Mission Green
In 2020, Meg Lowman launched MISSION GREEN,
a bold endeavor to promote globally tree conservation, economic stewardship, and continuous education.
Vision: To stop global deforestation, protect our planet’s biodiversity, and provide indigenous communities with sustainable economic opportunities.
The Inspiration: The model for MISSION GREEN was fashioned after Mission Blue, developed by renowned oceanographer, Sylvia Earle. In Earle’s model, special places that are scientifically identified as critical to the health of the world’s oceans are designated as Hope Spots. In a similar fashion, MISSION GREEN will focus on special places globally that are scientifically identified as critical to the health of the earth’s forests and biodiversity or Hot Spots.
Strategies
- Build canopy walkways in 10 of the world’s highest-diversity, most-critical forests in the next 10 years. Work with leading scientists to select locations and establish scientific, governmental, and construction partnerships in host countries to facilitate best-in-class research, education, conservation, and ecotourism programs.
- Train local people, especially women, to be Canopy Stewards and create income streams from canopy ecotourism, instead of logging or farming.
- Leverage collaboration between the biodiversity experts and indigenous people to create field guides, outreach, tours, and interpretive education about forest canopies.
- Fund student fellowships to document the biodiversity in these hotspots and create a pipeline of experts in the next generation (currently missing from graduate curricula).
- Establish a self-sustaining model by a) building alliances with local schools to operate the walkway programs and b) collaborating and sharing best practices among the different MISSION GREEN walkway teams globally.
“It is like triage in a hospital emergency room. We must focus on saving the areas that matter most and make the biggest global difference. Starting with 10 critical forests, we can reverse species extinction, and take giant steps towards a truly sustainable planet.”
– Dr. Meg Lowman
