Warren takes step toward bringing first microforest to life

WARREN — Five hundred bare root trees were put in the ground at the Warren Community Center’s courtyard to kick off the city’s first microforest March 21.

The planting was spearheaded by Nethanya Fonseka, a junior at International Academy of Macomb. Fonseka is an advocate for preserving and improving the environment in urban spaces. In 2024, she donated seedlings to be planted at Shaw and Ridgeway parks in Warren. She didn’t want to stop there and reached out to Warren Mayor Lori Stone.

“I approached her because I wanted to do more environmental sustainability work with the city,” Fonseka said. “We did the tree planting and after that I wanted to continue that work. I proposed to her my idea to plant a microforest because I learned about them and using the Miyawaki method to plant microforests in urban spaces.”

Fonseka read up on botanist Akira Miyawaki’s method of reforestation through the implementation of microforests. She said the method can be beneficial for the environment and the community. Fonseka received input from Joshua Cohen, who is an ecologist with Michigan Natural Features Inventory, on the project. Jennifer Ott, from My Thyme Gardens, helped Nethanya with the design of the project and picked which native species would be included.

“With a microforest, the purpose is to plant densely, so it kind of creates this competition,” Ott said. “When you have the trees planted extremely densely, they want to grow taller faster. It creates this stronger plant ecosystem.”

The March 21 planting was the first of two phases to bring the microforest to life. The second will take place in the fall. The trees will be moved from the courtyard to a yet-to-be-named site in the second phase. They’ll be joined by native and nativar forbs, grasses and shrubs. Fonseka will be assisted by student volunteers, the Warren Department of Public Works, Warren Parks and Recreation, staff from the mayor’s office and Ott for this phase. In total, 6,600 different kinds of vegetation will appear at the final site.

When Fonseka reached out, Stone was happy to help make the project a reality.

“This has been a year in the making,” Stone said. “This is not a one-off. This will continue on.”

The project received approximately $30,000 in funding from Green Macomb. Fonseka said the project is staying within budget and is currently coming in at about $23,000.

Ramila Fonseka, Nethanya’s mother, initially thought her daughter would be a doctor or an engineer. Dr. Seuss played a role in her daughter’s initial interest in helping the environment.

“In the eighth grade she read ‘The Lorax,’ and she said, ‘Mom, I want to be a different kind of doctor,’” she said.

Since then, Nethanya has corresponded with Diana Beresford-Kroeger, a botanist and biochemist, on a regular basis. Beresford-Kroeger even sends seeds from her garden to Nethanya.

“I’m like Nethanya, she’s a world class scientist. She doesn’t have time for a little kid like you and she’s like, ‘No, she’s serious about saving the earth and so am I.’ Now they’re best buds,” Ramila said.

The interest in the environment isn’t exclusive to Nethanya. Her older sister Naomi is studying environmental science in college. Ramila said the family has always enjoyed nature. The family previously lived in Warren, so projects Nethanya does in the city are particularly important to her daughter.

“I’m just amazed how kids these days are just so single-focused about issues,” Ramila said.

Stone first connected with Fonseka through 4-H and the Michigan State University Extension. Stone said she was reminded of when she was a kid in the 1980s, when getting curbside recycling in place was an issue kids advocated for. Youth involvement on the issue inspired Stone to get involved in government.

“Some people see government as obstructive. Other people see government as a pathway to change and that’s me,” Stone said.

“She was very receptive,” Nethanya said about working with the mayor on the project.

“This is their future,” Stone said. “This is their planet for the next 60-80 years. They’re so impassioned about taking care of it.”