Forest Hours

Forests are home to over 80 percent of land animals and plants and cover 31 percent of the world’s total land area. About 1.6 billion people around the world depend on forests for their livelihoods and daily subsistence needs.

A tree can sequester up to 150 kilograms of carbon dioxide per year. The world’s forests store an estimated 296 gigatonnes of carbon in both above- and below-ground biomass. Just imagine: Europe’s 400 billion trees currently absorb almost 9 percent of the continent’s greenhouse gas emissions!

Trees are important for creating sustainable cities: in urban areas, they can cool the air by up to 8 degrees, reducing air conditioning needs by 30 percent. Urban trees are also excellent air filters, removing harmful pollutants and fine particulates.

“Finland is officially the world’s happiest country. It is also 75 percent forest. I believe these facts are related.”