Why a decades-old forest planting practice from Japan is gaining traction in the U.S.

NPR | By BIANCA GARCIA,

Courtney Flatt

Published May 21, 2026 at 4:22 PM EDT

Across the U.S., communities are planting fast-growing Miyawaki forests to help neighborhoods cool down and adapt to the longer, hotter summers predicted as the climate changes. WBUR's Bianca Garcia begins this story on the East Coast and then hands the microphone to Northwest Public Radio's Courtney Flatt and Lauren Gallup.

BIANCA GARCIA

Courtney Flatt

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