Barcelona’s identity has always been shaped by its natural boundaries — the sea on one side, and the forests and mountains of Collserola on the other. But what happens when a forest that once protected a city becomes surrounded by it?

In this inspiring essay, Toni explores Collserola as Barcelona’s “green island”: a place of memory, refuge, biodiversity, tension, and resilience. And he connects Barcelona’s story to global urban–forest frontiers — from California to Vancouver, São Paulo, Cape Town, Mexico City, Nairobi, and Athens.

What emerges is a shared paradox: cities depend on forests for water, air, culture, and identity — yet urban expansion places these very ecosystems at risk.

This essay invites us to rethink forests as metropolitan infrastructures and as cultural landscapes, demanding governance that is ecological and imaginative. 🌱

Read the full essay and join the conversation: https://buff.ly/EmybCSr

#cities #urbanforests #resilience #urbanplanning #biodiversity #climatechange #Barcelona #Collserola #TNOC