Forests are more important than most of us realize. Forests make rain, cool the temperature, and send moisture to regions around the world.
In many cases, forests have become monoculture “tree plantations” for the timber industry, lacking biodiversity and moisture. In a biodiverse forest, the soil soaks up water like a sponge, preventing wildfires, drought, and providing an abundance of food, water and shelter for a myriad of microbes, insects, birds, mammals and amphibians.
In this course, you will never look at forests the same way again! Join us for a life-changing experience and discover how forests can create for us a cooler planet, a more stable climate, and a livable future – Starts December 5.
A rapidly changing Arctic is reshaping everything. Polar bears navigate shrinking expanses of sea ice, thawing permafrost threatens coastal villages, destabilizes infrastructure, and exhales methane, and warming temperatures push more species northward into a greener arctic. These transformations are profound, and their impacts can extend far beyond the region’s ecologies that depend on them.
What do these changes mean for wildlife, humans, and the climate? How is all of this going to play out in different regions and ecosystems around the world? Does understanding these changes and seeing them with your own eyes change the way you see everything else?
Join Biodiversity for a Livable Climate for a conversation that convenes story and science, writer and researcher to help shape our understanding of what this means for the Arctic, our climate and the webs of life that depend on both. Jon Waterman, writer for both Patagonia and NatGeo, and author of Into the Thaw, will be joined by Dr. Flavio Lehner, Chief Climate Scientist at Polar Bears International—one a storyteller of the Arctic’s systems, the other a researcher of them.
Jon Waterman found his calling as a writer while shooting photographs on expeditions more than four decades ago. He has shot and written television films, including “The Logan Challenge,” “Surviving Denali,” “Odyssey Among the Inuit,” “ANWR Trek,” and “Chasing Water.” Jon is known for his Northern explorations, detailed in many of his books and countless journals since 1978. Beginning in 2007, the rivers of the Southwest began to call, with an extended journey and National Geographic Society research projects. His latest book, Into The Thaw, recounts how his return to one particular place in the Arctic after a more than 30 year absence left him shocked by its change, but also renewed with drive and hope.
Dr. Flavio Lehner is Polar Bears International’s Chief Climate Scientist. He is also an Assistant Professor in Earth and Atmospheric Science at Cornell University. He obtained a PhD in Climate Science from the University of Bern in Switzerland in 2013. After a brief engagement as Science Officer in the Technical Support Unit for the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report, he joined the Climate and Global Dynamics Lab at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in 2014. After a year as a Senior Scientist at ETH Zürich in Switzerland, Flavio joined Cornell University as an Assistant Professor in the fall of 2020. His research group studies climate variability and change with a focus on physical processes that affect humans and ecosystems, from heatwaves and droughts to sea ice trends and precipitation extremes.
This is the latest installment in our Life Saves the Planet lecture series, and it will be recorded by our partners at GBH Forum Network. Register now!
Regenerating Life is a groundbreaking film that reframes the climate crisis by focusing on nature’s power to heal our planet. It reveals how the biosphere egulates Earth’s climate and how its destruction has driven global warming.
The film highlights regenerating ecosystems like forests, fields, and wetlands, restoring the water cycle, and embracing sustainable practices like regenerative agriculture that draw CO2 from the atmosphere, cool the planet, revive freshwater systems, and create abundant food and thriving communities.
Diverse ecosystems represent the greatest climate action technology at our disposal. But what recourse do we have when nature itself is under attack from the world’s biggest political and economic powers?
The movement to codify ecocide, that is, the intentional (or negligent) mass destruction of an ecosystem, as an international crime is gaining traction, particularly in Europe and in nations disproportionately impacted by the effects of climate change. As a crime and an area of practice, ecocide law is reserved for the very worst of the worst. Think oil spills, deforestation, pollution, and war.
But what are the promises and limits of international law in meting out justice on behalf of the environment?
Join Biodiversity for a Livable Climate as Jojo Mehta, co-founder and executive director of Stop Ecocide International, makes the case for global ecocide law in a conversation guided by environmental journalist Judtih Schwartz. They’ll cover what exactly ecocide is, how enforcement and legal frameworks can act as deterrents, where they’re gaining traction, and how legal teeth can help bolster other conservation and regeneration efforts.
Stop Ecocide International recently celebrated a number of milestones on the world stage; in September the island nations of Vanuatu, Fiji and Samoa officially petitioned the International Criminal Court to establish ecosystem destruction as a crime, and in February of this year Belgium became the first country in Europe to codify ecocide as an international crime. Several other countries on the continent are considering similar laws.
Jojo Mehta co-founded Stop Ecocide International in 2017, alongside the late barrister and legal pioneer Polly Higgins, to support the establishment of ecocide as a crime at the International Criminal Court. With representation and associate teams now in over 45 countries, Stop Ecocide International generates fertile collaborations at diplomatic and political levels, as well as across civil society with lawyers, academics, corporate influencers, indigenous and faith leaders, NGOs and grassroots campaigns.
Judith D. Schwartz is an author who tells stories to explore and illuminate scientific concepts and cultural nuance. She takes a clear-eyed look at global environmental, economic, and social challenges, and finds insights and solutions in natural systems. She writes for numerous publications, including The American Prospect, The Guardian, Discover, Scientific American, and YaleE360. Her latest book, “The Reindeer Chronicles”, is a global tour of earth repair, featuring stops in Norway, Spain, Hawai’i, New Mexico, and beyond.
Please Join us for an insightful panel discussion and networking session on September 27th, from 4:00-8:00 PM at Nigeria House, NYC, where we will explore the critical role of nature-based solutions and ecological restoration in enhancing climate resilience and restoring livable climates.
Experts from Africa and Latin America will present innovative projects that harness natural ecosystems to combat climate change, restore degraded landscapes, increase water security, and support local communities.
This session will highlight localized efforts to restore ecosystems, showing how they can scale globally to address the broader climate crisis.
Don’t miss the chance to learn about groundbreaking initiatives that are transforming landscapes and livelihoods in two of the world’s most climate-vulnerable regions.
What can be done to break the ocean’s fever and cool the planet?
With the oceans warming rapidly causing larger storms and hurricanes, forecasts for sea level rise ranging from 2 feet to 20 feet by 2100, and polar regions warming three times faster than the rest of the world, humanity may be facing the most challenging time in its history.
Join us for this 12-week course starting September 18. Classes are hosted on Zoom from 12 – 2pm ET and 7 – 9pm ET. Participants can choose the time that works best for their schedules.
The primary book we will use in the course is The Quickening. We will follow author Elizabeth Rush as she grapples with these issues of a warming planet and shares her experiences first hand during her voyage with a team of scientists to Antarctica.
In our second book (optional), The Light Eaters by Zoë Schlanger, we will follow an in-depth look at the intelligence of plants. Their ability to transform the sun’s energy by photosynthesis has numerous benefits for the oceans and for all of the ecosystems on earth.
Bio4Climate is excited to co-host the 2024 Midwest Beaver Summit alongside many outstanding environmental nonprofits, land trusts, restoration practitioners, and other organizations dedicated to conservation, implementing coexistence strategies, and cultivating awareness of the importance of beavers as keystone species in our ecosystems.
11:00 AM – 11:10 AM: Introduction11:10 AM – 11:50 AM: Session 1: Beaver Wetlands, Flooding, and Drought – Dr. Emily Fairfax, University of Minnesota
11:50 AM – 12:25 PM: Session 2: Who Speaks for Beaver? History and Folklore –Brian “Fox” Ellis, Illinois Audubon Society
12:40 PM – 1:10 PM: Session 3: Beaver Dam Impacts on Water Quality, Biodiversity, and Trout – Cortney Dean, University of Wisconsin – Stout
1:10 PM – 1:25 PM: Session 4: Revised Environmental Assessment of WI’s Beaver Management Plan –Bill Nelson, Godfrey and Kahn
1:35 PM – 2:05 PM: Session 5: Watershed Planning with Beavers for Climate Resilience – Kurt Menke, Septima, and Bob Boucher, Superior Bio-Conservancy
2:05 PM – 2:45 PM: Session 6: Navigating Conflicts Between People and Beavers –Alexa Whipple, Methow-Okanogan Beaver Project
2:45 PM – 3:00 PM: Conclusion
This summit is organized by Midwest Beaver Advocacy who is dedicated to building a coalition of stakeholders who understand the ecological value of keeping beavers on our Midwestern watersheds and who support affordable, streamlined permitting processes for pond levelers and culvert fencing (aka, ‘flow devices’).
Join local students of Jim Laurie’s Symbiosis Team to get an up front and personal view of the floating wetlands designed for Boston Harbor.
This is the innovative project of modular floating wetlands in East Boston that was shown in the documentary, Inundation District, on sea level rise in Boston. The wetlands are on salt water, but like those in Providence and in Cambridge, constructed with coir matting to host a variety of aquatic plants which in this context help buffer the shoreline from battering waves in extreme weather, absorb storm water, provide habitat for threatened marine life, and engender biodiversity. We’ll get to see how these prototypes handle the buffeting of that particular environment and what plants do well there. Hosted by Gabriel Cira, the architect leading the team that has been developing, tending, and experimenting with modular wetlands as a response to climate
Help us keep track of who is coming by registering on the Bio4Climate Eventbrite page.
Not local to the Boston area of MA? Look for the blog post that is sure to follow later in the summer. And be sure to sign up for Jim’s fall class from anywhere in the world! [not yet posted]
How can one furry critter can help us restore wetlands, protect biodiversity and mitigate both floods and fires.
Brock Dolman and Kate Lundquist will shared their insights on beavers’ beneficial role as ecosystem engineers, and lessons from their successful support of a recent state-led Beaver Restoration Program in California. Watch the recorded event.
As WATER Institute Co-Directors from the Occidental Arts and Ecology Center (OAEC), Dolman and Lundquist have been working to provide education and advocacy for healthy watersheds and the pivotal role beavers can play for many years. After successfully championing beaver reintroduction, they are seeing beavers released in the wild in CA for the first time in nearly 75 years, in collaboration with tribal partners from the Maidu Summit Consortium.
Kate Lundquist co-directs the Occidental Arts & Ecology Center’s WATER Institute and the Bring Back the Beaver Campaign. Kate collaborates with landowners, communities, tribes, conservation organizations and resource agencies across the arid west to uncover obstacles and identify strategic solutions to conserve watersheds, recover listed species, increase water security and build resilience to the impacts of climate change. Kate works to catalyze the greater acceptance, funding and implementation of beaver and process-based restoration towards regenerating biological and cultural diversity. Kate is a co-founder and member of the California Beaver Policy Working Group and the California Process-Based Restoration Network (www.calpbr.org) and serves as a member of the Beaver Institute’s (www.beaverinstitute.org) advisory board.
Brock Dolman is a co-founder of the Occidental Arts and Ecology Center (www.oaec.org), where he co-directs the Permaculture Program, Wildlands Program and the WATER Institute in Sonoma County, California. He is a wildlife biologist, permaculture designer and watershed ecologist and has been active in promoting the idea of Bringing Back the Beaver in California since the late 1990’s. He is a co-author on both the 2012 & 2013 historic ecology papers published in the California Fish and Game Journal. He was given the Golden Pipe Award in 2012 by the Salmonid Restoration Federation: “ …for his leading role as a proponent of “working with beavers” to restore salmon native habitat. With his Co-Director Kate Lundquist they have been busy as beavers working on education, training and policy change in California resulting in the historic creation of California’s first Beaver Restoration Program in 2022. In 1992 he completed his BA in Agro-Ecology & Conservation Biology, graduating with honors from the University of California Santa Cruz with the Biology Department and Environmental Studies Department.
This is the latest installment in our Life Saves the Planet lecture series, and it will be recorded by our partners at GBH Forum Network.
On Tuesday, June 18 at 7pm ET, we participated in a comprehensive forum on Miyawaki Forest adoption across the US. Watch the recording here!
In this online event, Bio4Climate’s Director of Regenerative Projects, Maya Dutta, joined keynote speaker Douglas Tallamy and three other national leaders to explore how mini-forests of native trees and shrubs can help address biodiversity loss, tree inequity, and climate change.
This Spring, we are planting the first two Miyawaki Forests in Worcester, MA. These dense, biodiverse, native pocket forests will bring cooling, beauty, and resilience to the urban landscape.
Join us for one additional planting day at Plumley Village Apartments on Wednesday, June 12 at 3pm. Come ready to get your hands in the soil and transform this landscape!
In this project we are creating pocket forests on two sites in total, at McGrath Parking Lot at the Worcester Public Library (3 Salem St, Worcester MA) and at Plumley Village (16 Laurel St, Worcester, MA — forest site is at the back of the complex, off of Prospect Street next to the basketball courts). In total we will plant over the course of six days (two have been added): Saturday April 27, Wednesday May 1, Saturday May 4, Wednesday May 8, Saturday May 11, and Saturday May 18, so sign up to join one or more events.
Learn more about the project, made possible by the MA Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness program and the City of Worcester, in partnership with Biodiversity for a Livable Climate and BSC Group.
To learn more about Miyawaki Forests, check out our program page and sign up for our mailing list to stay tuned for more project updates and ways to get involved.
On Saturday, May 4th from 11 am to 3 pm ET, join us for Biodiversity Day as we honor the importance and power of biodiversity through birding tours, pollinator searches, interactive games and art-making for kids, and native plant workshops. Experience sounds of nature and sensory spaces, live music performances, and free resources on native plants and biodiversity from local environmental organizations. This event will take place near the Miyawaki Forest and into the green space towards the Sherman St. entrance.
Co-sponsored by:
Biodiversity for a Living Climate and Native Plant Community Gardens Project, a Cambridge-based group organizing community-based pollinator gardens in Danehy Park
On Saturday, April 20th from 11 am to 3 pm ET, join us for an Earth Day celebration at our Danehy Park Miyawaki Forest.
We will gather at the picnic area of the park right next to the Miyawaki Forest, where we will share information and give tours of the site at 11am and 1pm. Come prepared to observe the biodiversity, learn about eco-restoration, and connect to other community members with a love for the Earth and its regeneration.
Bring your lunch, and bring your kids, family, and friends! RSVP on Meetup to stay updated with any messages regarding the event.
On Thursday, April 25 at 6pm ET, Beck Mordini and Jenny Pell held a lively conversation about facing our pretty scary future with integrity, hope, plenty of know-how, and a great sense of humor. We dove into climate reality, appropriate technologies, skill-building, local food, and neighborhood solutions that will inspire you to jump into your own community-based projects with both feet. There’s plenty of good news and lots of do, and who knows, maybe the suburbs will save the world. Check out the recording now!
This is the latest installment in our Life Saves the Planet lecture series, and it will be recorded by our partners at GBH Forum Network.
On Thursday, April 25 at 12:00 noon ET on Zoom, Mat dos Santos and Laura Gehrke of Our Children’s Trust will explain how 16 youth plaintiffs successfully sued the State of Montana to protect their right to a clean and healthful environment, and how youth in six other cases in the U.S. and Canada are pursuing their rights to a safe and healthy future.
Rob Moir of the Ocean River Institute will lead this interview and Louise Mitchell from Biodiversity for a Livable Climate will lead the Q&A discussion. Stay tuned for the recording!
Pictured above are the youth plaintiffs in seven cases of Our Children’s Trust:
Held v. State of Montana
Julianna v. United States
Natalie R. v. State of Utah
Navahine F. v. HDOT
Layla H. v. Commonwealth of VA
Florida Petition for Rulemaking
La Rose v. His Majesty the King (Canada)
The image is courtesy of Our Children’s Trust. Stay tuned for the recording.
Our economic system’s focus on competition has led to significant destruction. We have an opportunity to create economic systems built on collaboration and love. We can embed incentives of support, health and abundance in our communities and restore ecosystems of natural resources that we need to survive and thrive. Join us forAn Economics of Love with Dr. Fred Jennings and find your place in the transition ahead. Classes meet weekly on Mondays from April 15 to July 8 plus a free introductory session is on April 8. All sessions are from 12-1 pm ET. Read more about the curriculum and the recommended reading for the course.
On Thursday, March 28 at 6pm ET, we dived into how agroforestry and eco-restoration initiatives advance environmental justice in frontline communities around the world. Our latest Life Saves the Planet lecture featured John Leary and Pam Agullo of Mother Trees, an organization working on agri-business in Senegal, and Mariama Fatajo of Teja Development, supporting eco-restoration in the Gambia. They shared insights from their experience on how regeneration can support ecological, economic, and communal health.
Across the globe and especially in the global south, eco-restoration projects can conduct reforestation to combat desertification, regenerate watersheds, and promote the development of sustainable community livelihoods. In the dry regions of Senegal, agroforestry starts with growing the forest. This forest may not look like any you have seen – as it starts with walls of thorny, native trees that create a ten foot tall barrier that protects the crops and starts to rebuild the ecosystem. Join us to learn more about how these living fences, living soil, and other restorative interventions become the foundations for living communities.
Join Bio4Climate community members for the Cambridge screening of a groundbreaking new film, BLACKWATERS – Brotherhood In The Wild. We are proud to co-sponsor this free screening along with other organizations and the hosts at the Greater Boston Chapter of Trout Unlimited. To join our meetup, RSVP here and make sure you register with Trout Unlimited.
The event will take place on Friday, March 15 at 5pm at Brattle Theater (40 Brattle St, Cambridge, MA), followed by discussion featuring members of the cast and crew. After the panel discussion at 7 PM, we will move across the street to the Patagonia Cambridge store for a social gathering with beverages generously provided by Remnant Brewing.
Check out the film trailer for a preview of the event:
Please note that separate tickets are required for the film screening and the social reception. Registration is limited so make sure you register early.
Join soil scientist Didi Pershouse and Bio4Climate members Jim Laurie and Maya Dutta this February for a learning and discussion series on John Feldman’s Regenerating Life. The Center for an Ecology Based Economy (CEBE) is hosting a hybrid series to screen the documentary in three parts and discuss the science and solutions within. Register now to join!
Regenerating Life is a documentary that highlights the importance of biodiversity and natural ecosystems in regulating the climate. The screening will take place on three consecutive Thursdays, 2/8, 2/15 and 2/22 at 6:30 PM. Join at CEBE in Norway, ME in person, or watch remotely (via your own link to the film) and join us afterward for post-screening discussions via Zoom. One registration will provide you the Zoom link to be used for all three weeks. If you are joining partway into the series, CEBE will share the film link with your registration so you can catch up to where we are in the screening and discussion process.
Be prepared to start seeing our current climate predicament in a new light as speakers such as Vandana Shiva, Karen Washington, Leah and Naima Penniman, Vijay Kumar, Wes Jackson and others provide insights into an ecological-systems approach to the climate crisis and share their inspiring stories of effective land-and community-based solutions.
Starting Wednesday, February 21, Jim Laurie begins his 12 week Biodiversity Deep Dive course. Join us for an exploration of wetlands, shorelines, the water cycle, and the solutions powered by a systems approach to climate.
This course meets every Wednesday, starting February 21 and running through May 8, 2024. Sessions will be held from 12 – 2pm ET and 7 – 9pm ET on Zoom to accommodate students’ schedules. Read more and register now!
On Monday, January 29, Vincent Stanley of Patagonia joined our Life Saves the Planet lecture series to discuss the role of business in pivoting to regenerative systems.
It is easy to vilify globalization and corporate America, but what would happen if the vast resources of the world economy turned towards eco-restoration, fair trade and uplifting labor practices? Is it even possible? Come and judge for yourself. Watch the recording now!
On Saturday, November 18 we were joined by Author Richard Heinberg, Permaculture Instructor Andrew Millison, and other national and Oregon leaders for Redesigning Our Communities for Life After Fossil Fuels. They explored our predicament of declining energy resources, the urgent need to grow our food locally, the power that restoring ecosystems has to reduce wildfires and cool the temperatures, and the strategies local community leaders are using to redesign our communities. Stay tuned for community events, further resources, and breakout session recordings.
On Thursday, November 9 at 6 pm ET, we welcomed Michelle Manion of Mass Audubon to our Life Saves the Planet lecture series to discuss the negative impacts of solar installations on forest land and the viability of alternatives. Check out the recording now.
On Monday, November 13 Christopher Haines will begin his course A New Climate Story.
Imagine a world where innovative thinking and peer-reviewed science offers hope and empowerment, with a path to reverse climate change in months, years or decades, not centuries. Imagine principles you could apply to improve your own circumstances, even if the rest of the world fails to act. As triple-digit temperatures warp summers, there is no better time to consider a new perspective. Register now to claim your seat.
As renewable energy projects are implemented to decrease our reliance on fossil fuels, regulations suspended to help fast-track beneficial projects and combat climate change have allowed the deforestation of intact woodlands. This decreases our resilience, and makes very little sense in the long term.
Simply put, we don’t need to cut down trees to put up solar farms! Let’s work strategically to preserve the essential climate-regulating benefits of nature while pursuing clean energy goals. Save Mass Forests is advocating for protections for ecosystems in planning and siting new solar energy projects in MA. Learn more about how you can get involved!
Check out these bills and calls to action shared from Janet Sinclair of Save Mass Forests and Michael Kellett of Restore North Woods.
This bill simply strikes language from the zoning act. Section 3 of Chapter 40A of the General Laws would be amended by striking the following language: “No zoning ordinance or bylaw shall prohibit or unreasonably regulate the installation of solar energy systems or the building of structures that facilitate the collection of solar energy, except where necessary to protect the pubic health, safety or welfare.”
This sentence was added to the law in 1985, when the thought of acres and acres of solar panels was unimaginable. The bill would make sure that municipalities can pass and enforce reasonable regulations for solar just as they are allowed to do for any other development. It does not encourage or discourage solar development. It protects citizens and municipalities who are often losing court cases while trying to uphold their zoning bylaws.
This antiquated section of the law is used by solar developers to bypass local bylaws to put solar where they want to. This bill protects the longstanding tradition and value of local control in Massachusetts, and would potentially protect tens of thousands of acres of forests, wetlands, and farmlands from large solar projects which are deemed locally as inappropriate.
SAVE THE DATE: Wednesday November 29th One important bill – H.4150 – has a tentative hearing date of November 29th.
H.4150 (formerly HD.4430) would give all Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) state-owned lands and watersheds permanent protection as reserves, similar to National Park protection. We still need more letters of support. We need more calls and e-mails to our lawmakers asking to co-sponsor this and other bills. Info and Links below.
We can still submit written testimony for any of these bills- A simple statement is great.
These forest bills have already had their hearing:
H.894, An Act relative to forest management and practices guidelines Sponsored by Lindsay N. Sabadosa and Aaron L. Saunders
This bill includes a call for the creation of an independent Advisory Council to oversee an evaluation of Massachusetts publicly owned forest lands with goals that include: • reducing climate change impacts for all Massachusetts residents;• safeguarding biodiversity; • enhancing public health benefits provided by forests; and • mitigating the effects of climate change on our forests.
H.904, An Act relative to increased protection of wildlife management areas Sponsored by Danillo A. Sena
This bill calls for 30% of Wildlife Management Areas to become permanent reserves, similar to the protection for our National Parks, by 2030.
H.895, An Act to require separate carbon accounting for working lands and natural lands and to eliminate from Massachusetts net-zero carbon emissions goal any carbon offsets sold to entities outside of the Commonwealth Massachusetts Sponsored by Lindsay N. Sabadosa
This bill would modify the Global Warming Solutions Act (Chapter 21N) as amended by the climate roadmap bill signed into law by Gov. Baker (Chapter 8 of the Acts of 2021: An act creating a next-generation roadmap for Massachusetts climate policy) by clarifying some carbon accounting issues in the existing law.
Get Involved
Let’s show support for the bills! Here is how you can help:
Share your signature on existing letters if you have not already, or submit your own written comments and send to: JointCommittee.Environment@malegislature.gov Use the bill number(s) in the subject line (example – Support for H.904 and H.4150)
Sign onto letters for two of the forest protection bills:
H.4150 (to be heard on November 29th) would give all Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) state-owned lands and watersheds permanent protection as reserves, similar to National Park protection
H.904 would mandate that 30% of all state-owned lands under the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MassWildlife) are given the same permanent reserve status.
On Saturday, October 14 from 12:30 to 4:30pm we hosted the Boston premiere of John Feldman’s remarkable documentary, Regenerating Life. Held at Tufts University, this symposium featured a screening of the film, a panel discussion involving the director and experts from the film, and local organizations sharing ways for people to get involved in their own community eco-restoration.
Dr. Makarieva and Dr. Nefiodov will be presenting their scientific findings at universities throughout the United States from September 21 – October 14 on the importance of water and healthy forests. This important research is fundamental to the role of ecosystems in climate stability. Check here below for locations near you.
This U.S. tour includes Dr. Makarieva speaking on the panel at the film Premiere of Regenerating Life at Tufts University on October 14 from 12:30 PM to 4:30 PM ET. Join us for this live event at the Asean Auditorium, The Fletcher School, Tufts University, 160 Packard Avenue, Medford MA 02155. Tickets are available now, so grab your seat today.
On Wednesday, September 27 at 6pm ET, John Feldman will share his perspective on Regenerating Life – an ecosystems perspective on the climate crisis. He will be joined in conversation by environmental journalist and author Judith D. Schwartz to explore regenerative solutions to climate disruption, global warming, and food insecurity. Read more and register now to join this essential discussion live.
As many interconnected climate crises escalate, we are challenged to see what we have overlooked in our understanding of the causes – and of what the best path forward might be. John Feldman’s film, Regenerating Life, proposes that it is humankind’s destruction of nature that has been a primary cause of the climate crisis and that it is in nature we find crucial solutions.
Feldman traveled widely to meet people who are working on solutions, innovative ways to repair the damage done to our extraordinary home. By working with nature, they are restoring the forests, fields, wetlands, and oceans, and are regenerating soils to grow healthy food and build healthy communities.
This is the latest installment in our Life Saves the Planet lecture series in partnership with GBH Forum Network, and it will be recorded and made available online to registrants after the webinar.
On Friday, September 15, join us at the Cambridge Public Library for an afternoon of art, music, and the transformative power of community. This book reading, performance, and fundraiser is open to all. Come for songs and refreshments, and stay for lively discussion with open-hearted people.
Lark Ascending by Meleth Delia (Lark) Batteau is a beautiful coming-of-age story set in the spiritual community of Findhorn, Scotland. Through this captivating tale, readers are led through essential questions of our time — of how we relate to one another and to our living environment.
This event will be held at the Main Branch of the Cambridge Public Library, at 449 Broadway, in the basement auditorium. No registration is required.
This event is free, but please bring the spirit of generosity with you as we collect contributions to support our work at Biodiversity for a Livable Climate.
Are you ready to transform your understanding of how life on the planet works and how we can play a role? Join us as we follow the transformation of two leading writers and thinkers to a deeper understanding of natural systems, our role, and the ability of nature to cool the planet.
From now until September 24, we each have a critical opportunity to spread the message that #NatureCools in cities throughout the world, on social media, and in the mainstream media.
Join us in showing people that restoring and protecting nature cools the climate, hydrates the land to prevent wildfires, drought and flooding, and reduces extreme weather. Read more and take action here.
This worldwide mobilization is taking place during the Global Fight to End Fossil Fuels – Sept 15-17, the March to End Fossil Fuels – Sept 17, and during Climate Week in NYC – Sept 17-24.
These activities occur just before and during the UN Climate Ambition Summit on September 20 in New York City, where world leaders will gather to commit to phasing out fossil fuels.
Jim Laurie, our staff scientist, restoration ecologist, and teacher of several Biodiversity Deepdive courses, will hold a field trip for students and community members at our Danehy Park Miyawaki Forest. Join us on Sunday, September 3 to gather with fellow budding eco-restorers and enjoy the mini-forest’s growth.
The Danehy Park Miyawaki Forest was planted in September 2021, and is the first forest of this kind in the Northeast US. We have been stewarding its growth with enthusiasm with the help of the Cambridge community, and welcome you to get involved!
We had a beautiful gathering on August 16 with community members, and many folks are eager to come back for more. Bring your friends, your questions, and your curiosity!
More details on the gathering to come. Make sure you are on our mailing list and stay tuned.
On Thursday July 27 at 1 pm ET, we welcomed Dr. Ousmane Pame, Katrina Jeffries, and Dr. Marie Nazon to our Life Saves the Planet lecture series to discuss the Ecovillage movement and their work with REDES, a Network for Ecovillage Emergence and Development in the Sahel region of Africa. They shared their experience and insights into the grassroots networks and regenerative transformations that can help fortify communities even in times of increasing pressure from desertification, resource scarcity, and conflict.
We will explore the cultural roots of our current ecological emergency, and the deep changes Western society will need to make to save the Earth and our species. Using SceneOn Radio’s production The Repair as a foundation, we will discuss issues of racial and environmental justice, and how we build a truly regenerative future.
Coral reefs are vulnerable to rising global temperatures more than any other ecosystem. Marine and climate scientists are researching ways to protect coral reefs and the many ocean species that rely on them for food and shelter. Without coral reefs, ocean biodiversity remains at risk of decline and eventual extinction.
Join Bio4Climate’s Advisory Board member Tom Goreau, President and Founder of the Global Coral Reef Alliance, to learn ways to protect and restore reef ecosystems. Register here.
On Thursday May 25 at 6 pm ET, we welcome Coakí to our Life Saves the Planet lecture series to share his wisdom on Remembering Our Relationships With Forests – Modern And Ancient Agroforestry.
Coakí will discuss how he practices syntropic agroforestry to restore ecosystems and local economies, create food security and a diversity of nutrient dense foods, and protect cultures from globalization as we heal human relationships with the forests. Join Coakí and moderator Jessica Alvarez-Parfrey in this talk and Q&A.
On Wednesday April 26 at 6 pm ET, we are honored to present John Perlin and his book A Forest Journey: The Role of Trees in the Fate of Civilization. The first edition was recognized as a Harvard Classic in Science and World History and listed as one of the university’s One Hundred Great Books, and the 2023 edition of the book concludes with two new chapters on the importance of mature and old-growth forests for our survival. Register here to join this timely conversation.
This Earth Day, Boston-area folks are invited to gather at Bio4Climate’s Danehy Park Miyawaki Forest for a community picnic (99 Sherman Street, Cambridge MA). We will get together on Saturday, April 22 from 1 – 3pm to celebrate our beautiful home planet and the work to restore it. Please bring your lunch, your friends, and your stories of what motivates you toward regeneration.
Starting April 21, this 6-week course provides a broad overview of the multiple crises confronting humankind: climate change, peak oil, resource depletions, ecological deterioration, and societal collapse. It focuses on the current dilemmas in which humankind finds itself; how we have arrived at this moment; the resulting psycho-social-economic impacts; and several socio-economic-ecological regenerative strategies for mitigation. Read more and register here.
On Thursday, March 30 at 6pm ET, author Steve Hawley joins our Life Saves the Planet series to explore the ramifications of the extraordinary dam building boom of the last century that culminated in 800,000 dams worldwide today. In his book CRACKED: The Future of Dams in a Hot, Chaotic World, Hawley examines the effect of these dams on biodiversity loss, heat buildup and aridification of the land. Author and essayist David James Duncan will join Hawley in conversation and Q&A from the audience. Register here to join live!
Starting Monday, April 3, 2023 (with an open preview session on Monday March 27), join us for an insightful excursion into our economic culture and why it is doing us so much harm. Understanding ecological economics will give you a different perspective on on our planetary crises and how alternative social organization can better promote a general sense of well-being for everyone in society. Classes will meet each Monday from 12 – 2pm ET for eight weeks, through May 22, 2023. Read more and register now.
On Saturday, March 25 at 1pm ET, catch our latest installment of Redesigning Our Communities for Life After Fossil Fuels with national and local speakers from the Greater Cleveland area.
It’s time to scale way back, redesign how we’re living and roll up our sleeves to restore our ecosystems, biodiversity and connections with our neighbors. Join in on this event series to find your place in this transition.
We are happy to announce that our friends and colleagues are taking an active part in the first global conference on water. The United Nations Water Conference 2023 begins on March 22 in celebration of World Water Day.
Starting March 1, 2023, join Jim Laurie for a 12-week deep dive into the science, history, and cultural implications of how we understand evolution and interspecies relationships.
How has conventional interpretation of Darwin’s survival of the fittest shaped not only our understanding of science and extinction, but also economics and cultural values? Are we genetically doomed to compete with nature and with each other until our species joins the long list of other species headed for extinction? Read more and register.
On Thursday, January 26 at 6pm ET, Ridge Shinn and Lynne Pledger will join us to discuss their new book, Grass-Fed Beef for a Post-Pandemic World.
While the last few tumultuous years have heightened uncertainties about our food supplies, there’s some good news coming out of the regenerative agriculture movement. Regenerative practices restore degraded land, increase soil productivity, sequester carbon and store water. Join us to explore how regenerative grazing can help build resilience in our food systems. Read more and register here.
A series of virtual and in-person community events in 6 locations in the U.S. and Canada
Our next installment of Redesigning Our Communities for Life After Fossil Fuels is on Saturday, January 21 with national and local speakers from Los Angeles.
It’s time to scale way back, redesign how we’re living and roll up our sleeves to restore our ecosystems, soil, biodiversity and connections with our neighbors. Join in on this event to find your place in this transition.
Stay tuned for Part 2 with virtual or in-person Community Engagement Events in and near Los Angeles
Biodiversity for a Livable Climate is partnering with the Post Carbon Institute and many local community groups to bring you a series of events on transitioning our communities to manage our ecological crises. In our first two events, we joined local community leaders in Montgomery County, Maryland and in Kansas City to share expertise, resources, and actionable solutions to build resilience for these rapidly changing times. We continue this work in January in Los Angeles, CA and in three more installments around the U.S. and Canada.
As we learn and take action on how to live within the Earth’s limits, it’s vital that we co-invent and redesign our new lifestyles together with all members of our communities, especially looking to those with expertise on how to be resilient. Let’s include everyone in the conversation, the plans, and the funding. We must move forward by coming together, learning from one another, and supporting each other as we strengthen our resilience and face the challenges ahead.
To become a partner or sponsor of the January 21st event, or all 4 upcoming events in this series, or to apply to lead a Breakout Discussion, email lifeafterfossilfuels@bio4climate.org or call 443-257-3209.
On Tuesday, December 13 at 6pm ET, join Kristin Ohlson and Jim Laurie for Sweet In Tooth And Claw: Cooperation And Generosity In The Natural World. They will discuss Ohlson’s latest book, in which she explores the way symbiotic relationships between individuals and species fundamentally shapes the planet we call home. In contrast to narratives of competition and dominance, understanding nature from a systems perspective can help us return to harmony and solidarity with other living beings that is crucial to restoring the Earth.
Join Jess Alvarez-Parfrey, Nathan Lou, and William Wildcat (Coakí) for an exploration of ancestral connections, and transformative opportunities to nurture a truly regenerative, just, joyful, and climate resilient future. On Thursday, November 17 at 6pm ET, join us for A New Generation of Change-makers – Reclaiming Ancestral Wisdom.
Bringing together diverse cultural backgrounds, skills, and experiences, our panel of practitioners will share their story, and explore the theme of “regeneration” as it relates to our connection to place, purpose, and community.
In a time of multiple converging and complex crises, a rising generation of change-makers are reclaiming connections to ancestral wisdoms and the critical skills needed to feed, heal, and nurture their communities. The panel will also delve into a powerful discussion around Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), “work”, “citizen science”, and share their visions for regenerative bioregional cultures and economies of care.
A series of virtual and in-person community events in 6 locations in the U.S. and Canada
Our next installment of Redesigning Our Communities for Life After Fossil Fuels is on Saturday, November 12 with national and local speakers from Kansas City.
It’s time to scale way back, redesign how we’re living and roll up our sleeves to restore our ecosystems, soil, biodiversity and connections with our neighbors. Join in on this event to find your place in this transition. Biodiversity for a Livable Climate is partnering with the Post Carbon Institute and many local community groups to bring you a series of events on transitioning our communities to manage our ecological crises. In our inaugural event in September, we joined local community hosts — the Montgomery County Racial Equity (MORE) Network and Impact Silver Spring, to share expertise, resources, and actionable solutions to build resilience for these rapidly changing times. We continue this work in November in Kansas City, MO and in four installments around the U.S. and Canada after that.
As we learn and take action on how to live within the Earth’s limits, it’s vital that we co-invent and redesign our new lifestyles together with all members of our communities, especially looking to those with expertise on how to be resilient. Let’s include everyone in the conversation, the plans, and the funding. We must move forward by coming together, learning from one another, and supporting each other as we strengthen our resilience and face the challenges ahead.
Here are the many ways you can participate right now:
Register for the next session of Redesigning Our Communitiesfor Life After Fossil Fuels on Saturday, November 12 on Zoom with hosts in Kansas City
Droughts and flash floods are becoming a new normal in our warming world. What changed? Our landscapes are losing water as people alter the environment, cut trees, drain wetlands, and use chemicals that destroy the soil.
And we’re feeling the heat.
On Friday, October 21 at 12:15pm ET, join Anastassia Makarieva, Jan Pokorny, Andrei Nefiodov, and Jon Schull to explore the ways we can support nature and a functioning water cycle to cool and rehydrate the Earth. Learn more and register here!
On Thursday, October 6 at 3pm ET, we joined the Cambridge Science Festival’s climate hub to share insights on ecosystem restoration, urban rewilding, and Miyawaki Forests. Come by for Wholehearted Regeneration: Boosting Communal and Climate Resilience One Pocket Forest at a Time with Maya Dutta, Bio4Climate’s Assistant Director of Regenerative Projects.
She discussed the Miyawaki method of reforestation and the ways that forestscaping and integrating nature in urban environments can bolster ecological resilience as well as spreading hope and empowerment to local communities. Stay tuned for the event recording!
Course fee: $240; if you’re on a tight budget, a sliding scale is available at checkout.
In Biodiversity 7: Rewilding Half the Earth to Create a Future We Want, Jim Laurie will lead students in examining restorative possibilities such as protecting half the earth, creating mini-forests using the Miyawaki method, and increasing wetlands.
Beginning Wednesday, October 12, 2022, the course meets for two hours at 12pm and 7pm ET every Wednesday, to accommodate multiple time zones. Read more and register here!
Youth leaders across the globe are advocating for people and the planet in various ways including on-the-ground ecosystem restoration, artivism, and promotion of regenerative agriculture.
On September 17, Biodiversity for a Livable Climate hosted three youth leaders from Colombia, the United States, and Brazil to amplify their stories of regeneration and environmental advocacy. Stay tuned for the event recording to hear what inspired these leaders to join the climate movement and how they’re making a difference for their communities and the Earth.
It’s time to scale way back, redesign how we’re living and roll up our sleeves to restore our ecosystems, soil, biodiversity and connections with our neighbors.
Biodiversity for a Livable Climate is partnering with the Post Carbon Institute and many local community groups to bring you a series of events on transitioning our communities to manage our ecological crises. In our inaugural event in September, we joined local community hosts — the Montgomery County Racial Equity (MORE) Network and Impact Silver Spring, to share expertise, resources, and actionable solutions to build resilience for these rapidly changing times. We continue this work in November in Kansas City, MO and in four installments around the U.S. and Canada after that.
As we learn and take action on how to live within the Earth’s limits, it’s vital that we co-invent and redesign our new lifestyles together with all members of our communities, especially looking to those with expertise on how to be resilient. Let’s include everyone in the conversation, the plans, and the funding. We must move forward by coming together, learning from one another, and supporting each other as we strengthen our resilience and face the challenges ahead.
On Wednesday, August 17 at 6pm ET, agronomist Tony Rinaudo joined environmental journalist Judy Schwartz in conversation to share about a reforestation method called Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR). More than an effective, low cost, rapid and scalable method of land and environmental restoration, FMNR is restoring livelihoods and food security across tens of thousands of communities and in the process, restoring hope.
Stay tuned for the recording here. The event is the latest installment in our Life Saves the Planet lecture series with GBH Forum Network.
Course fee: $240; if you’re on a tight budget, a sliding scale is available at checkout.
In Biodiversity 6: Systems Thinking & Scenarios – Tools for Creating Better Ecological Futures, Jim Laurie will lead students in taking on the question, “could humans be a global force for the reemergence of healthy ecosystems on a much faster timeline?” To answer this question, the course will look at systems thinking and scenario-writing as tools for examining the “Whole” and finding out what possibilities exist for the future.
Beginning Wednesday, June 22, 2022, the course meets for two hours at 12pm and 7pm ET every Wednesday, to accommodate multiple time zones. Read more and register here!
The Amazon Rainforest is known as the “lungs of the earth” because it draws in carbon dioxide and breathes out oxygen. But it is also the biological heart of the planet’s hydroclimate system, the planet’s rain making machine. We have lost almost 20% of the forest and are close to reaching a tipping point where it will turn to grassland. What will that mean for us, and how can we prevent the dieback? Register here to catch this essential discussion on the restoration that can repair this critical system of planetary regulation.
Course fee: $200; if you’re on a tight budget, a sliding scale is available at checkout.
In Heat Planet: Restore Ecosystems – Restore Climate, Christopher Haines will lead students on an exploration of the sources of heat and climate disruption, and the ways that local action can significantly improve local climates. The course will empower us to take on the cooling and re-greening actions necessary to rebalance local, regional, and eventually global climate.
Beginning Wednesday, May 4, 2022, the course meets for two hours at 9am and 7pm ET every Wednesday, to accommodate multiple time zones. Read more and register here!
On Monday, March 28 at 6pm ET, our Life Saves the Planet speaker series continues with a panel on Introducing the EcoRestoration Alliance. Jon Schull, John D. Liu, Ilse Koehler-Rollefson and Valer Clark will describe the groundbreaking new alliance that aims to advance the global case for regeneration through cross-cultural and cross-disciplinary partnership.
This April, Fred Jennings will begin two new courses in ecological economics – Social Solutions: Making Systems More Resilient and Horizonal Thinking: Toward a New Economics. Students will explore the economic paradigms that make social and ecological problems so intractable and the alternatives that could sustain a future of ecological integrity and abundance.
On Monday, March 28 at 12pm ET, join us for a preview session on the courses’ content by registering here!
In Horizonal Thinking: Toward a New Economics, Fred Jennings will focus on planning horizons and explain his approach to an ecological economics based on favoring collaboration over competition. Students will examine why and how our society has evolved toward the destruction of our ecological life-support systems, and how we might change our economic culture to protect ourselves against this destruction.
Beginning Monday, April 4, 2022, the course meets from 1 – 2 pm ET every Monday and Thursday. Read more and register here!
In Social Solutions: Making Systems More Resilient, Fred Jennings will focus on developing a working group of people who are ready to engage in ecological economics and to address social problems creatively and intelligently. Students will develop their practical analytical skills by examining our failing democratic processes and our fisheries management systems.
Beginning Monday, April 4, 2022, the course meets from 12 – 1 pm ET every Monday and Thursday. Read more and register here!
On Saturday March 19 at 10 am ET we held the latest installment in our Nature’s Solutions as National Policy conference series, Code Red Water: Two Global Perspectives. Atossa Soltani and Michal Kravcik discussed how improved water management can support functioning water cycles to meet the needs of living systems and cool the planet.
Join us for this online course on the connections between human, animal, and planet health. The course will consist of 8 classes and be held live on Zoom, beginning March 2, 2022 and ending on April 27, 2022 (with no class on March 30th). Read more and register here.
This Fall, we are running our Cool the Earth: Green the Planet campaign to sponsor our upcoming courses, conferences, speaker series, and other education, advocacy, and rewilding work. Thanks to a generous matching grant for this time, all one-time donations will be doubled, and monthly donations will be tripled! There’s just one week left, so join in now!
Planting day for our first Miyawaki Forest in Cambridge (and the Northeast) on Saturday, September 25 went beautifully. On a day predicted to hold thunderstorms, the sun shone down as volunteers gathered to put this historic forest in the ground. Thank you so much to everyone who contributed to this project! Read more about the Miyawaki Forest and stay tuned for more photos, video footage of the planting, and updates on its progress.
This Fall, we are answering new questions about our transition to a more secure and abundant future with an Introduction to Ecological Economics course. Fred Jennings, our Ecological Economist at Biodiversity for a Livable Climate, is offering this 8-week course on Thursdays, starting on Thursday October 14th. There will be two sessions each week, from 12 – 2 pm ET and 7 – 9 pm ET for students to join. Read more about the course and register here!
Biodiversity V, which takes a deeper dive into forest ecosystems, is starting on October 6, 2021. The course will focus on maximizing photosynthesis and balancing the carbon cycle to cool the climate.
It will run for twelve consecutive Wednesdays, with choice of afternoon (1-3 pm EST) or evening classes (7-9 pm EST). It builds his on past courses on Biodiversity and Symbiosis, but new folks of all levels are always welcome.
In this issue we focused on the ecological roles of native plants, and as well as including discussions of symbiosis, biophilia, and an Okanagan worldview of society.
Biodiversity IV: Fungi & Forests begins on June 16, 2021 and runs for twelve consecutive Wednesdays through September 1st, with choice of afternoon (12-2 pm EST) or evening classes (7-9 pm EST). You are welcome to join at any time during the course. Jim will send you class notes and home study opportunities every week. A certificate of completion will be available for those who want it. Details and link to register are here.
Biodiversity III: Mastering the Water Cycle begins on February 3, 2021 and runs for twelve consecutive Wednesdays through April 21st, with choice of afternoon (1-3 pm EST) or evening classes (7-9 pm EST). Jim will send you class notes and home study opportunities every week. A certificate of completion will be available for those who want it. Register here.
![[MA Local] Emerald Tutu Floating Wetlands Tour](https://b2408965.smushcdn.com/2408965/wp-content/uploads/emerald-tutu.jpg?lossy=2&strip=1&webp=1 "[MA Local] Emerald Tutu Floating Wetlands Tour")
