Announcement
The 21st of March is World Forest Day

Our planet is in many ways similar to the human body: It can be sick or healthy, different parts of the body rely on each other, and multiple organs work together to keep everything running smoothly. In that sense, the lungs of our world would be the forests, jungles, and trees, helping to keep our air clean.

Sadly, this precious ecosystem has been in constant decline. From 2002 to 2022, a total of 459 million hectares of trees have been destroyed. This is almost equal to half the size of Canada and has caused a decrease of 195 gigatons of CO₂ intake. The main reasons for this deforestation are forestry, shifting agriculture, and wildfires, responsible for destroying 454 million hectares of trees since 2002.

In total one tree saves approximately a ton of CO₂ throughout its life. Combined with oceans and other plants, trees absorb 45% of all total emissions and therefore play an important role in combating climate change.

Apart from their contribution to the Earth's climate, trees also play an important role in securing the stability of the ground. In doing so, trees protect inland and coastal areas from flooding and destruction.

The Hanns Seidel Foundation actively supports efforts for afforestation. For instance, Dr. Choi Hyunah, a senior researcher at the Hanns Seidel Foundation, participated in the Integrated Coastal Zone Management (IKZM) conference on the Solomon Islands last month, which focused on the protection of mangroves in coastal areas.  Another example is the lecture by the representative of the Hanns Seidel Foundation Korea, Dr. Bernhard Seliger, at the International Symposium on Risk and Resilience Management in Social-Ecological Systems, in which he highlighted the importance of afforestation as a matter of ecological resilience.

The Hanns Seidel Foundation will continue to emphasize the importance of healthy afforestation on the Korean peninsula and worldwide. However, to create a lasting impact on the current deforestation trend, more action is needed globally. In that sense, it is important to acknowledge the significance of World Forest Day, trees, plants, and the green lungs of our planet.