GOOD FIRE

Our story imagines what it would take to make afforestation possible on a global scale. Planting trees is easy. Keeping them alive is a different matter. While the biggest threat to forests is wildfire, we turn to ancient and indigenous cultures and practices and fight wildfire - with fire. Controlled burnings clear thick growth and dried vegetation, reduce invasive species’ spread, rejuvenate the soil, and ultimately prevent wildfires. In our story, we imagine afforestation at a global scale and explored what it would be like in Kauri Waipoua forest in New Zealand, in decades ahead, centuries even, where a new culture and heritage deriving from the management of the forests where communities form around stewardship becomes a part of life; where the fire is no longer seen as a risk but celebrated as the key to keeping the forests and planet alive.