@article{b688f30aaa18425e9af27143f1fceec8,
title = "Sensing, Speaking, Remembering: Arboreal Sentience and Tree-Human Communication in Northern Finland",
abstract = "In Northern Finland, including sparsely populated Finnish Lapland and the small city of Rovaniemi, the widespread clearing of old trees has degraded the boreal environment. Disrupting the diverse relationships between people and trees, climate change will continue to alter the country{\textquoteright}s northernmost forests, as is widely known. In this urgent context, we propose that the collaborative project Gifts from the Sentient Forest (GSF) has developed new modes of interacting with Northern Finland{\textquoteright}s trees and appreciating their biocultural legacies. At the project{\textquoteright}s core is arboreal sentience, a concept illuminating the capacities of trees to sense, communicate, behave, learn and remember. In the project, other-than-human sentience provides a basis for cultivating tree-human communication while expanding Lapland residents{\textquoteright} awareness of sylvan communities through painting, photography, film, music, poetry and performance. In this article, we present an account of three methods leveraged in the GSF programme to facilitate experiences of tree sentience in Northern Finland: sensing, interviewing (speaking) and remembering.",
keywords = "arctic region, conservation, arts-based methods, forests, Northern Finland, trees, Lapland, climate changes, forest ecology, interaction, Arboreal sentience",
author = "Ryan, \{John Charles\} and Francis Joy",
note = "{\textquoteleft}Gifts from the Sentient Forest{\textquoteright} will develop an innovative approach to Northern Finland{\textquoteright}s forests. The project will foster new perspectives on the region{\textquoteright}s plants and the cultural heritage surrounding them through insights from the natural and social sciences, humanities, and arts. The idea of {\textquoteleft}forest sentience{\textquoteright} signifies the capacity of plants for communication, memory, and other qualities linked to intelligence. What are the creative, educational, social, and health-related implications of recognising plants as sentient? Researchers suggest that engaging diverse audiences in experiencing forest sentience can transform longstanding perceptions of trees as mere commodities. The project will endeavour to understand how recognising the botanical world in contexts other than exploitation can illuminate ways in which plant life rejuvenates human-nature relationships and sustains the Earth. The research and art project will investigate forest sentience as groundwork for cultivating communication and collaboration that, in turn, inspires a transformation of spirituality, awareness, and values. The research will facilitate participants{\textquoteright} experiences of forest sentience at sites near Oulu and Rovaniemi. Original songs, poetry, stories, artworks, photography, and performances will result from seminars, lectures, workshops, exhibitions, and publications. The project will bring together the expertise of Francis Joy and John C. Ryan. While Joy{\textquoteright}s method of engaging trees focuses on spiritual dimensions, Ryan{\textquoteright}s approach explores the potential of sensory engagement with plants. Towards these aims, the programme will involve two concurrent components: Joy and Ryan{\textquoteright}s creative work as established artists and writers collaborating with plants; and activities supporting others in deepening their connections to nature through spiritual and sensory modalities. To enhance the programme{\textquoteright}s ecological emphasis, activities will be structured around Northern Finland{\textquoteright}s eight seasons.",
year = "2025",
month = dec,
day = "15",
doi = "10.1017/aee.2025.10096",
language = "English",
pages = "1--17",
journal = "Australian Journal of Environmental Education",
issn = "2049-775X",
publisher = "Cambridge University Press",
number = "First view 15 December 2025",
}