forest Reserve using assisted natural regeneration 🌳 This project has rejuvenated the reserve, with forest cover increasing by 57.3% since 2019. Wildlife is returning, with increased sightings of birds, reptiles, and mammals, including African crowned eagles and gaboon vipers. To make sure this progress continues in the long term, we support local families in adopting forest-friendly livelihoods such as beekeeping and conservation agriculture to reduce tree loss in the reserve and protect forests on farms. More than 700 farmers are now earning healthy incomes from honey instead of charcoal, and pollination by their bees is also helping the forest regenerate. Read the article here 🗞️: https://lnkd.in/gRWvM5qJ Fainess Lumbwe Sybryn Maes Kenny Helsen explorer.land by OpenForests Ryan T.

We are thrilled to announce that our Ferlo project with Agronomes et Vétérinaires Sans Frontières (VSF-CICDA) in Senegal has been recognised in UN Convention to Combat Desertification's GLO Rangelands Report as a flagship initiative 🌱 This project puts pastoralist communities at the heart of restoration. By mobilizing the communities, it addresses the interrelated issues of poverty, food insecurity, land degradation and biodiversity loss. The report praises our approach, stating that “ecological restoration should not exclude pastoralism for conservation reasons", and emphasizes selecting trees that can be used for livestock feed. It also notes the vital role herders play in forest governance bodies. This recognition highlights our dedication to sustainable practices and inclusive governance in ecological restoration. A big thank you to our team on the ground, the local communities and our partners 💚 Link to read more is in the comments 💬 Image: © Aldi Diasse