GHOST FOREST
A POWERFUL VISUAL STATEMENT ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE

A series of 10 large rainforest tree stumps, many complete with their
buttress roots, will form a major art installation from December 7 - 16 in
Thorvaldsens Plads next to the Danish Parliament during the UN Climate
Change Conference in Copenhagen. The tree stumps, which have been
transported from a commercially logged tropical primary forest in Western
Africa, will stand as symbols of rainforest trees worldwide as 11,000
delegates from 192 countries debate their future. The 'Ghost Forest'
installation is the vision of Scottish artist Angela Palmer, and was seen by
thousands in Trafalgar Square in London last month, as a precursor to the
Copenhagen conference.

The artist brought the trees from the Suhuma forest, Western Ghana. Three
are buttresses from logged trees, and seven were naturally fallen in storms
including a massive 20-ton Denya, all with their root system intact. After
the roots were exposed and cleaned of soil to meet import regulations, the
artist said 'it was like seeing the nerve endings of the planet.' The tree
stumps will lie on their sides on plinths in Thorvaldsens Plads. 'I want to
elevate the rainforest literally and metaphorically,' said Palmer.

Angela Palmer began her epic journey to bring the rainforest trees to
England after a discussion with Andrew Mitchell, director of the
international scientific alliance the Global Canopy Programme and an adviser
on rainforests to HRH Prince Charles. 'He alarmed me with statistics: a
tropical forest the size of a football pitch is 1/2 destroyed every four
seconds, meaning an area twice the size of Belgium is lost every year. The
UK government's then chief scientific adviser said climate change was a
greater threat to humanity than terrorism. The decision to do something was
easy; the logistics have been a nightmare.'

The artist chose to source the tree stumps in Ghana, which over the last 50
years has lost 90 per cent of its primary rainforests. Ghana is now
determined to preserve what is left and has introduced strict regulations to
try and ensure responsible and sustainable forestry practices. 'This is not
yet another message about climate change "doom and gloom"', says the artist,
'It carries a message of hope and optimism for the future'.

The project is being offset by ClimateCare through a programme to introduce
more energy-efficient cookingstoves to Ghana.

There is an interesting historical connection because of Denmark's trading
possessions in Ghana between 1650 and 1850. During this period Denmark
controlled the Danish Gold Coast possessions from Fort Christiansborg, now
known as Osu Castle, the present seat of the Ghanaian Government in Accra,
recently visited by President Barack Obama. It is interesting to reflect
that some these trees - under the shadow of Christiansborg Palace over the
next two weeks - would have been standing in the forest during the period of
Danish rule.

The main sponsor for the installation is Deutsche Bank. Of the bank's
involvement, Deutsche Bank's Colin Grassie, CEO, UK said, 'Our pledge to the
'Ghost Forest' project reflects the bank's continued commitment to the
issues surrounding climate change. The installation captures the
imagination, while making a bold visual statement about need for action and
cooperation globally.'