Two years after Beau Miles planted one tree per minute for an entire day, he made a follow-up film to document the arduous and rewarding adventure.
The Australian filmmaker is known for his unique style and has undertaken similar projects, some in conservation-adjacent fields. For instance, he traversed the 23 kilometers (around 14 miles) of the continent's "sickest urban river" and built a "junk cabin" during the coronavirus pandemic lockdown.
"A Tree a Minute" documented his planting of 25 types of trees over 2.5 acres of land owned by a friend. Miles did it to see how his homeland, a "deforested farmed zone exploited for its impressive topsoil," would respond to a little TLC.
"It was the hardest 24 hours I'ver ever had," he says. "And it was also one of the most meaningful, testing out the potentials of a single day. I've trusted the trees to get on with living since putting them in, but I also promised I'd be back."
Miles' return was triumphant. He took in the landscape and exulted in the success of the effort, saying 70%-75% of the trees had survived.
"Wow. This is brilliant," he says. "And here [I am], standing here without a hat on in the middle of the blazing sun because I'm shaded by this tree.
"I'm super proud of this because things like this are so easy not to do."
More and more people, however, are doing them.
The world is warming, dangerously so, and Australia, among perhaps every country on Earth, is suffering. The Land Down Under is experiencing more extreme droughts, fire seasons, and floods, among other consequences of humans' use of dirty energy sources such as gas, coal, and oil.
Such global changes have inspired conservationists and regular citizens alike to take action, whether by planting 1,440 trees in a day, reintroducing key species to native lands, donating thousands of acres to a preserve, or saving a coral reef. Mother Nature has shown that a human helping hand is all she needs to bounce back in a big way.
Miles demonstrated what his hard work accomplished throughout his follow-up film, but his satisfaction stood out when he took a seat under one living member of his forest.
"I'm leaning against a tree I planted," he says. "Bloody brilliant. Feels good, too — nice and firm."
He marveled at the spectacle of the whole thing, naming butterflies, birds, and insects as beneficiaries. He added that some of the trees would live hundreds of years.
"This is one of the most amazing legacies you could leave," one YouTube commenter said. "Your little girl was one year old (ish) when you planted these trees. Imagine when she is 70 and can look over the amazing forest that will grow, and say, 'My dad did that.'"
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