Earth is home to approximately 3 trillion trees, but most of them are far from urban centers where they’re most needed to cool down pavement and air temperatures. Paris has a plan to change that. The city just announced that it will be planting a series of urban forests as a way to combat climate change.
The mini forests will center around the Gare de Lyon, the Palais Garnier, and the pathways along the banks of the Seine river. Plans thus far show canopies of lush trees surrounding some of Paris’ most popular sites as well as native grasses along the banks of the Seine, replacing the all-stone pathways something a little more green. The goal, according to mayor Anne Hidalgo, is to decrease carbon emissions and curb rising temperatures, which have already been rippling across Europe this summer.
