As millions of hectares of forest continue to disappear around the world, the urgency of restoring these fragile ecosystems has never been greater. With up to 95% of the planet’s land at risk of degradation by 2050, the stakes are high. At first glance, the answer seems simple: plant more trees. Yet rushed or poorly planned tree-planting in the wrong places can damage ecosystems further and threaten the wellbeing of local communities.

This rising interest in forest renewal has also brought a surge of greenwashing, from misleading environmental claims to scientific missteps that muddy the waters of what effective restoration really looks like. But alongside these challenges comes genuine hope. Innovative ecological research, paired with the wisdom of Indigenous communities, is reshaping how we understand and revive damaged landscapes in ways that support both nature and people.

This insightful and timely book invites us to reconsider our relationship with trees, urging us to recognise forests not as timber but as dynamic social and ecological worlds. In doing so, Treewilding reveals perhaps the most important truth of all: understanding the living, interconnected “woods” is key to restoring nature for future generations.