International Day Of Forests
International Day of Forests (IDF) is held on March 21 each year to place a focus on the importance of forests worldwide. This year’s theme is Forests and innovation – new solutions for a better world.
Greenfleet recognises International Day of Forests and the vital role our forests play in helping to tackle climate action.
For over 26 years, we have planted over 550 biodiverse forests with native species, creating long-term habitat for local wildlife. Greenfleet legally protects our forests for up to 100 years, to deliver climate action and conserve biodiversity.
What Is The International Day of Forests?
In 2012, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 21 March the International Day of Forests to celebrate and raise awareness of the importance of all types of forests.
Through IDF, the United Nations encourages communities from all countries to focus on efforts which protect our valuable trees and forests. People are encouraged to undertake local, national and international efforts to organise activities, such as tree planting campaigns.
Why Celebrate Forests?
Since 1997, Greenfleet has planted more than 10.8 million trees across Australia and New Zealand.
While delivering climate action by removing carbon, our reforestation work has even greater environmental benefits. Our forests contribute to biodiversity, improving water and soil quality, and providing native wildlife habitat. Greenfleet legally protects our forests for up to 100 years to ensure they have a long-term impact on the environment. Old growth forests also provide unique habitats for certain native animals who require established tree hollows in which to nest and breed.
Highlights Of Our Forest Habitats Include:
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On Boon Wurrung Country in Victoria’s South Gippsland, we are protecting the habitat of the critically endangered Swift Parrot an extremely fast migratory bird found only in south eastern Australia.
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North of Adelaide, SA, our Bull Creek forest on Ngarrindjeri land has habitat for the endangered Southern Brown Bandicoot and the critically endangered Southern Emu-wren.
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In 2023 we planted 493 hectares of new koala habitat and have restored nearly 1,000 hectares of koala habitat since 2021.
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A wide variety of locally native plant species are included in each of our revegetation projects, creating biodiversity for local wildlife to return.
International Day Of Forests Theme 2024
This year’s theme is Forests and innovation – new solutions for a better world. Greenfleet is working with innovative forestry techniques such as thermal imaging, ArcGIS, drone photography and aerial seed dispersal technologies.
Thermal Imaging is able to locate warm blooded mammals such as koalas in our forest habitat. This means we can see if they are using the habitat and which areas are preferred. These thermal images, captured by Noosa Landcare and analysed by Queensland University of Technology with AI, are used in conjunction with on-the-ground site visits and scat analysis.
ArcGIS is a satellite geographic mapping tool used for assessing the suitability of land for revegetation and subsequent growth. It plots the terrain and is vital for our Revegetation Team to assess forest development and other changes to our plantings.
Drone photography provides wide-view aerial images of the forest for regular comparison as the forest grows. It is inspiring to see the before and after images taken by our drone several years apart, showing the growth of a Greenfleet forest.
Seed dispersal drones are also part of our new forest revegetation innovation technologies. Seed ‘bombs’ are hand-formed and dropped via drones into hard-to-reach areas to begin regenerating any deforested areas. This may be utilised to plant seeds after an ecological cool burn event has occurred.
Every Day Is Forest Day
We understand the urgent need for environmental action to provide climate hope for businesses and individuals. For over 26 years, Greenfleet has planted native biodiverse forests in Australia and New Zealand to restore critical ecosystems and capture carbon emissions on behalf of our supporters.
Once planted, our Revegetation Team regularly monitors our forests, to assess their progress. Greenfleet is fully committed to ensuring the longevity of our forests by legally protecting them for up to 100 years of their growth.
*Photo credit: Thermal imaging drone flight results provided by Noosa Landcare and Queensland University of Technology.
Outside The Forest
Greenfleet aims to create stronger relationships with Traditional Owners and the lands on which we work. We are proud to be delivering an Indigenous Land Use Agreement with the Kabi Kabi people in Noosa and are actively discussing our work in South Gippsland with the Boon Wurrung people.
International Day of Forests is a reminder to take action to care for these valuable resources. You can promote your support and activities on social media using the hashtag #ForestDay and sharing the Greenfleet information page - Our Forests. You can also tag @GreenfleetAustralia as well as @fao on LinkedIn and Instagram, and @unfao on Facebook. Visit the IDF website for key messages and activity ideas.
Watch the 2024 IDF video below.
