A variety of plants and animals live in “Materials’ Forests.” The “guardians,” who watch over their growth, perform daily monitoring surveys to track the changes of the forests. The guardians are always paying attention so that none of the plants’ and animals’ habitats are lost when we cut down trees or receive the bounty of the forest.

When stepping into a forest, you may feel as if it has not changed since your previous visit; however, if you look closely, you will see the trees have grown taller and thicker, and you may even come upon rare plants and animals. The guardians also play an important role in determining how to best protect the plants and animals living on the land based on wisdom gathered from examining the changes of the forest.

Forests do not grow over night, but require 100 years or even more time. There are certainly times when things do not go as planned because we are dealing with nature; however, it is the mission and the pride of the guardians to pass on the bountiful nature to the next generation and protect beautiful forests for the next 100 years. That’s exactly why we will continue to challenge ourselves to create sustainable forests based on the knowledge we have gathered.