03/06/2026
โWhat if planting a tree on your birthday became as normal as blowing out candles?โโจโจThe idea stayed with us long after the ๐๐ฆ ๐๐ฐ๐ท๐ฆ ๐๐ณ๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ด session at Urban Future.ย โจโจIn Ljubljana, Bruno Doedens shared his vision for โBirthday Forests,โ or places where residents plant a tree each year to celebrate another year around the sun.A shared ritual. A visible reminder that cities are shaped by thousands of individual decisions.โจโจThe session covered: urban planning, policy, funding, climate adaptation & civic action. The big question:โจ๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐๐จ ๐ฐ๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ค๐ ๐ฎ๐ซ๐๐๐ง ๐ง๐๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ญ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ฒ๐๐๐ฒ ๐ฅ๐ข๐๐ ๐ซ๐๐ญ๐ก๐๐ซ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ง ๐๐ง ๐๐ง๐ฏ๐ข๐ซ๐จ๐ง๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ญ๐๐ฅ ๐๐๐-๐จ๐ง?
Within the depth of the discussion, one thing that stands out is how often we approach urban greening from the wrong end. A lot of time & effort is spent on targets, strategies & implementation plans. They matter, but we need public support & political backing first.โจโจThe speakers (shout out to Tanja Tรถtzer, Michiel Van Driessche, Heinrich Strรถรenreuther & Miriam Staley) approached this from different angles, emphasizing: storytelling & imagination; data demonstrations that prove the cooling impact of trees to help cities prioritise action; and, of course, experience sharing. Did you know Berlin turned widespread support for trees into a โฌ3 billion climate adaptation law?โจโจA few ideas for our community:
๐ณ ๐๐ซ๐๐๐ญ ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐๐ฌ ๐๐ฌ ๐ข๐ง๐๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐ฎ๐๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐. The shade they provide, the cooling effect they create and the resilience they add to neighbourhoods are becoming increasingly essential in a warming climate.โจ๐ณ ๐๐ฅ๐๐ง๐ญ ๐ ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฆ๐๐ซ๐ค ๐ฅ๐ข๐๐ ๐ฆ๐ข๐ฅ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐จ๐ง๐๐ฌ. Children can be given the opportunity to mark their birthdays or their first day of school with this simple act, and watch it grow alongside themselves.โจ๐ณ ๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ง ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ข๐๐๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐ญ ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐ฏ๐๐ฌ.ย Artists, planners, researchers, policymakers and communities could be in the same conversation from the start. The most interesting projects rarely emerge from one discipline alone.โจโจWhat simple ritual could help people in your city feel more connected to nature? ๐ฟ๐ฆ๐
