– A podcast about the future of our forests in times of drought and warming. Jan Westerhof and Sander Kooistra speak with experts, such as forest owners, managers, and ecologists. The podcast addresses questions like: Will our forests survive climate change? Or will it become a very different forest, with different tree species? Can we stop climate change by planting more trees that absorb more CO2?

In the 19th edition of the podcast, LIFE Climate Forest is featured: “What can we do to make forests on poor sandy soils more resilient to changes in our climate?" Etiënne Thomassen ecologist at Forest Group South Netherlandstells how he approaches this in the ’t Zand forest area, in the Brabant municipality of Alphen/Chaam. Currently, the Scots pine is still dominant there, but it is feared that it will disappear if temperatures continue to rise. Etienne has developed a subtle approach, where deciduous trees from the undergrowth (such as young oaks) are increasingly given the opportunity to develop. More mixing, more deciduous trees, more trees with economic potential, while preserving the forest climate. ’t Zand is a demonstration project of the European programme LIFE Climate Forest.”

Available on all well-known podcast channels, for example here on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/39nc3xbqnOC5lPEiUlY6Y8?si=C-oWkYsDQ9G-3o7nWy562g&nd=1&dlsi=52fc33c186dd434a