Dear friends,

I have spent more than four decades climbing into the treetops in over 50 countries. When I began my career, very few women engaged in field research and almost no scientists ever studied the whole tree, but limited their scope to ground level. The canopy was considered too inaccessible, too risky, and simply out of sight. But I believed that answers to forest mysteries were not on the forest floor. They might be above our heads. So I decided to climb.

What I discovered changed the trajectory of my life and my work. The canopy is a living, breathing system that holds more than half of terrestrial biodiversity. It regulates water, stores carbon, stabilizes climate, and supports the intricate web of life that makes our planet habitable. I began calling it the Eighth Continent because that is what it felt like—vast, essential, and largely unexplored.

Yet while we debate climate science in boardrooms and political arenas, some of our most powerful natural solutions are being cut down in plain sight. The largest and oldest trees—the very ones doing the heaviest lifting for our climate—are disappearing at alarming rates.

I find that heartbreaking. And quite honestly, I also find it deeply frustrating. We know better. And yet access to studying the treetops remains limited, especially in emerging countries where the most biodiverse forests exist but the economy can’t support research. Conservation efforts, if any, are often short-lived. Funding is fragmented or non-existent. And although I work passionately to include women in field biology, progress is slow.

Now, as I enter the later chapters of my career, my focus is passing the torch. I have climbed trees across the globe. I have mentored thousands of students. But what matters most is not what I have done—it is who climbs next. I invite you to join us, to partner with TREE Foundation, and to help ensure that the canopy remains open, accessible, and protected for generations to come.