A Good News Forest Comeback Story: The Wild American Chestnut Is Returning
Watch the film for the International Day of Forests (March 21)
What if the American chestnut isn’t a lost species after all?
On the land of renowned naturalist Bernd Heinrich in Maine, thousands of wild American chestnut trees are growing—spanning three generations.
Not in a lab. Not through genetic engineering.
But on their own.
“These trees are rewriting the story of a species once thought lost,” said Anne Petermann, Executive Director of GJEP. “It was stunning to see so many robust trees representing multiple generations of natural growth—while the GMO approach has produced nothing but failures.”
Planted by blue jays and squirrels, these trees tell a different story than the one we often hear: that only genetic engineering can bring the American chestnut back.
Instead, they point to something both simpler and more profound—
the wild American chestnut is already returning.
Most people have never seen mature, seed-producing American chestnut trees in the forest. This film changes that.
About the film:
Filmed in Maine, this short documentary follows the unexpected return of the wild American chestnut on the land of Bernd Heinrich—where thousands of trees now stand as living evidence of natural regeneration.
The film explores what this means for the future of forests—and challenges the assumption that genetic engineering is necessary to restore the species.
Learn more about the film and the campaign to protect wild American chestnuts: TheWildAmericanChestnut.org
