March 21 is International Day of Forests! Celebrated worldwide this international observation day works to increase public awareness about the values, significance, and contributions of the forests to balance the life cycle on the Earth, with issues of conservation and deforestation addressed. Various local and global level activities for the International Day of Forests are celebrated or promoted by the UN with governments, community organizations, and the general public.

“Learning to understand our forests and providing children with a foundation to better understand their importance is a critical step to safeguarding natural resources for future generations. Forests help keep air, soil, water and people healthy and play a vital role in addressing some of the biggest challenges we face today, such as climate change, eliminating hunger and keeping urban and rural communities sustainable. With more than half the world’s population living in urban areas, a number expected to rise to 70 percent by 2050, people are increasingly disconnected from nature and lack the awareness and understanding of forests and their benefits and the need to manage them sustainably, making it essential to bring forests into their lives at an early age.” 

In Western MA, on Thursday, March 21, 2019 from 10-11:30am, the Wendell State Forest Alliance will join Our Revolution UMass to celebrate with an International Day of Forests Tour of UMass. This will be guided tour of the UMass Amherst campus, starting at the Westside of UMass Campus Center and stopping at various buildings on campus where forest-related activities take place. — Before heading over, check out this post, “21 reasons why forests are important.”