This newly published book by Peter Bunyard and Rob de Laet approaches the climate crisis and its solutions from a completely different angle.
“To address the climate crisis, now demonstrably causing havoc with life-killing extreme events,” the authors write, “we must not only transform our economic and societal models towards sustainability and resilience, we must have a more holistic understanding on what climate really is.”
In the book Cooling Climate Chaos, the authors work from James Lovelock’s Gaia Theory, a world view also prevalent in many Indigenous cosmologies. They operate from the hypothesis that the Earth functions as a living -super-organism, with ecosystems maintaining conditions for life to thrive. The book presents an in-depth look at the workings of the atmosphere in the context of a living planet and particularly the role of water.
The biosphere interacts with soils, water and the atmosphere to stabilize weather and cool the planet. The destruction of ecosystems disrupts these metabolisms and cycles, significantly contributing to global warming. Restoring the damaged biosphere and transitioning to sustainable food production and land use can stabilize weather and cool the planet remarkably quickly.
The approach in Cooling Climate Chaos offers effective climate solutions. We have seen climate restoration in smaller areas. If implemented wholesale by people everywhere based on local context, it will resolve most of the climate crises worst effects within decades, while benefitting society in many ways, including the protection of biodiversity, and correcting the gross inequity of our times. It may even open the possibility of slowing down partly inevitable sea-level rise.
While the authors are clear that reducing emissions is crucial, repairing nature and water cycles is every bit as important. Regenerative agriculture, agroforestry, and ecosystem restoration can help achieve a balanced climate, mitigate extreme weather, and sequester CO2. By leveraging these strategies, the say, we can restore the planet’s natural balance, creating a sustainable and abundant future.
Get the Book
If you want a printed copy of the book, you can purchase one here.
The first memories of my childhood that I can recall is that of me sitting on my bed with a blank sheet of paper and a box of crayons, making lines and circles and shapes of all kinds as the warm sunlight flooded in through the windows of the apartment. Painting was something I was always attracted to. The passion was so strong that I often chose to spend my time painting rather than going out and play. As the years passed, life brought me education, work experiences, and a growing awareness of the changing world around me. But during this time, something else has happened too. The rains in my city became less frequent. The Night flowering Jasmine or Shiuli tree that only bloomed in summers, until October, is now blooming up until the winters in February. Temperatures have risen, forests have been cleared off, and many species have gone extinct.
What bothers me the most is many people have no idea that the environment around us is changing very fast. Meanwhile, scientists have come up with alarming data that we are losing time when it comes to mitigating climate change and that reversing the damage will soon become difficult for us all.
Now, I am not a conservationist, neither am I an environmentalist, a scientist or a naturalist. My work is not directly related to conserving the environment around me, but what I do know is I am affected by this change. I love nature. I love spending my time in the hills, listening to birds, brushing my fingers across wildflowers, watching the river flow down the valley while I see the sunset – there is beauty in nature, and I love beautiful things. But to think that there will come one day when all of these things will cease to exist scares me.
White Bellied Heron; Native to the foothills of eastern Himalayas in Northeastern India, and Bhutan to Northern Myanmar
But what can I do about it? Apart from joining nature clubs, going on field trips to plant trees, cleaning the garbage on the beach – how much can I make a change as a human being?Then one day I thought to myself, “How about I use my paintings?” I know I am good at that just like someone else is good at music or writing or embroidery. How can I channel what I innately do towards conserving the environment?
Rainbow Jaybird; Native to Western Europe, North West Africa, and Indian subcontinent
This is where I sat down and decided what it is about nature that I care the most. It did not have to be everything, maybe a thing or two. So, I came to the conclusion that the most important thing to me is the season of monsoons and birds. Inspired by the enchanting stories of Ruskin Bond, who beautifully described the charm of rains and the wonder of birds in the mountains, I delved into books that introduced me to an array of bird and insect species associated with the monsoon. While reading his stories, I came across a plethora of bird and insect species that are associated with rains and monsoon. Now I didn’t know a single bird’s name or insect name, although I could hear them all day I couldn’t identify their features, and I didn’t know when they mate, it was elusive to me. So, I made a point to at least establish a connection with these species.
Himalayan Monal; Native to Himalayan forests and shrublands
After reading a couple of stories, I picked up my digital pen , grabbed my Ipad, and started tracing lines of a beautiful blue bird called the Whistling Thrush. This was the first step to me connecting with nature with what I do best.
The Whistling Thrush; Native to India and South East Asia
Over the last few months I have painted multiple birds and insect species. It is my way of bettering the environment – my way of helping.
Jambu Fruit Dove; Native to Southern Thailand and Malaysia
Art is a way to explore your own true feelings and channel it to a medium. Art is self expression. Art is beauty in all forms. The language we speak, the bodies we have, the songs we sing, the work we do- all are different forms of art. In a world where there is so much happening all at once, art comes in the form of solace and a sanctuary of peace among many other things. In the face of the impending environmental crisis, art emerges as a way to communicate emotions, ideas, and concerns – touching hearts and inspiring change.
We are at a point where we are standing on the edge asking ourselves should we burn it to the ground or take the first step to make a change?
Cicada; Different species are located around the world except for Antarctica
But I think to make a change one has to remember to fall in love with the nature around them. Especially when this love does not give you a monetary output or product that we are so used to getting in our lives in this era of consumerism. This will be a selfless act, something that you have to do without any expectations. The phrase, “What do I get out of it?” will not work here. Because what you will get out of it is something that will happen for some little girl 100 years in the future. Just because we have dreams and things to achieve does not mean we get to snatch away the ones another child may have in the future. So take action with what you have, whatever you were born with.
Paradise Flycatcher; Native to Asia
Find ways to channel that inner talent or skill or passion and dedicate a little part of it for the environment around us. Make it visible, make it obvious. It does not matter the rate of change you are causing, simply do what you can and let people see it. The pace will pick up.
Our strategies need to change. Somewhere we have to find the balance between speed of progress and sustainability. Most importantly, each and everyone of us has to decide what is a priority and how it relates to the environment.There is and will continue to be inequality, inequity and unfair situations arising because of geographical distributions, historical events, and our inherent human nature. Are we strong enough to do something selflessly knowing in the core of our hearts it won’t give in return at the next very moment? How much are we willing to care, so as to leave our comfort zone and make an effort? Or are we going to burn it all down and not be bothered by it?
We have to remember, our actions today can shape a better world for the generations yet to come, preserving the wonders of nature for those who follow.
– Sreyashi Basak, wildlife and environmental advocate based in India
Our community grows alongside our first Miyawaki forest!
In September of 2021, we planted our first Miyawaki forest – the first in the Northeastern U.S. – in Cambridge, Massachusetts. As the forest turns two, and demonstrates signs of resilient, abundant growth, the Bio4Climate team gathered with local forest enthusiasts to reflect and celebrate the ecosystem restoration happening in real time.
Bio4Climate’s staff scientist Jim Laurie welcomed newcomers with his lovely openness and a raft of books laid out on the table, ready and eager to discuss any issue that might be raised while sharing so many of his intelligent, deep insights. Assistant Director of Regenerative Projects, Maya Dutta, shared her reflections and history of our ecosystem restoration efforts and understanding of the larger aspects of the Miyawaki method and its special and unique characteristics.
Maya Dutta, Assistant Director of Regenerative Projects
Reading about the growth of these forests is one thing, but it’s truly a remarkable experience to visit and witness the young ecosystem for yourself. This was the case for students of Jim Laurie’s Biodiversity Deep Dive classes. Having read Hannah Lewis’s Mini Forest Revolution, and had discussion groups with both Hannah and Maya on the Miyawaki method, students were eager to organize a field trip and see for themselves what a community of trees, fungi, microbes, and people can accomplish in just a couple of short years.
In the Danehy Park Miyawaki Forest, we found that many eventual climax trees are already over 10 feet tall with skinny trunks but large leaves to catch a lot of sun. We saw sycamore, cottonwood, hickory, quaking aspen, oak and more reaching for the sky. Lower down were many fruiting rosehips and elderberries. We also witnessed visiting creatures including crickets and birds.
From Paul Barringer, a Bio4Climate community member:
It was such an inspiring experience being at the Miyawaki Forest meeting with many of the Bio4Climate staff. It reaffirmed for me that there are nature-based solutions already happening through the work of positive-minded people right here in Cambridge & Boston. I wrote a poem about this as gratitude for being part of the gathering and celebration.
We are so grateful for Paul’s poetic expression of his gratitude. Thank you for sharing and spreading the inspiration!
We welcome others to join in sharing their experience, in the comments below or by email, and to share photos of the gathering or of the mini-forest.
American elderberry fruit bunch (Sambucus canadensis)
Oak seedling
Jim shared his teaching tools with the group and gave away three of his favorite books
It was wonderful to gather with this group of eco-restoration enthusiasts who are working to seed their own communities with nature’s solutions. People came from across New England, many eager to get their own Miyawaki forest projects underway. This is how we develop our own mycelial network of regenerative energy.
Thank you to everyone who has helped us restore our shared spaces and bring back biodiversity. By volunteering on our planting days, spreading the word, or donating to our organization, you are contributing to the Mini Forest Revolution!
One of the profound ways Australian Climatologist Walter Jehne influenced my thinking was in helping me see the other side of the greenhouse effect. We always think about the “insulating” gases, and not about the source of the heat. And that’s bare land…
This introduces the first of my RegenLife Minutes:
From the new documentary Regenerating Life, this 1 minute video takes another approach to understanding the greenhouse effect.
The courageous pioneering organization Biodiversity for a Livable Climate has been one of my important mentors throughout the making of Regenerating Life. We are thrilled to announce that we are now partnering with them in distributing the film. They have committed to presenting a Premiere Screening Event for Regenerating Life on October 14, 2023 at Tufts University and are currently lining up a great panel of speakers.
This important message needs your help to reach the world-wide audience it deserves. Your donation before the public release will help us with subtitles and distribution expenses. World premieres will need funding for speaker’s fees and marketing. Didi Pershouse and I are working on a companion guide, An Earthlings Guide to Planetary Health, and your donation can help us make it available in time for our first audience this fall.
John Feldman brings the voices of Bio4Climate together in his new film – Regenerating Life. When you donate to this campaign, part of your donation goes to support our work (as long as you fill in the box on the donation page with our name). And you get to see this groundbreaking film before the rest of the world!
It is water that governs 95% of the heat dynamics of the blue planet, Earth. Water.
Walter Jehne in Regenerating Life
This morning the smell from drought-induced wildfires in Canada permeates our garden, the sky is an eerie greenish yellow. Yesterday I read that Arizona is running out of water. This IS climate change.
The climate crisis can only be mitigated by regenerating the complex system that maintains and regulates the climate, the system humans have been destroying for centuries: the system of Life, what some call the biosphere, some call Mother Earth, and others call Nature.
This is the subject of my new documentary,Regenerating Life, which presents a new approach to the causes and solutions to climate change. (See trailer below.) Today, I am starting a four week fund-raising campaign to get the film out to people everywhere. It’s urgent.
The film gives people and organizations a tool for education, outreach and policy change. The more people see this film, the more people speak out and stand up for sensible solutions to the climate crisis, the sooner we’ll be able to turn this around.
This fundraising campaign gives you the opportunity to be the first to see and share the film – before the Premieres in October. Your donations will be used to enhance the film’s reach, this includes subtitles in 7 languages, a study guide entitled An Earthlings Guide to Planetary Health (to be co-written by Didi Pershouse), underwriting of community screenings, and a spectacular series of Premiere Event Screenings with notable guest speakers, panelists, and receptions. After the Premieres, Bullfrog Films, will take over the distribution.
The campaign ends on July 4th so that we can set off fireworks celebrating your generosity.
By Carlos Mdemu Social Media, Writing, and Online Outreach Intern
Since 2011, I have been working in the field of environmental and solid waste management. At the beginning of my journey, I remember visiting one of the famous local markets in Dar es Salaam for a community cleanup. The local market, in terms of waste management and general cleanliness, was threatening and filthy – not only to people who visited the market but also to the community around the market. There was no waste collection, no sewage for liquid waste, yet people around the market didn’t seem to care (they had ‘trash blindness’). This situation amplified my energy and passion for the environment. I started looking for ways I can help my communities to find the solution to address the issue of waste pollution.
The issue of waste was not only a problem at the market where we organized the cleanup, but also a general reality of mismanaged solid waste in Tanzania, and this has a serious effect on our health, environment, and exacerbates climate change. In Tanzania, 37% of waste generated is estimated to be buried, 31% of waste is dumped, and another 23% of waste is being burnt. Only 5% of the waste is regularly collected, 3% is irregularly collected, and 1% is dumped by the road side. Mismanaged waste contributes to flooding as it ends up in the rivers and blocks storm drains.
After graduating with a degree in geography and environmental studies, I decided to get involved with various projects, from a mentoring program with John Hopkins to an internship with a local environmental organization called Nipe Fagio. I wanted to gain environmental knowledge while improving the quality of life of those around me.
In September 2015, I saw a family consisting of one parent, one boy, and one girl who were gathered after they lost their house due to severe flooding in that area. The image of this family stayed with me, and I soon learned that flooding in Dar es Salaam is common during the rainy season due to solid waste and industrial effluents finding their way into the river, therefore clogging the city’s drainage systems and polluting the water. A few years later, heavy rains and extensive flooding in the city led to at least 15 people killed and more than 2,000 families in the Msimbazi Basin displaced. Since that day, I’ve been thinking a lot about people’s right to have access to a clean, safe, and healthy environment, and how I can continue to be a voice advocating for these basic needs. I did not know of something called an “activist” at this time, but later I realized that I can be an environmental activist and help others voluntarily.
Recording data after cleanups is very crucial for conservation advocacy
I began looking for opportunities to deepen my understanding of climate solutions. I soon became one of the coordinating leaders of the ‘Let’s Do It’ campaign in Tanzania, which gathered different sectors and regions together to work nationally and globally to address waste problems.
On World Cleanup Day that year, with mobilization of different organizations, we conducted 102 cleanups, engaged 26,419 people, and collected 18,547 bags — 466,378 kg — of trash in the country! Through cleanups, we focus on local waste management solutions and climate change adaptation measures to help provide environmental, social, and economic benefits across the country.
Now, I work for Environmental Conservation Community of Tanzania (ECCT), an organization that works to address plastic pollution and its threat to terrestrial and marine life. We believe improved waste collection and disposal will significantly decrease environmental and health risks.
In 2006, the Tanzania Ministry of Health and Social Welfare (MoHSW) reported that between 60 and 80 percent of hospital admissions were due to sanitation-related diseases. Dar es Salaam in 2012 was ranked as the twelfth dirtiest city in Africa as a result of plastic waste being dumped in open areas. Rivers and water bodies across the city show abnormally high nutrient concentrations, further degrading water and soil quality. This is why we are acting on-the-ground to reduce these problems and promote eco-restoration.
Community-led action benefits people and the planet
Implementing Solutions
To me, ecosystem restoration means valuing the social, economic, emotional, spiritual, and cultural values embedded in nature, and how those values impact us. I also believe that the ocean is an important part of eco-restoration. It drives climate and weather, supplies oxygen for all and protein for many. To me the ocean means life. It’s very unfortunate how the ocean is so threatened and continues to be under assault from all sides. We need immediate efforts to address this challenge, such as beach cleanups. If we stop plastic waste from reaching ocean environments, and advocate for sustainable fishing, we will make significant steps towards a healthier and sustainable ocean, and that will benefit every other ecosystem.
Advocating the banning of single use plastic
Tanzania is among the countries that are restricting and banning several forms of plastic products and educating people about the negative impacts of plastic on the environment. Our efforts to minimize unnecessary plastic waste has contributed to Tanzania being one of the countries dedicated to the complete banning of plastic bags. Reducing the usage of plastic bags and instead replacing them with paper and reusable bags is proving extremely successful, as countries have seen a reduction in plastic bag usage by more than 50%.
Educating local communities
We know that the youth, who will inherit this Earth, are the ones who need to be aware of the problems and solutions. With ECCT we began a Youth Ambassadors program which includes training on environmental conservation issues and waste management.
We also have a campaign for coastal tree planting that will engage local fisherfolk and other coastal communities in planting trees along the coastal area to protect them from erosion and increase habitat for marine animals. We plan to plant more than 20,000 trees of seedlings along Dar es Salaam’s coast this year.
Through these programs, we hope to engage participants about ecosystem restoration through hands-on projects. We want to inspire others and show them that anyone can be an activist.
Teaching students during the implementation of a school program
I believe that inspiring behavioral changes is the solution to the world’s problems of waste management, plastic pollution, and the degradation of Earth’s ecosystems. Saving the polluted land and oceans is my duty and the duty of everyone who relies on it. Developing countries like Tanzania have to leap-frog to a low-carbon economy and this includes improved solid waste management. Now we are looking for financial support to sustain a just transition to a low-carbon economy. We believe through continuous financial support, our activities will bring more direct benefits to communities and scale up projects.
My story is just one of the many people who are dedicating their careers to nature’s climate solutions. By sharing my story, I hope to motivate others to get involved in the movement to restore the human connection to nature. We each have a role, and our job is to find how we can best help restore the planet and the well-being of our neighbors, both human and non-human.
Bulu mini-forest in Cameroon after 19 months; Photo: Agborkang Godfred
Hannah Lewis, Compendium Editor for Biodiversity for a Liveable Climate and freelance writer
The Miyawaki Method
The Miyawaki Method is a way to grow natural, mature forests in a couple of decades rather than a couple of centuries. You do this by observing what happens in nature. When bare ground is left undisturbed for many decades or centuries, plants grow into the space in successive waves of increasingly larger, longer-living, and more shade-tolerant vegetation, each group replacing the previous group. This process ultimately results in a stable, mature forest in places where the climate is suitable for such. The Miyawaki Method anticipates what would grow in that ultimate forest community and plants those species directly.
In addition to guiding the choice of species – which will include not only large canopy trees but also smaller trees and shrubs, the Miyawaki Method calls for intensively preparing the soil, planting densely, heavily mulching, and actively maintaining the site for the first three years as the forest becomes established. By the end of three years, the young trees will have formed a thick enough canopy to shade out weeds and create a microclimate that protects the soil. So, by this time a forest planted this way is self-sufficient, needing no further maintenance.
Community engagement is a core element of the Miyawaki Method. Dr. Miyawaki himself organized “planting festivals” for forest making that very deliberately put communities at the center of the process. These festivals got started with a call-and-response “naming ceremony” in which everyone gathered would call out and repeat the names of the main tree species they were about to plant – to learn the names and be able to recognize the species. In his prolific writing and speaking, Miyawaki made it clear that people are a part of nature, that our wellbeing depends on the wellbeing of ecosystems, and that we have a responsibility toward one another to take care of nature. So, naturally, people should be involved in forest-making.
The method lends itself to intergenerational public participation because the plants are small, lightweight, and easy to plant even for a small child. Also, because there are so many plants, it takes a lot of people to get the job done!
My motivation to write Mini-Forest Revolution and to plant a mini-forest were inseparable from each other, and similar to what motivated the others featured in the book to embrace the Miyawaki Method. For me, it has been a positive way to transform anxiety over our languishing planet, over all the species being lost, and over all the individuals suffering – into action that can slow those processes down, at least locally. Planting a mini-forest is a way to express love for this world, and writing the book seemed like a good way to explain how and why. And both projects were a lot of fun!
My goal for the book is to encourage readers to reconsider our relationship to wildlife by more clearly seeing our interdependence with other species. While we can probably survive without cell phones, cars, and refrigerators, we cannot live too long without the web of relationships that results in oxygen production, clean water, healthful food, and milder weather patterns. Planting mini-forests is a way to nurture a section of the greater web of life, which in turn supports our lives in more ways that we can imagine through interdependencies to which we are generally blind. There are millions of examples of species interactions happening outside the human realm that sustain us – and forests are the site of many such interactions. Let’s conserve and restore forests together.
Tania Roa, Digital Communications and Internships Manager for Bio4Climate
In “Mini-Forest Revolution,” Hannah Lewis outlines a replicable, evidently successful urban afforestation method. She not only makes it easy for us readers to understand the Miyawaki Method, she gives us the knowledge and tools to plant our own mini-forests. This book does three things: bring awareness to the connections between climate change and biodiversity loss, emphasize nature’s solutions to these intertwined crises, and give us a call to action – all in 205 pages.
The idea of planting a small forest may seem counterintuitive. You might be thinking, “Don’t we need larger forests? How can a mini forest tackle global warming and biodiversity loss on a large scale?” These are valid questions.
When we think of the climate crisis, we think of a global phenomenon, and that leads us to think we need to invest in cross-continental solutions. But what if we thought global and acted local? We would still be aiming to address the issues that affect people across the globe, but we would be doing it in a way that allows us to start anywhere, anytime. You most likely don’t have the resources and connections to begin a project that reaches dozens of countries at once, but you do have the means to create a positive impact right in your own neighborhood. That may not make a difference to someone living oceans away, but it will change the lives of the people, wildlife, and soil microorganisms around you.
Hannah also points out that in just a few years, the number of Miyawaki forests around the world has expanded more than Dr. Miyawaki himself could have predicted. One man, with a dedication to leaving the world better than he found it, came up with an idea that transformed how we think about ecosystems in urban settings. If there was ever proof that the actions of one person can influence the actions of another, even for those who never had the honor of meeting him, it’s in the life of Akira Miyawaki.
For me, the most important aspect of the Miyawaki Method is the community-led mindset. Planting Miyawaki forests is not meant to be done by one person. This model is designed to incorporate as many people in the vicinity as possible. It’s meant to be shared, and with that the benefits of the forest are replicated. By involving local communities, you inevitably spread the message of nature’s climate solutions, the benefits of biodiversity, and the fact that humans are inextricably linked to other species. Embedded in this method is education, inspiration, and ultimately positive action.
So if you ever feel like the climate action you’re taking is not enough, just remember what a wise person once said: a small act is not so small if millions of people are doing it. Every revolution needs to start somewhere. Every revolution needs masses of people to get informed, join, and take a leap of faith. The mini-forest revolution is underway – will you be a part of it?
To learn more about the Miyawaki Method and Hannah’s book “Mini-Forest Revolution,” click below to watch the interview I hosted, and get ready to be inspired!
There is an established belief in science that there are roughly 20-to-30-year time lags between a year of emissions and the perceptible appearance of their effects. Therefore we are currently seeing the consequences of carbon concentrations 40 to 60 ppm less than at present. Furthermore, the signature of positive feedback loops is acceleration – it is apparent that in the last two or so years we are witnessing that acceleration in spades, as heat records are broken right and left, wildfires rage, etc. etc.
Solar panels on rooftops. Hybrid and electric vehicles. Meatless Mondays. What do all of these indicators of societal progress have in common? They are just some examples among the many widely attainable, lifestyle modifiers for reducing energy consumption in our fossil fuel-addicted world. But while replacing SUVs with hybrid cars and changing lifestyle habits to reduce individual carbon footprints is important, it simply isn’t enough to reverse climate change. We have long surpassed the point where phasing down fossil fuel emissions alone will arrange for a biologically-diverse and livable climate.
