RETREET BLOG

RETREET redefines disaster relief by engaging communities to replant lost trees.


 
SUNDAY SHOW & TELL
vol.105

The magical creations of Scottish artist Andy Goldsworthy have mesmerized us for many years. This week, we came across a collection of some of his natural wonders that is definitely worth sharing. Who knew you could do so much with just leaves and sticks?

THE ART OF ANDY GOLDSWORTHY (photo essay)

THE ART OF ANDY GOLDSWORTHY (photo essay)

Retrofitting old airplanes to turn them into carpet tree bombers: there's an idea we can get behind. An experienced forester can plant 1,000 saplings in a day. And the plane? 900,000. We'd love to see this in action.

AERIAL REFORESTATION (video)

AERIAL REFORESTATION (video)

Looking for a new ride? Not sure where to go and what to ask? Check out this post about buying a new bicycle, in which all of your most embarrassing questions are answered. Happy shopping!

BIKE SHOP QUESTIONS (article)

BIKE SHOP QUESTIONS (article)

 


 
SUNDAY SHOW & TELL
vol.72

A movement is underway to put the Oak back in Oakland, which is perhaps the largest city in the US named after a tree. Read all about efforts to reconnect the city's current residents to its forested past. 

PUTTING THE OAK IN OAKLAND (article)

PUTTING THE OAK IN OAKLAND (article)

Remember when we posted about Solaroad, the solar-power producing bicycle path in The Netherlands? Well, it's been up and running for a while now, and the results are in: Solaroad is generating more power than expected. We certainly hope that its amazing success leads to a rapid spread of this technology across the globe.

UPDATE: DUTCH SOLAROAD WORKING BETTER THAN EXPECTED (video/photo essay)

UPDATE: DUTCH SOLAROAD WORKING BETTER THAN EXPECTED (video/photo essay)

We all know books come from trees, right? Well now, trees come from books! Pequeño Editor, a small publishing company in Argentina, created a book that teaches children about paper production and can be planted once it's been read. The book puts back into nature that which it took out, eventually growing into a mature Jacaranda. They even display germinated books in stores. What a great gift for young ones.

THE BOOK THAT GROWS INTO A TREE (video)

THE BOOK THAT GROWS INTO A TREE (video)

 


 
SUNDAY SHOW & TELL
vol.71

As Saudi airstrikes in Yemen lead to continuing fuel shortages across the country, many have taken to two wheels for transportation. "Let's ride a bike" was organized by young women as a group ride across the capital, much to the chagrin of the country's most conservative element. In fact, some find the idea so incredulous they insist pictures, like the one below, must be Photoshopped. Read more about this powerful movement!

WOMEN IN YEMEN RIDING BIKES (article)

WOMEN IN YEMEN RIDING BIKES (article)

Do you use the expression "it's like riding a bike" to refer to something that is impossible to forget once learned? Have you ever considered what it takes for your mind to master that art? In this amazing thought experiment, people have to unlearn how to ride a regular bicycle in order to ride this one. Who wouldn't want to take a stab at that?

BICYCLE THOUGHT EXPERIMENT (video)

BICYCLE THOUGHT EXPERIMENT (video)

Last weekend, nearly 45,000 volunteers set a new Guinness World Record for single-day reforestation, planting 647,250 saplings in more than 220 species all across Ecuador. Go trees!

TREE PLANTING WORLD RECORD (article)

TREE PLANTING WORLD RECORD (article)

 


SUNDAY SHOW & TELL
vol.66
 

Today, RETREET launched a new program - SPROUT!

An important part of our mission is to educate the next generation of environmental stewards. Through SPROUT, we teach kids of all ages about trees and then offer you the chance to turn their imaginary trees into a real ones for those rebuilding their communities in the wake of disaster.

Spend a moment looking through the tree gallery. See one you like? SPROUT it!

A new idea has sprung up regarding large scale reforestation, and it involves an unlikely technology. As you can see in THIS VIDEO, BioCarbon Engineering suggests using drones to plant up to 1,000,000,000 trees as a time.

PLANTING TREES WITH DRONES  (video)

PLANTING TREES WITH DRONES  (video)

Volvo is also making waves with LifePaint, a reflective safety spray that is invisible in daylight but shines brightly in car headlights. As they say, the best way to survive a crash is not to crash!

VOLVO LIFEPAINT (video)

VOLVO LIFEPAINT (video)