\n<\/p>\n
\n\tWith over 400 acres of woodland, the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area is one of Saskatoon\u2019s best kept secrets.<\/p>\n
\n\tFriends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas\u2019 Julia Adamson said the area holds charm in every season.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cIt’s just a Christmas card to walk through in the wintertime. And it’s just a wonderful place for walking in the summer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tShe said 474 acres of mixed woodlands were located at the city’s southwest edge. It started as a tree nursery in 1972.<\/p>\n
\n\tThe urban park\u2019s namesake was a local conservationist and one of the first students at the University of Saskatchewan, Adamson said.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cThink of David Suzuki and David Attenborough, they kind of have it made because they’re more modern. They have the internet. They have jet planes and everything. Richard St. Barbe Baker did very similar things between the two World Wars,\u201d Adamson said, noting that Baker had to travel the ocean and stay in touch with his contacts by mail.<\/p>\n
\n\tShe said Baker was the key at starting up the International Tree Foundation in over 100 countries and inspired others to form similar organizations.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cSo he was responsible for planting billions of trees worldwide,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cHe had a real tie with Saskatoon and credits it with his changing course in his life.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tHe was given an honorary law doctorate from the U of S in 1971.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cIt was here, as an affiliate of Emmanuel College, that he recognized for the first time the dangers of wind erosion and the value of trees in preventing the formation of deserts and their advance into the grasslands and forests,\u201d vice president of research, B. W. Currie, said during the presentation.<\/p>\n