Carbon and Timber Forestry

When Carbon Takes the Spotlight, Let’s Not Forget the Forest

In recent years, carbon has become the global keyword. From boardrooms to policy tables, from investment portfolios to grassroots campaigns, carbon is everywhere. We measure it, trade it, offset it, regulate it. There’s no doubt: the urgency of climate change has pushed carbon to center stage.

At Better Globe Forestry (BGF), we welcome this awareness. We’ve seen, firsthand, how much energy, literal and figurative, is now being poured into solutions that promise to reduce emissions and cool the planet. And we’re proud to contribute to that movement through our work in forestry.

But amid all the excitement around carbon, something vital risks being forgotten: the enduring value of forests, particularly forests in drylands.

Dryland Forestry: Africa’s Quiet Strength

While many eyes are fixed on tropical rainforests or high-volume plantations, BGF has been working quietly and persistently in the drylands of Africa. We’ve spent years planting trees where few thought it was possible. We’ve learned to listen to the land, partner with communities, and grow species that thrive in tough conditions, especially mukau, a hardwood ideal for timber.

This kind of forestry is not just about carbon. It’s about building an economy rooted in trees: producing high-quality timber for construction, restoring degraded landscapes, and creating long-term livelihoods.

Monitoring Matters: More Than a Standard

As carbon markets expand, MRV, Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification, has become a critical requirement for credibility. But at BGF, we didn’t wait for a carbon standard to tell us that tracking trees matters. From the beginning, we understood that if you plant a tree and walk away, you haven’t done forestry, you’ve just buried a seed. We’ve built systems to monitor survival rates, track growth, evaluate land impact, and stay accountable to both communities and investors. Long before carbon became currency, we believed that knowing your trees was a sign of respect, for nature, for data, and for the future.

Timber as a Real Asset

As carbon markets grow, and as companies chase offsets, we offer a gentle reminder: timber is not a relic of the past, it’s part of the solution for the future. Unlike volatile carbon credits, timber offers real, stable value. It supports infrastructure. It stores carbon. And it grows, predictably, from sun, soil, and time.

The AI Boom and the Energy Question

Now, there’s a new force changing the world: Artificial Intelligence. It’s smart, fast, and increasingly essential. But it also comes with a footprint. AI models consume massive amounts of electricity, and the data centers powering them often rely on carbon-heavy grids.

Ironically, many of the tech giants pushing AI are also those making bold climate commitments. This presents an opportunity, not just to offset emissions, but to invest in real, physical, regenerative systems that complement the digital world.

Time for Tech to Think Timber

At BGF, we believe the tech world should take a closer look at dryland forestry. Not just for offsets, but as a strategic, long-term sustainability investment. Trees in drylands can do what few other systems can: capture carbon, produce timber, support biodiversity, and create jobs, all in one package.

We’re not anti-carbon. We’re pro-balance.

Let carbon and timber walk side by side.
 Let the virtual world support the physical one.
 And let Africa’s drylands grow strong, not just as carbon sinks, but as forests of the future.