Biodiversity for a Livable Climate

News and Insights

Seabirds Determined as Essential to Healthy Ecosystems

The life of a seabird includes two major phases: their life at sea, and the times when they return to land to breed. Through these cycles, seabirds bring ocean-derived nutrients to their colonies on land, initiating a transfer of nutrients that land ecosystems would otherwise not have. 

These sea nutrients enrich soil and support biodiversity, from plant communities to insects, birds, and reptiles. The benefits of sea nutrients from seabirds are not limited to land, though. These nutrients often find their way back to marine ecosystems when they are washed back into the ocean. 

“Compared to islands without seabirds, marine environments near islands with seabirds have ‘coral reefs recovering faster after bleaching events, fish growing faster, higher fish biomass, and increased macroalgae,’ Holly Jones, lead author of the study and an ecologist at Northern Illinois University, U.S., told Mongabay in an email.”

From puffins to pelicans, these sea-and-land-dwellers have inspired a new term to describe their roles in their respective ecosystems: the circular seabird economy. 

Communities Built On Nature Reserves Take Root In England 

Instead of uprooting trees and changing landscapes to accommodate new construction, investor and author Shiv Malik has a vision for a new kind of city: a forest city. 

“Powlesland said: ‘I think the question is, can we build what is necessary for humans to have a healthy, happy society while either not degrading nature or ideally restoring nature? That is the question of the 21st century, and it feels like nobody is answering that question.'”

The city would be just east of Cambridge, and, if successful, it’s likely that a slew of other similar cities would follow. Could a future where our towns and cities are built around nature become a reality?

Events and Community

Meet the Guest Speakers of Our Upcoming Course: How Trees & Forests Shape Our Climate

In the new year, join us for How Trees & Forests Shape Our Climate, a course that explores how forests cool the land, bring rain, protect biodiversity, and counter destructive logging narratives. Register by December 20 to secure Early Bird pricing. Scholarships are available; please reach out to courses@bio4climate.org for more information.

We’re honored to feature three outstanding guest speakers:

Judith D. Schwartz (Jan 8, 12 PM ET) - Author and journalist whose books illuminate global stories of ecosystem restoration and nature-based climate solutions.

Scot Quaranda (Jan 29, 12 PM ET) - Communications Director at Dogwood Alliance, offering insights on industrial logging, biomass, and the role of storytelling in forest protection.

Dr. Anastassia Makarieva (Feb 5, 12 PM ET) - Atmospheric physicist whose pioneering work on the biotic pump reveals how forests generate rainfall and regulate moisture flows.

Together, they’ll deepen our understanding of how healthy forests stabilize climate and how we can help protect them.

Miyawaki Update

Today, we’re excited to share the introductory keynote of the 2025 Northeast Miniforest Summit. Hannah is the author of Mini-Forest Revolution: Using the Miyawaki Method to Rapidly Rewild the World—a book many of you may already know well.

Hannah’s presentation brought us back to the heart of the Miyawaki method and what it really asks of us. She drew a clear line between planting trees and planting an actual forest community. She emphasized the method’s goal of skipping ecological succession by planting climax species from the start—supported by soil preparation, multi-layered planting, and early canopy formation. She walked us through Dr. Akira Miyawaki’s original work and how the approach has expanded globally through hands-on experimentation and a growing network of practitioners. 

In the Q&A, Hannah underscored the importance of stable, shade-tolerant climax species and shared examples of how colder climates face added pressures from non-native plants. She also noted a key distinction: Dr. Miyawaki worked largely within evergreen forest communities, which function differently from the deciduous systems we are working with in the Northeast U.S.

Hannah’s presentation left us with two questions to reflect on:

If Dr. Miyawaki developed his method largely within evergreen systems—where shade persists year-round—how should we think about applying the method in our deciduous Northeastern forests, where light and shade shift so dramatically across the seasons? What seasonal dynamics deserve closer attention in the early years?

As ecological roles shift across contexts, how do we determine which species are truly “climax species” for the forest community we’re emulating—and what the right ratios across canopy, sub-canopy, understory, and shrub layers should be?

We hope these questions deepen your own thinking as well.

A Moment for Art

We are continuing the celebration of this month’s Beaver Moon! One of Jim Laurie’s students, Holly Ewald, shared a reflection on a painting by Kathy Hodge. 

“[This painting] takes on the bewilderment of beavers today in light of the forest fires and loss of their habitat. The wisdom of animals and the prescient vision, sense of light, and detail come together so beautifully in this painting.” 

Be sure to check out Kathy’s incredible work. Thank you for sharing, Holly!