BLOSSOMING ENVIRONMENTAL INNOVATIONS IN OUR GENERATION
By Ailbhe Doyle
Gearóid McEvoy is an Irish Wildlife Biology graduate in his early twenties. He is also the founder of Reforest Nation (c. 2020). Reforest Nation is an organisation committed to, as the website explains, restoring biodiversity and fighting climate change by putting the planet before profit. Reforest Nation’s easy and accessible approach has been key to its success in the last two years. Our generation has renewed perspective on how to tackle the climate crisis. The innovation we are bringing to the crisis is a breath of fresh air. Not only are we trying more and more to come from the sustainable angle of adaption, but we also have nature’s best interests at heart. This biocentric, as opposed to human centric, approach, is forcing a transition from resilience to adaption and green solutions in climate mitigation. This scene of blossoming new innovation in our generation is something we should be very proud of and continue to achieve.
I was lucky enough to speak to one of our generation’s pioneering entrepreneurs, Gearóid McEvoy, founder of Reforest Nation, to find out more about his amazing organisation and where he found the inspiration for challenging the climate crisis and all that it brings. When I asked Gearóid what inspired him to make a change, he explained that by the age of seven or eight he had a strong sense of the damage we were doing to our environment. Having had this heightened sense of the environmental destruction, he mentioned that climate change and deforestation were a source of hopelessness for him. Gearóid would regularly look at Google Maps and evaluate the progression of deforestation in the Amazon. So, the motivation for tackling the climate crisis was rooted in him at such a young age that it wasn’t long until he knew his life’s purpose was to fight for our natural world. I was interested in how Gearóid went about achieving such an incredible organisation and his background in wildlife biology. He studied in Kerry for four years to acquire his very niche degree, but being completely honest, he said, “you don’t need a degree to make a difference”.
It is inspiring to know that a degree wasn’t necessary for what he ended up founding and that if you can come up with something yourself, it’s way more likely you’ll have a big impact. Even though “it’s shocking to say”, as long as you’re passionate about the environment, it is just as useful to go out on your own and take action. Interestingly enough, although he really enjoyed his four years, most of what Gearóid learnt about nature was outside his college degree.
With so many other reforesting organisations in Ireland, I was intrigued to know how he founded his planting schemes from such an accessible angle. With the prices so low and the ease of buying and volunteering, it just seems too good to be true. However, Gearóid maintained that it is purely by “not being greedy” that he is able to create such a user-friendly association for reforesting. With other Irish groups, asking for €100 for one tree, as opposed to his starting at €1.50, he “cannot justify why they are so expensive… except for profit”. In some cases, he said, the payment for land is understandable, but that the cheaper the tree for the customer the more will be planted, and he stresses how important that is. In his case, land is offered by partners such as businesses, schools, and climate conscious farmers. This is another example of how such a generous and admirable mindset (that is not capitalist driven) is what is going to make the biggest difference in saving our ecosystems today. Gearóid has already planted 100,000 trees in 2020 alone with this outlook, so he has proven it to be unequivocally successful.
An important question was the varieties to Reforest Nation plants on our land, and the answer did not disappoint. By planting twenty different varieties of species, Reforest Nation succeeds in planting the most diverse forests out of all of Ireland’s foresting bodies. The majority of trees Reforest Nation plant are native species to Ireland and the minority that aren’t (remembering that not all non-native species are invasive), such as horse chestnut and beech, and were introduced to our landscape millennia ago. All the species that are planted maintain a necessary level of biodiversity in the reforested areas, but like he said, “if you’re going to plant any tree, make native a priority”. These trees include Irish Elm, Oak, Holly, Hazel, Willow, Scots Pine (which is native to certain regions of Ireland, contrary to popular belief), Blackthorn and Hawthorn. These wonderfully biodiverse plantations provide increased carbon capture, perfect habitat cover for species, all the while promoting a wide range of both plant and animal biodiversity, including the vital fungal and invertebrates. Gearóid reminded me that people get caught up in “the carbon, the carbon, the carbon”, but people need to remember the biodiversity benefits to planting such a variety of trees is vital for the overall health of the forest, unlike the silent graveyards of pine planted by Coillte. Gearóid told me that planting relies on public volunteers, who are as enthusiastic about actively making a difference when it comes to helping our ecosystems. This practical volunteering approach is efficient and authentic at a grassroots level. As well as the benefits created for the natural environment, planting creates a great social environment to get involved in by getting to know people with a passion for combating climate degradation. The public provide the funds for the project, but they can also come plant the trees they’ve funded, bringing the transparency to another level by getting to see the trees planted themselves. If trees are gifted, they can also join and plant their own gift, which makes it more special.
Reforest Nation gives us a rare opportunity to offset all of our carbon emissions through creating something that will have even more climatic benefits. “We do all these things that indirectly increase carbon, but this can be the one thing this year that you do to reverse it”. In the future, Reforest Nation will be able to expand and get involved with other Irish organisations and even more international plantations to strengthen the habitat available for wildlife.
The entrepreneurs of Ireland’s climate crisis in this generation, and their blossoming new ideas, are a source of hope in such a tragically relentless crisis. Reforest Nation is a beacon of hope for landscapes in Ireland and beyond, it is an organisation making it abundantly clear that minds are blossoming within this morally driven generation. Our generation is undoubtedly the sprouting shoot in the seed of hope for living in balance with our natural world.
Get involved with Reforest Nation!
Website: www.reforestnation.ie
Instagram: @reforest_nation
Email: reforestation.ie@gmail.com
