In a new commentary for Scientific American, WCS’s Lauren Oakes investigates the big question: What is the real cost of tree planting? As we begin the UN’s Decade on Restoration, governments and businesses are using tree planting as a means to meet sustainability goals but they face huge risks of failure if these efforts are not focused in the right places, and approached in the right way. Restoration needs to work for people, climate and nature - and investments need to match the true cost that reflects this.