luencing our climate. By storing carbon, forests can help mitigate climate change; by releasing carbon, they contribute to the increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere. Despite their essential role as storehouses of carbon and regulators of local climates, forests in many parts of the world are degraded and destroyed in order to expand agricultural lands, gain timber or clear space for infrastructure or mining activities. Decreased harvesting and increased regeneration make forests in temperate zones act as ca