Lydia Afriyie - Kraft was born and raised on a farm in Ghana, she holds a Bachelor in silviculture and forest management and a master of international management of forest industries. Currently she is providing consultation to European Wood Importers and on timber trade regulation. Her father, a cocoa farmer, cultivated land not only for cocoa, but also for palm oil production and growing food for the family to live off. Lydia shares memories and experiences from her childhood, inviting us to walk to the water well in the morning, on to a school she was grateful to have been able to attend, from school back to one of the plots of land that needed working on, back to her house at night, guided by the light of the moon and finally studying in the light of a kerosene lamp. Our conversation also takes us to her work in the regulation and certification of sustainable forest management in Germany. Here, mine and Lydia's differing backgrounds, worldviews and influences show, as we discuss sustainable resource use and our views on what sustainably managed forests looks like. We realize here that the two of us have quite different ways of relating to earth and forests in particular. It holds so much value and is very expansive to share perspectives and realize that you and the person you are sitting across are both relating to a topic informed by your own personal beliefs and experiences. 🌱These conversations are becoming more and more important as we are aiming to sit together, cross reference, develop and exchange in order to create local, national, communal, international pathways for positive, regenerative changes. Thank you for listening to this Talk☀🌊🌍 which came alive through the voices of Lydia Afriyie-Kraft and your host Stella Sage🌿