Tree 111. Japanese mock orange. Chiavari, Italy. 'What beautiful twizzles of organic scaffolding, producing these fleshy leaves’. Photo credit Jacob Parish

A Radical Manifesto from the Branches. Fifteen years in the making – a crowd-funder delivers more than a decade late!

Art of Climbing Trees (A.C.T.), is a work of art; a beautifully illustrated, genre-bending book; a hybrid of travel diary, visual art project, and ecological and political manifesto.

Tree 69. Beech. Ashton Court Estate, with 44 people in a tree – 45 people if you include the 8 month unborn baby

This striking debut chronicles Dahle’s immersive year-long journey: climbing one tree per day while inviting over 80 “co-climbers” to join him in exploring nature, civilisation, resistance, and belonging.

Tree 131. Red oak. Totnes, in conversation with Rob Hopkins, co-founder of the Transition Network, author of How to Fall in Love with the Future

From a Scots pine at the holocaust memorial in Berlin, to Trafalgar Square’s Christmas tree before it was felled in the forest encircling Oslo, to unexpected canopies across 10 countries in Europe.

Tree 109. Sycamore. Grindelwald, Switzerland. '...To be a kaleidoscope gifted with consciousness’

Interviewees included the late economist David Fleming, founders of environmental organisations Rob Hopkins, and the late Erik Dammann, Norwegian Green party politician Hanna Marcussen, a band touring Europe by bike, an ex-gangster, a woman in need of a heart transplant, 44 people at once (including an 8 month pregnant woman), professors, activists, artists, and the author’s whole family!

Tree 229. Norway Spruce. Venabygd mountains, Norway. New year’s eve, cabin time. 'It’s just so god damn good living in candlelight, using logs for cooking and snow for boiling the vegetables. It really is the simple stuff that is by far the best...'

Art of Climbing Trees is a call to reimagine the world with pragmatic cynicism, and hope; a book for any aspiring Eutopian.

The 464 page coffee table book blends:

• Personal reflections, field notes, story-telling, poetry, and humour
• Original artwork and photography
• Philosophical conversations in trees
• Research and commentary on the economy, climate, biodiversity, democracy, and connection, including a 35 page manifesto for an achievable Eutopia.

Tree 42. Oak. In conversation with band Seize the Day! Rich Whistance (left) Theo Simon (right). Glastonbury Festival 2010

About the author

Henrik G. Dahle is a multidisciplinary British/Norwegian artist, performer, activist, and carpenter. The 48 year old from Southampton, UK, and Lillehammer, Norway, has dedicated his practices to the environment, and a peaceful transition. He made a bus his home – freeing time to finish his book. The decision to climb trees every day for a year was made on a whim, and in his own words, ‘The trees nearly ruined my life, as well as remaking it’.

In 2013, Dahle ran a crowd-funder for A.C.T., appearing in many UK national newspapers, the aim of delivering books that year = wildly over-optimistic. The project took 15 years to complete, and delivered 12 years late for crowd-funders! The publication of A.C.T. is also a story of dedication to keeping a promise.

‘What a miracle of book! What a work of art and thought! What a wonderful, beautiful, engaging project! Makes me think, makes me feel, makes me hope! What a generous gift to us all!’

– Gro Dahle (no relation), award winning author of Angry Man

Available from: artofclimbingtrees.net