--- title: "Guy Who Urged Planting a Trillion Trees Begs People to Stop Planting So Many Trees" description: "Thomas Crowther, whose work fueled the craze around planting trees, no longer thinks it's the best way to combat carbon emissions." date: "2023-12-16" modified: "2023-12-16" authors: - name: "Frank Landymore" job_title: "Contributing Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/flandymore" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/guy-urged-planting-trillion-trees-stop" categories: - "Climate Change" - "Environment" - "Science & Energy" tags: - "carbon emissions" - "climate change" - "the digest" - "trees" --- # Guy Who Urged Planting a Trillion Trees Begs People to Stop Planting So Many Trees ![Thomas Crowther, whose work fueled the craze around planting trees, no longer thinks it's the best way to combat carbon emissions.]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* ## No Treegrets In 2019, ecologist Thomas Crowther sparked a global [tree-planting craze]() to offset carbon emissions. But now the former chief scientific adviser for the United Nation's Trillion Trees Campaign has had a change of heart, *Wired* [reports](), pleading with [environmental leaders]() to bring their mass tree planting to a halt. Taking the stand at this year's [UN Climate Change Conference in Dubai](), Crowther spelled out the overlooked drawbacks of mass tree planting, such as stifling biodiversity and not being as effective carbon capturers as once believed. Most insidiously of all, he warned that tree planting is used "as an excuse to avoid cutting emissions," as quoted by *Wired*. "If no one had ever said, 'Plant a trillion trees,' I think we'd have been in a lot better space," he added. "But maybe there wouldn't have been so much noise and attention on nature, so that all the very responsible scientists who are here could correct it and turn it into something that is good." ## Taking Root In 2019, Crowther and his team published a soon-to-be [blockbuster study]() with a bold and controversial conclusion: that the Earth could fit another 1.2 trillion trees. This highlights "global tree restoration," the researchers wrote in the paper, "as our most effective climate change solution to date." At the time, some scientists [criticized the paper]() as overestimating both the amount of carbon trees could absorb and the amount of land that could viably be forested. But the optimism it instilled was too infectious to die down. After all, trees were a seemingly easy solution to our existential climate woes. Big oil companies like Shell immediately capitalized by [pledging to spend hundreds of millions of dollars in reforestation initiatives](). The social media campaign Team Trees that aimed to plant 20 million saplings became a viral sensation, [securing a million-dollar donation from Tesla CEO Elon Musk](). ## Planter's Remorse Despite the craze and widespread optimism, carbon emissions ironically continued to climb. Ever since, Crowther's work has taken a more measured, sober tone. His [latest study](), published last month in the journal *Nature*, takes aim at "greenwashing," the deceitful practice by companies — and countries — in which they flaunt their supposedly eco-friendly efforts to overshadow their heinous environmental practices. Crowther, by speaking at the climate summit, wanted to kill the practice. "Killing greenwashing doesn't mean stop investing in nature," he said, per *Wired*. "It means doing it right. It means distributing wealth to the Indigenous populations and farmers and communities who are living with biodiversity." What's more, Crowther believes that the focus should now be on preserving existing forests rather than planting new ones. According to his research, letting existing woodlands expand and mature naturally will offset around 50 percent more carbon in the long run. Even so, the role that carbon offsetting plays in our fight against climate change [remains hotly contested]() — but [continuing to destroy precious forests]() certainly doesn't help. **More on climate change:** [*Carbon Dioxide Is Becoming More Fearsome, Scientists Find*]() ## Author At Futurism, my work has often centered on bringing a sense of clarity and insight to complex topics ranging from the regulation of emerging technologies to the esoteric ideologies of Silicon Valley executives, while striving not to lose the poetic sense of awe inspired by often-obscure fields like astrophysics and quantum computing. I broke the story of CNET using AI to produce articles that turned out to be riddled with factual errors and plagiarism — a dam-breaking inflection point, as I've reported, that's inspired copycats and endless discourse while beguiling stakeholders ranging from tech giants to purveyors of spam around the web. My work at Futurism has been cited by publications including CBS News, the Los Angeles Times, Vice, Gizmodo, Engadget, the Verge, and Vanity Fair. I grew up in locales ranging from India to China, and now live in the exotic suburbs of Virginia. In my free time, I'm an avid reader of weird sci-fi literature, an aficionado of East Asian cinema, and, regrettably, a relapsed gamer. Allegedly, I’m working on a debut novel, currently untitled. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()