Wald in change: Schmallenberg starts large climate field exhibition!

Wald in change: Schmallenberg starts large climate field exhibition!

On March 18, 2025, the city of Schmallenberg opened the hiking exhibition "Klimaheld Wald", which will be shown in the new wood and information center until the end of the month. This exhibition deals with the topics of climate protection, forest and sustainable tourism and is part of a comprehensive program to raise awareness of the challenges in front of which the forests are facing. At the opening ceremony, Mayor Burkhard König emphasized the central role of Schmallenberg as the largest district in North Rhine-Westphalia and referred to the rural structure that stands for relaxation and relaxation. The city records around 800,000 overnight stays annually, which underlines the relevance of the topic for the region.

The exhibition is accompanied by an extensive supporting program that includes excursions, hands -on activities and art projects. The highlights are forest excursions on topics such as "The way to the climate -stable mixed forest" and "forests in climate change", as well as tree planting actions, such as "Every child his tree" on March 22nd. On March 27, a multivision show entitled "Forest Change" will also be offered before an art project for creative young people takes place on March 28 and 29. Elke Hübner-Tennhoff from Wald and Holz NRW pointed out that the exhibition relies on scientifically sound information in order to promote dialogue about climate protection and forest use. In view of the highly visible challenges by bark beetles, storm damage and the progressive climate change, the importance of the forest is highlighted both as a habitat for flora and fauna and as an important factor for climate protection.

forest damage and climate change

The threats from climate change are not only noticeable in Schmallenberg, but are also shown in other regions such as the Harz National Park. As from Lower Saxony Environment have been lost there since 2018 over 11,600 hectares Spruce stocks are affected. Dürre, bark beetle and storms reinforce the dying. Environment Minister Christian Meyer emphasized during a visit to the national park that the forest conversion is a long -term project and dynamically progresses the natural forest development.

In many areas of the national park, there is already a positive development. The number of animal and plant species increases, and the vegetation changes from previous spruce monocultures to a more diverse ecosystem with grasses, herbs, and increasing deciduous trees. These changes also promote the habitat for different animal species that benefit from the newly created vegetation. Around 7 million deciduous trees, mostly booking, have been planted in the national park since 2008 to support this development.

The future of the forests

The current challenges illustrate the need to develop suitable adaptation strategies for the forests. dlg.org represents that the loss of forests caused significant economic damage in forestry due to extreme weather events from 2018 to 2020. In view of these circumstances, the "Klimaheld Wald" hiking exhibition is an important step to sensitize the public for the decisive role of forests in climate protection and to underline the importance of sustainable forestry.