Miyawaki method: Tree-planting initiative in Paris

French volunteers are taking on a pioneering Japanese tree-planting method to help combat climate change.

Volunteers in Paris are hoping to slow the effects of climate change, by planting mini forests and creating biodiversity hotspots around the city.

The French non-profit organisation Boomforest are using a tree-planting initiative, inspired by the Japanese Miyawaki method, first developed in the 1970s by Akira Miyawaki, a Japanese botanist.

Miyawaki's studies found that forests as small as 100 metres squared could be home to exceptional biodiversity, with carefully prepared soil that provides multiple layers of coverage.

Such initiatives have also been implemented in Beirut, cities across Asia and India, and now increasingly in Europe too, where forests the size of tennis courts have been planted. Paris planted its first one on the northern edge of the city in 2018, though they are expensive.

After sweltering in 40C heat during the summer of 2022, these pockets of forests are being developed in Paris in the hope of tackling the rising number of heatwaves across the city.

Tree coverage is currently only around 9% of Paris, and as a result, Paris City Hall has vowed to plant 170,000 trees by 2026.