The billion tree plan

It sounds tempting: If we can just plant enough trees, we can halt climate change. And we won’t even need to change our lifestyles that much. It’s a theory promoted by science: A Swiss university study made headlines in July 2019 when it said that 900 million hectares of land are available for reforestation worldwide, and that reforesting this area would compensate for two thirds of CO2 emissions caused by human activity. But is it really that simple? How can conflicts over land use be avoided? Who will mediate between farmers and tree planters? How many billions of trees need to be planted to balance emissions? And are reforestation projects really of long-term use for our climate? This film reportage goes in search of answers in Australia and India.