Rewilding urban spaces with pocket forests

DW (English)

What is an urban pocket forest, and can you help the environment with just 200 square meters? Forest maker Achmed Gamieldien transforms vulnerable urban spaces in Cape Town into thriving green oases.

Transcript

00:00What is an urban pocket forest? And can you even call it a forest when it's just 200 square

00:15meters?

00:24Forest maker Ahmed Chemeldien is transforming vulnerable urban spaces in Cape Town into

00:30thriving green oases that support biodiversity and ecosystem restoration.

00:39We planted three trees per square meter over here. This is what we'd find in a forest after

00:442000 years, you know, so we're trying to really speed up the process because this would take

00:49thousands of years to naturally form. So we're assisting nature in speeding up this

00:53process.

00:57Who came up with this method of planting so many trees in such a tiny space?

01:03The Miyawaki method started in the 1970s in Japan at Yokohama University by Dr Akira Miyawaki

01:10and he was a doctor in ecology and biology. And he came up with this method when he saw

01:16in Japan rapid urbanization taking place and the green spaces disappearing extremely

01:23fast and it made it his life mission to find out a methodology that would rapidly restore

01:30our land, restore our biodiversity that is at risk.

01:36Ahmed chose this site very carefully, taking into consideration its social and historical

01:42importance.

01:46This forest is in recognition of First Nations people because this is the site where the

01:52First Nations people used to live freely before their meeting with the Portuguese and with

01:59the Dutch settlers.

02:06Ahmed is part of an international movement to rewild urban spaces with pocket forests.

02:13Planting only indigenous trees with as many different species as possible. It preserves

02:18biodiversity, builds climate resilience and creates well-being in communities.

02:26Because I started during lockdown, it was a time of so much uncertainty that by planting

02:32trees so densely and so many, it's really like established a strong sense of hope.

02:41Tsugi is an international movement of rewilding urban spaces. It has supported 184 pocket

02:48forests in 40 cities and 24 countries around the world. Cape Town now boasts five of these

02:56forests.

02:59For many people, it's very hard to access the natural environments of the mountains.

03:04May take them one hour to two hours just to reach there. So we bring this forest closer

03:10to people.

03:13Tsugi provides the finances to establish the forest and Ahmed enters into a partnership

03:18with the local community who become the custodians of the urban pocket forests.

03:25The maintenance is also a clause in the contract that becomes the responsible of the site bearer

03:30and that involves weeding as well as mulching as well as watering for only the first two

03:36to three years thereafter the forest is sustainable, meaning it doesn't need to be watered.

03:46What makes a perfect site for a pocket forest?

03:50We predominantly are setting up this forest in vulnerable areas. So we have forests in

03:54the Cape Flats, the Cape Flats forest in Mitchell's Plain, as well as the Langa Lila Bele forest

03:59in Langa. And it's really become a space to boost mental health and mental well-being

04:04in very rough fabrics of our society.

04:11His latest project is in Langa, the oldest township in Cape Town, built during apartheid

04:16to keep black people out of the city.

04:21Who was Langa Lila Belele?

04:23This forest is called after a Xhosa king who was captured by the English imperialists and

04:28was actually sent to Robben Island. And after his time in Robben Island, he was sent to

04:33what is known today as Langa, named after King Langa Lila Belele, who was also a rainmaker.

04:41The principal of the primary school, Sitembele Kamsholo, says the land was reclaimed from

04:46builders' rubble.

04:50We planted the forest in early March. It was the kids who did this from as little as six

04:56years old. They were very excited and they were singing with one of the best musicians

05:03here in Langa, Noma Langa. Then he taught the kids how to pronounce some of the trees

05:09in Xhosa.

05:14Once the forest is established and the insects and animals return, it will be a perfect outdoor

05:19classroom. And they don't have long to wait. It took just two years for this forest to

05:25thrive.

05:28The density has become so thick that we can no longer see through it, walk through it.

05:33But it makes wildlife feel comfortable to make habitat, laying their eggs. And we found

05:39chameleons, tortoise. We've also found snakes, as well as many different kinds of birds and

05:45insects. It's all forming this amazing ecosystem in this tiny pocket of just 200 square meters.

05:54With two more forests planned, is Ahmed seeing his vision become reality?

06:01Day by day, the more biodiversity that we are seeing returning to the forest and the

06:05more stories we are hearing from community members, it's really emboldening us to keep

06:10going forward with courage in creating pocket forests in South Africa.

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