Happy International Day of Forests!

Photo by Angela Benito

United Nations Forum on Forests

• in 1992
• the United Nations held a forum in Rio de Janeiro on the environment
• this Earth Summit lead to the development of a “Non-legally binding authoritative statement of principles for a global consensus on the management, conservation, and sustainable development of all types of forests”
• also known as Adgenda 21
• that basically means that they made a pact of sorts around international forest conservation
• it functions to develop common understanding of sustainable forest management between nations
• meaning that it promotes forest conservation strategies that take into account only ecological effects, but also economic and socio-cultural ones

Photo by Breno Machado

• so
• to spread awareness of their efforts
• the UN observes an International Day of Forests
• which is on March 21, every year
• I seem to always be just a few days off in telling you about plant related holidays
• none the less, happy International Day of Forests
• each year, the day has a theme
• the theme for 2016 was Forests and Water
• forests are celebrated each year for the many ways they sustain and protect us
• they are absolutely necessary in the maintenance of the world’s supply of freshwater
• forested watersheds and wetlands provide about 75% of the Earth’s drinkable water
• so protect the trees, we must
• we must not let these natural water filters fall prey to the greed of industry
• no should we allow them to dwindle in the face of climate change

This is just one year’s worth of celebration. Trees and forests do so much for us past purifying water. They are reservoirs of biodiversity, carbon sinks, and they are the basis of the livelihood of about 1.6 billion people.

The earth needs trees and humans do to.

Source

“Forests, Environment, Biology, Ecosystems, Habitat, Indigenous Cultures, Deforestation, Global Warming.” UN News Center. UN, n.d. Web. 24 Mar. 2016. <http://www.un.org/en/events/forestsday/>.