Abstract:

Tropical forests, the earth's richest environment, are home to approximately 70 percent of the millions of species that share our planet. Already, in the last few decades, more than half of the world's tropical forests have been destroyed and, unless there is action, they will disappear within our lifetime. We view the work of Phra Ajaan Pongsak, a Buddhist monk who is restoring the watershed forest of the Mac Soi Valley in northern Thailand, and the Japanese Tropical Forest Network, one of the most effective and outspoken environmental organizations in Japan.