In 1900, forests covered 48% of the Earth’s habitable land, which is equivalent to about 4,128–5,500 million hectares. This was a decline from 52% in 1700 and 50% in 1800. Today, they account for 31% of the planet’s land surface.
The most recent report of the UN global body’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) how critically needed urgent action:
- AFRICA:9 million hectares (hectare = 2.47 acres.): the annual rate of net LOSS of forest area over the last decade (2010-2020).
- SOUTH AMERICA: 6 million hectares: the annual rate of net LOSS of forest area in during the same decade.
- ASIA: 2 million hectares: The annual rate of NET GAIN of forest area over the past decade,
- OCEANIA:4 million hectares: Annual rate of GAIN in forest area in Oceania over the last decade,
- EUROPE:3 million hectares: Annual rate of GAIN in forest area over the last decade,
- NORTH AND CENTRAL AMERICA:7 million hectares: Annual rate of forest area LOSS over the last decade,
This assessment calls us and the global community to a heightened awareness of our responsibilities as stewards of our Common Home Earth.
The United Nations has convened a Forum on Forests annually for almost twenty years. The 19th session of the UN Forum took place from May 6 to 10, 2024, three months after the nineteenth anniversary of the death of the sister-martyr Dorothy Stang, SNDdeN. This year, Sister Dorothy was included in the Vatican Memorial for Modern Martyrs for the first time. The first American woman ever named, Dorothy Stang, labored much of her life to save the forests of the Amazon. She was not one to presume others would address an issue. Rather, she rolled up her sleeves and got involved in the local people’s struggle against the powerful loggers and ranchers driven by greed and disregard for the impact of their actions. Sister Dorothy Stang paid with her life when she was murdered by hired gunmen in 2005 at Anapu, in the state of Pará. Both her life and the death of this seventy-three-year-old SNDdeN dramatized the urgency of addressing climate change and its multiple effects. Dorothy frequently warned, “The death of the forest is the end of our life.” Her message largely goes unheeded. Forests continue to be destroyed at an alarming rate. Greedy individuals and multinationals continue acting like they live on another planet.
More and more people today are becoming aware that climate change is an existential crisis. Governments, civil society groups, and inter-faith organizations spearhead rainforest initiatives in countries with tropical forests, such as Brazil, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Peru, Colombia, and Indonesia. This demonstrates that people are gradually taking responsibility and organizing activities aimed at raising awareness. They put in place measures and mechanisms to fight together to protect of the forests located in their areas. It’s up to everyone to take responsibility. If all joined together their hands and pooled their efforts the impact would be so much greater.
LAUDATO SI’ WEEK, 19-26 APRIL, 2024
By Sister Joan Burke, SNDdeN