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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