Aster Afwork Gebrekirstos

"Trees are like people. Some species, some are opportunists. In good times they spend and grow like crazy. Some really conservative they grow better in difficult years. And the conservative tree could better cope with climate change."

"I have learned how farmers have changed in the last ten years. They are open and keen to use new technologies."

"At the moment, we have many, many indigenous trees in the tropics, but we are selecting very few for restoration – we’re mostly planting exotic trees like eucalyptus, grevillea, and cypress."

"Because in temperate regions, you have clear climate seasonality – in winter, everything is dormant – so the growing period is very well-marked."

"Trees tell us a lot about climate and ecological history, because they are the oldest living things on the planet and can live up to 4000 years."

"The formation of this working group is just the beginning. It’s a platform for identifying the methods, sampling techniques."