A city looks at itself in the mirror
There are moments when a city looks at itself in the mirror. Uncomfortable, decisive moments, when we must choose whether to continue on autopilot or take a firm stand and say, "Enough is enough."
The felling of nearly twenty trees may seem like a minor detail to someone who signs off from an office. But for those who walk these streets, who breathe the air, and who raise their children, it's not a formality: it's a message.
It's not a matter of political ideologies, but of common sense, public health, the right to information, environmental protection, and love for the place where we live.
Public decisions must be public. Environmental information must be accessible. Impacts must be assessed. Alternatives must be compared. Citizens must participate.
We demand that the law be upheld, that action be taken rigorously, and that the city be cared for as if it were important. Because it is important.
Behind the 18 trunks lie 18 living stories. For decades they have provided shade and given moisture, beauty, rest, shelter, and dignity to a square that today breathes thanks to them. They have dampened noise, captured particles, sustained biodiversity, and kept alive a space that, without them, becomes harsher, more inhospitable, and less healthy.
Removing them (and even more so, without transparency, without participation, without accessible reports, and possibly without individualized technical assessments) is not management. It is abdication.
Abdication of science, sanity, legality, the climate commitments signed in Brussels, and the spaces that sustain this city day after day.
A tree cannot ask for explanations. But we can. A tree cannot demand transparency. But we can. A tree cannot claim its rights. But we do… and ours are theirs too. Today we defend these trees, but also something greater: the right to a healthy, dignified, and vibrant environment. Because by cutting down a tree, we weaken our capacity for climate adaptation. And by remaining silent, we weaken our future.
Palma can be a leader in sustainability, climate justice, and smart urban planning. It has the talent, resources, knowledge, active citizens, and international commitments to back it up.
There is still time: to stop the felling; to redo the process with rigor, science, and participation; to demonstrate that in Palma, public decisions are made openly, not behind closed doors.
There is still time to understand that defending trees is defending our squares, our streets, our health, and our dignity as a city, because when we defend a tree, we defend life. And a city that cares for its trees is a city that cares for its people.
#LaCiudadQueSomos #LaCiutatQueVlemSer
