Restoring native plants in a South Korea park

In early 2024, a native plant restoration project began in the Gwanaksan and Umyeonsan Mountains of South Korea. The region is a public park near Seoul that provides abundant hiking trails, recreation opportunities, and access to nature.

In recent years, an invasive alien plant, Ageratina (A.) altissima, has prevented natural biodiversity from thriving in the park. The restoration project aims to eradicate A. altissima through selective uprooting and to support native species by sowing the seeds of more than 20 natural varieties back into the area. As these efforts are made, the project will collect data to compare statistics on the recovery of the native plants in the area with the general recovery of nearby ecosystems that are intertwined. The project, in partnership with the Society for Ecological Restoration and Microsoft, provides Microsoft volunteer-led events to help support restoration efforts in the breathtaking Gwanaksan and Umyeonsan Mountains.