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We feel honoured to be part of this six page article by journalist Catherine Castro for Marie Claire about the situation of deforestation in Romania. A truly important subject for all of us, one that requires the hard work and dedication of so many people that are fighting to protect them. We all need to come together and do our part for these beautiful forests, that are the lungs of our Planet - our Home.

Earlier this year Forests Without Frontiers received a request through Nico’s DJ and Muzica Without Frontiers Facebook page from a French journalist, Catherine Castro. She was asking for help: could we help her find some female forest protectors working in the Carpathian Mountains in Romania? She went on to explain that she was doing a piece for Marie Claire France and was finding it hard to locate women at the frontline of the defence, restoration and protection of these forests for future generations.

At the foot of the famous Carpathian mountain range, these women and men, activists, lawyers, scientists and philanthropists, are fighting to prevent an ecological catastrophe: the destruction of one of the last primary forests in Europe. Our reporters went to meet them. - Catherine Castro, Marie Claire

(c) Guillaume Herbault for Marie Claire France

Here we interview our founder, Nico, and ask her about the experience:

Hey Nico, so how did this interview all come about?

Catherine told me that after initially reaching out to some NGOs working in Romania, she had been told that there weren’t any female Romanian activists working in the field. She then went on to do her own more in-depth research and found me and the work of Forests Without Frontiers.

She asked me if I was in Romania in the summer and would I be up for an interview? She also asked for my help in finding other women working on the ground. I told her I was not in the country at the time as I was at home in the UK but I’d happily help her find other activists working in the field in the Carpathians.

We got chatting and she was struck by the story about how I chose to start Forests Without Frontiers for my son, Rumi, by planting trees for his sixteenth birthday with some family inheritance because I felt it was the best and most appropriate gift to give him for his future.

We were talking about how, during this time, when people feel really paralyzed, you know, because you don’t know what to do or how to make a difference, especially the younger ones, that setting up something that people can get easily involved in and be inspired was exactly what was needed.

I offered to put her in touch with Barbara at our partner Conservation Carpathia and also said I knew that Agent Green, a campaign organisation, had been co-founded by a Romanian woman, so I put them in touch. The interview and photoshoots were due to take place at the end of July. I had supported some of Agent Green’s earlier campaigns before so it linked up really well and I said we could probably get our specialist on the ground to be there too advising, if that would be helpful.

She replied that was wonderful, but please could I somehow find a way to get to Romania and be part of the interview because she loved how we use music and the arts to raise awareness and to keep hope in the hearts of the people.

So, what happened next?

I wanted to go and see my family, catch up and be with my mother, and as I didn’t get to be on-site during our spring plantation because of Covid-19, I also hadn’t seen our baby trees. I like to be in the forests and planting with our teams of local people for each plantation; it just hadn’t been possible during the lockdown.

Our plantation had managed to go ahead under really difficult circumstances but getting me there just wasn’t going to happen in April. We decided to support the elders with a food box programme in the spring, so I was hoping to be able to meet (socially-distanced of course!) some of the people from the village where our boxes had been delivered.

Basically, there was then a mad dash to find out if it was possible with travel restrictions, and Covid regulations for me to be there safely and to be part of the interviews.

That all sounds a bit hectic?!

It was! And also really encouraging. Just to see a mainstream magazine like Marie Claire covering these issues - I found that really powerful and empowering. A journal of that type and size of readership wanting to cover this kind of subject just gives me hope to be honest. I believe we can make the paradigm shift.

We can show the young kids and the young women activists that are coming up in the world about environmental issues, instead of just making something that's accessible for the scientists or for the specialists. It is actually something that is accessible to anyone; everybody can do something. That helps us move into action and not feel so helpless, I think.

She wanted to do more interviews but there really wasn’t enough time. One of the interviews we had hoped to do was with one of the younger planters who instead of working at the mill or cutting down the trees is now planting trees and involved in forest restoration. Sadly, that wasn’t possible this time around but we will be speaking and interviewing them sometime in the future, I hope.

That’s wonderful. Did you get to meet the elders?

Yes! I ended up staying over in Nucsoara and I went to see some of the elders who we provided food boxes for during the initial confinement and lockdown for Covid-19 in the spring. That is also when I met the wonderful Sylvia and her cat who sang for me and I just thought “I love you” and I want to feature her in the next Muzica Without Frontiers album.

Sylvia singing with her cat in Nucsoara

It was also great, after the devastating impact of Covid on live music and the arts and us having to pivot to live streaming and learning how to do all of that, it was just so great to be reminded that yes, we are going to keep doing this and oh yes, we are going to find a way for music to be the voice of the forest after all. It was the encouragement and boost I personally needed.

How was the shoot itself?

Guillame Haubert, Nicoleta Carpineanu and Catherine Castro

It was really great because hanging out with both Catherine and Guillaume, the photographer, was brilliant. They are such inspiring and interesting people. Catherine has been all around the world doing amazing things. He is an incredible photographer doing lots of really cool things and his work as a photographer is amazing. He has done loads of exhibitions and he has several books published and a whole photoshoot for an article in Ukraine so that’s a really important piece of work. You know these people care about social and environmental things. That was really great.

On this occasion, I had the opportunity to actually go back to the location where our very first trees went in. The photoshoot they did is on location there and the trees are literally behind me. It was wonderful. We also visited the oak tree rewilding plantations we have.

As an experience for me? Well, I mean first of all I didn't really want to be in Marie Claire...

I know! I remember your Saturday morning response to me which was “No! I don’t want them to do an article on ME!”

Yeah right? (laughs)

I quite like being undercover doing my thing but then I realised it’s important for two reasons. I realised that it’s important for all the young women out there including my goddaughter, who I'm like a role model to, for her and for my friend’s girls. I thought it’s really important I do it for them, the young women. The fact that many people don't realise that so many female activists work in the protection of virgin forests, I think that’s problematic because that really is not the case. I’m obviously not the only one and I really didn’t want an article that was referring just to me, which is why I said to Catherine that I don't need to come, but I'll put you in touch with some other women I know.

And of course, it’s about the trees, the forest, of course, so if this helps us promote the cause, if it helps us plant more trees, I said to myself then I have to do it. It’s not actually about me, it's about these things. It’s about what I setup FWF for, inspiring the future generations. So, you know, “Sorry Nico but you have to get out of bed, get to Romania and put some nice clothes on and stand on this tree stump!” (laughing)

Tell me about the outfit...

Ha! I had the visions as we were walking through the fields and I actually picked all the flowers from the fields on our way there and made a headpiece. This is a traditional way we do it in Romania, it’s a technique I learned from my grandma. You make the flower crown in a certain way, you plait it and they really loved that. It’s part of our tradition. That was beautiful.

I had taken a traditional Romanian dress to wear for the shoot, you know a nice a traditional dress to wear, pretty, but then Guillaume and Catherine saw my open suitcase and spotted two other outfits I had taken with me. Catherine loved the leaf and trees dress, the main image used by Marie Claire. Guillaume just loved the idea of a DJ in the forest and when he spotted my shiny disco dress he said “Oh no! You need to wear that one.” I wear these glittery dresses when I am DJing. That’s another reason they thought it was interesting - a female DJ protecting the forest was pretty unique for them.

It was a bit like you being a disco mirror ball in the middle of a forest...

… (Laughs) Yeah, I know! I felt a bit silly but again I thought, “No, you need to do this for the forest”.

Beautiful. So how high up where you? Was it 4x4s and all that?

Yes, We were up in what would be the snow line. That’s where we plant the spruce. It was hard work to get up there but these guys are such professionals. It all worked out in the end.

It’s a great article. I think it really shows how when we as humans work together like nature, it all comes together, yeah?

Absolutely! What I loved about how Catherine told this story was the way she spoke about the interconnectivity and interdependence. What I really liked about what she did with the article was that it brought the whole story together. You know that's what I would love to see in the world. How everybody works with their strengths and we work together. Our local partners, Barbara’s work over the last twenty or more years. Agent Green’s campaigning and activism. All the other people and, you know, that's how we work: interdependency and mutually, together in a cooperative way.

We are all needed.

Our work is not possible without Barbara's work, and all our work is not possible without Agent Green-type activism work, and their work can reach so many more people and touch more hearts and bring the joy - if we bring the music and the arts to this. It’s the interconnectivity of all of the relationships being focused in-service. It's beautiful and it all comes together.

There are people who say “You know, we can’t plant a billion trees that survive or whatever.” Well, I believe we can. If we all work like this, we can. Those who grow the saplings, the landowners and protectors, the conservationists, the local people, activists, organisations like ours and all the people who have vowed to maintain and take care of these trees and protect our ancient forests for future generations. We can. I’m sure we can.

You know, there is one more thing I want to say. And that is when we listen to those beautiful old ladies, singing their songs, it touches all our hearts. That’s what we have to bring to this. The beautiful songs and the stories of the people of these forests. That’s what I can help bring.

“I will never see these forests that we’re planting [reach maturity] and neither will my 16-year-old son. I’m giving this forest to his children.”
Utopian? As Francis Hallé says, "those who don't have a utopia are not going anywhere". - From the article which you can read at Marie Claire France Online.

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