The director of the Jesuit Collaborative for Ecology, Agriculture and Forestry suggests one square metre of future old growth forest is the perfect Christmas gift. It’s a gift that comes with a 500-year guarantee.

The Jesuits are using land which used to surround its novitiate in Guelph (Canadian novices are now sent to St. Paul, Minn., to begin their training in an urban setting) to plant a forest which will remain protected until it becomes an old-growth forest 500 years from now. People can participate in the Plant an Old Growth Forest Project by purchasing one square metre of forest for $20.

Each $20 contribution to the future forest is matched by the Ignatius Jesuit Centre, a retreat centre in the middle of an organic farm which hosts a program in community shared agriculture, retreats with an ecological focus, and the Ecology Project — a Christian think tank dedicated to ecological issues.

To purchase a square metre of land which will be old growth forest in 2507, contact Leanne McCann at adminassistant@ignatiusguelph.ca or call her at (519) 824-1250 ext. 241.