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The Urban Forest: Learn How To Grow A Forest

The Urban Forest

Learn How To Grow Forest

URBAN FOREST

Shehzad Qureshi’s very thoughtful and state-of-the-art initiative, the “urban forest” has evolved into nothing lesser than a movement. Amidst all this concrete, heat and pollution that has come to characterize the city of Karachi, this movement fights for what is important: against anthropocentric ideals of man and for the nature and its sustainability.

Urban Forest | How To Make A Natural Forest

In a backdrop of a city that is struggling to negotiate with spaces, the urban forest is a manifested reality that in a relatively small space, forests can grow in the heart of an urban landscape and a very tangible change can be observed. Scores of gardening lovers, urbanists, school children, eco-conscious youth and just about anybody who has been influenced by the remarkable work, are flocking to the Urban Forest to visit what it has become and to contribute their part.

A forest grown in the middle of Karachi to combat extreme weathers I ARY Stories

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There is another something you can become a part of. The Urban Forest is giving you a chance to contribute to development of this forest, and also to emulate this successful method in other spaces within the city.

How To Make A Natural Forest
Urban Forest

In this course, learn how to create a forest, by making your own forest! At this afforestation workshop they will share their foresting methodologies in both classroom and outdoor sessions. The overall goal of the workshop is to train all the participants in “forest-making”, via hands-on on-site sessions combined with content rich classroom sessions. The workshop will run morning to evening for 2 days. During which participants will learn all the 7 steps of making of a tiny Forest (sneak peak, you will be using the Miyawaki Method!).

Lets entice you with a little bit of details of this Japanese Miyawaki Method. The botanist Akira Mayawaki pioneered the Miyawaki method, which best suits the context of Karachi. It teaches how to make dense native forests. The approach ensures that plant growth is 10 times faster and the resulting plantations are actually 30 times denser. Many different native species are planted together, and through an ecosystem that promotes cross-fertilization, it becomes maintenance-free after the first few years. Once established these forests of native trees will last forever.

Akira Mayawaki

Lets also look at the tentative schedule the Urban Forest has prepared for us:

Day 1

Trainees will be introduced to the Potential Natural Vegetation (PNV), Soil Conditions and Biomass Quantification of the pilot forest site. To further help better understand the philosophy and concept of the Miyawaki Method of Afforestation, case studies will also be shared. So the main learning outcome for the day is to learn forest design, and how to make a site ready for afforestation.

  1. Introduction to the Miyawaki method; its advantages and achievements
  2. Species selection
  3. Soil and Amendments
  4. Compost tea making
  5. Site readiness Check
  6. 3 Project Examples
  7. Design
  8. BOM
  9. QnA

Day 2

Trainees will have a hands-on training on the execution and design aspects of the forest, of plantation, maintenance and growth monitoring. Hence, trainees will be guided through the final stages of planting, mulching and maintenance guidelines.

  1. Excavation Demo
  2. Materials mixing Demo
  3. Project Execution with project examples
  4. Maintenance
  5. Monitoring
  6. Participant’s site discussion
  7. Seedlings distribution
  8. Plantation Demo
  9. Actual plantation
  10. Mulching and watering
  11. Final wrap up

In an era marking the advent of the catastrophe known as climate change, especially in the backdrop of a country that is noted as the third most vulnerable region to climate change disasters, we need to act quick. A city needs at least 25% of its land dedicated to forestation and greenery whilst Karachi dedicates a mere 4-5% of its land for the purpose. Clearly the signs are not good and they can be manifested with almost unbearable heat during the summers, and extremely erratic weather behaviors. Urban Forest is a step in the right direction and hence the merits of this workshop can hardly be understated. Go dear citizen, plant a tree and learn to grow. Generaztion z or boomers, school-goers or professionals, the Earth, this city is yours to take responsibility for. So register to this course here or send your details to their account, create@urbanforest(dot)pk!

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