A Decade of Ecosystem Restoration

“The one who plants trees, knowing that he will never sit in their shade, has at least started to understand the meaning of life.”

- Rabindranath Tagore

The United Nations decade of ecological restoration has just begun! This is timely, given the publication of the IPBES report in 2019 which found that ecological degradation and rates of species extinctions are accelerating all over the world. One of the most powerful means of reversing the trend is ecosystem restoration:

“ Ecosystem restoration is defined as the process of renewing or restoring damaged, degraded, or destroyed ecosystems and habitats by active human intervention and action to facilitate the regeneration of their ecological functionality.”

An opportunity for a better future

Degradation of land and marine ecosystems is thought to undermine the well-being of 3.2 billion people, with around 20% of the planet’s vegetated surface showing a decline in productivity. Restoring 350 million hectares of degraded land between now and 2030 could generate $9 trillion in ecosystem services and take an additional 13-26 gigatons of greenhouse gases out of the atmosphere

Global ecosystem restoration offers an unparalleled opportunity to enhance biodiversity, food and water security while creating jobs and combating climate change. Working with nature, rather than seeking to control her for narrow ends, is is the best way to cope with the challenges that are appearing on the horizon.

Help plant trees and restore ecosystems

RAIN focusses on restoring degraded ecosystems through reforestation with native species and supporting regenerative forms of agroforestry. These practices improve biodiversity and bring river systems back to life, while mitigating many of the negative impacts associated with intensive conventional agriculture. They also make communities resilient to the impacts of climate change.

All our projects are led by communities helping to create a sustainable and regenerative future on a local, regional and global scale. The network empowers people in love with their local environments to bring life back to the landscape. Reforestation, re-wilding and agroforestry take carbon out of the atmosphere and store it in the soil, reversing one of the drivers of climate change and increasing soil carbon content - a key barometer of soil health.

Reforesting degraded springs in Cachoeira, Minas Gerais.

How you can help

By supporting RAIN, you will help sow seeds of regenerative action and assist communities doing this work. Membership starts from £5 a month, and any support will be vital for our partners on the frontline facing the impacts of climate change. If you would prefer to fund a specific aspect of your work, contact us to let us know. You can see the full range of projects we’re working on here, or join the mailing list to keep up with our news. One project recently begun is an initiative to save the highly endangered Pernambuco wood used to make violin bows. Another on the way supports cultural and ecological regeneration with the Katukina indigenous Amazonian nation.

Time to regenerate

Preserving the remaining old growth forests is essential if we are to have a viable future on this planet, and so is proactive restoration of human-degraded ecosystems. We are a species of immensely powerful ecosystem engineers; forearmed with the right intent and knowledge, and working with nature rather than against it, our potential in restoring Earth’s ecosystems is almost limitless.

In the words of the founders of ecopsychology:

“If the self is expanded to include the natural world,

behaviour leading to the destruction of the world will be experienced as self-destruction.”

If this holds true, then surely the inverse applies: by restoring the planet’s ecosystems of which we are an intrinsic part, do we also restore ourselves?