Forests Matter Celebrating Our Connection With Nature |
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The BC Greens are holding a series of conversations on the need for a new politics in BC. It is open to anyone who is interested in exploring this topic, so please sign up and circulate to your networks. The first session is on Tuesday, February 7 at 7 pm.
Learn more here |
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Before They Fall Film Premiere Wednesday, February 8th, 6 - 9 pm PST |
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Join the Wilderness Committee for a screening of BEFORE THEY FALL followed by an important panel discussion on old growth logging – learn why taking action now is more important than ever! This event is for those who may have taken a pause since the headline-making news of the Fairy Creek blockade, for those who are interested in learning more about the issues around old growth logging and Indigenous land protection, or those who need to understand where things currently stand. Now is the time to regain momentum, get educated, and take action. First Nations, conservation groups, and scientists have been fighting to protect the remaining old-growth forests in British Columbia for decades, but the conflict escalates when a logging company tries to access the last unprotected ancient watershed on southern Vancouver Island. Before They Fall tells the story of Fairy Creek and points to the Indigenous voices calling out for defense of the land. Get tickets here |
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United for Old Growth Rally Saturday, February 25th, noon - 3:30 pm PST |
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It’s been two years since the BC NDP government promised to protect old-growth and a paradigm-shift in forest stewardship, but still the most at-risk forests continue to be logged. No more talk. The time for action is now. Over 170 organizations across the education, environment, tourism, and labour sectors have united around the Declaration for Old Growth, including Creatively United for the Planet Society, and representatives from these organizations and the public will be uniting together in person to hold the BC government and new Premier accountable. This peaceful march and rally will begin at Centennial Square (City Hall) in Victoria at noon, proceeding to the lawn of the Legislature for a rally featuring powerful speakers and performers from 1:30-3:30 — full line-up TBA. |
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Can't Attend the Rally? Please send an email to Premiere David Eby and cc Minister of Forests, Bruce Ralston. Emails: premier@gov.bc.ca, FLNR.Minister@gov.bc.ca Mail: Office of the Premier, PO BOX 9041 STN Prov. Govt., Victoria, BC V8W 9E1
Minister of Forests, Bruce Ralston, 10574 King George Blvd, Surrey, BC V3T 2X3 |
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BC's Ancient Inland Rainforest Film Screening and Presentation
Saturday, February 25th, 7 - 9 pm PST, Vic Theatre, 808 Douglas Street |
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Join the Valhalla Wilderness Society on a journey into British Columbia's ancient Inland Temperate Rainforest, a globally significant and wondrous area found 500 kilometers from the coast in BC's Interior Wetbelt. Home to the deep-snow mountain caribou, grizzly bears, rare fungi and lichens, BC's Inland Rainforest is a globally unique ecosystem worth celebrating. We are excited to share our findings from many groundbreaking scientific and exploratory expeditions into this incredible BC wilderness based on over 20 years of research, including photography of rare rainforest species and primeval cedar trees. Primeval: Enter the Incomappleux, a stunning film by VWS and Damien Gillis, will be screened with a briefing on the Selkirk Mountain Caribou Park Incomappleux protection proposal. Get tickets here |
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Creatively United for the Planet and Climate and the Arts present RE-CONNECT 2023, a multi-disciplinary festival celebrating humanity's connection with nature. The festival will be held at a variety of locations throughout Greater Victoria from March 18th to July 8th and will feature local and international soloists and performers. Save the dates. Updates regarding tickets and information will be provided throughout the festival. |
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Portraits of Nature Concert + Bowker Creek Walking Tour
2:30 pm, Saturday, March 18, 2023 Dave Dunnet Community Theatre, 2121 Cadboro Bay Rd.
Civic Orchestra of Victoria. Nathan Jacklin, Music Director - Get Tickets |
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Changing Course: A River’s Journey of Reconnection Date TBD, St. Andrew's Kirk Hall, 680 Courtenay St.
A special film premiere with a live music and dance performance |
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Resurrection - Ballet & Music on Renewal with Nature
7:30 pm, Saturday, May 20 + 2:30 pm, Sunday May 21, 2023 UVic Farquhar Auditorium, Ring Rd.
Ballet Victoria; Victoria Choral Society; Members of Victoria Symphony
Brian Wismath, Music Director - For further information: Ballet Victoria |
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Dream of Gerontius by Edward Elgar
7:30 pm, Saturday, June 3, 2023 Christ Church Cathedral, 930 Burdett Ave
Victoria Philharmonic Choir, Members of the Victoria Symphony and International Soloists. Peter Butterfield, Music Director
For further information: Victoria Philharmonic Choir |
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Walking Within the Bounds of Nature
2 pm, Saturday, June 24 + Sunday, June 25, 2023 Irving Park in James Bay, 250 Menzies St.
Sponsored by James Bay United Church Sopranos and instrumentalists Jennifer Turner and Caleigh Aalders For further information: James Bay United Church |
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The Birds - Piano Recital
4 pm, Saturday, July 8, 2023, Christ Church Cathedral, 930 Burdett Ave Soloist Sarah Hagen - For further information: Christ Church Cathedral |
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A Few Reasons to Attend the Feb. 25th Forest Rally |
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The Tyee, Running on Empty: The BC Forestry Crash. Here's the latest evidence that we may soon be "out of the woods" when it comes to BC forestry. The Prince George Timber Supply Area, more than twice the size of Vancouver Island, is running out of wood, an outcome due to rapacious logging allowances and "Ponzi" subsidies offered by successive provincial governments. While established mills have closed across the region and the province—more than 40,000 direct jobs have been lost in the last 20 years—the BC government offers subsidies and logging licences to DRAX, the world's largest wood-pellet-burning company, to expand operations. |
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The Narwhal, ‘Death by a thousand clearcuts’: Canada’s deep-snow caribou are vanishing. Sarah Cox writes that the B.C. government spends millions on management measures to support these mountain-loving herds, found nowhere else in the world. Yet such efforts fail to offset the habitat destruction at the root of their disappearance. CBC News, RCMP has spent nearly $50M on policing pipeline, logging standoffs in B.C. (The Fairy Creek Total is $18,716,968. Compare this to the Teal Jones estimate of harvestable value at Fairy Creek: around $20m.) Elders member Bill Johnston writes: “My brain is beginning to hurt again….” Vancouver Sun, Younes Alila: B.C.’s flood strategy must incorporate current science on the multiple causes of flood risk. Large-scale clearcut logging can increase the magnitude, frequency and duration of floods, and the larger the flood event, the larger the impact of logging. Mongabay, Australia rejects forest biomass in first blow to wood pellet industry. Evergreen Alliance, British Columbia's Big Lie. A scathing indictment by the inimitable David Broadland of the lies told by the BC Ministry of Forests regarding the management of BC’s forests. Well-timed to keep us on our toes as we enter a new era with a new premier! Rabble, Is Canadian forestry sustainable? An article by Ben Barclay on shifting the paradigm to Net-Zero Forestry. |
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People Power in Action Results in Good News
by Eion Finn - My Sea To Sky |
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FortisBC and Woodfibre LNG are beginning construction of a pipeline without the proper permits to house their workers safely. The process is an indication of their poor commitment to ensuring the safety of the community and the human rights of Squamish residents. Squamish residents are already seeing rental costs increase as LNG and pipeline workers move into town, and housing is scarce. FortisBC’s contractors are also booking out local hotels, essentially creating unregulated workcamps, not to mention the impact on local businesses that rely on tourist dollars. On January 24, residents stood outside municipal hall in Squamish, and called on the District of Squamish to hold Woodfibre LNG and FortisBC accountable—and they did because we organized, we voted, and we showed up, council voted unanimously to send a letter to Cabinet Ministers stating that “the municipality believes there will be significant negative impacts on local housing availability and affordability, the 2023 tourism season, local businesses via labour supply and housing affordability challenges, as well as community safety and emergency services.” A victory for the people, as FortisBC and Woodfibre LNG must stop construction until they have appropriate housing in place and until they adequately address the community’s concerns. Read the Squamish Chief Article - Watch the Council Meeting |
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Creatively United for the Planet is a registered non-profit society. Since 2012, we have been leading, convening and amplifying ways to share how collectively we can reduce our ecological footprint and implement long-term sustainability solutions. Our mandate is to foster conversations, connections and create collaborative opportunities that bring individuals and organizations together in support of achieving common sustainability goals and accelerating climate action. Creatively United is a member of the Westcoast Climate Action Network and works collaboratively with numerous community organizations and in partnership with the Gail O'Riordan Climate and the Arts Legacy Fund, supported by The Victoria Foundation. The Gail O'Riordan Climate and the Arts Legacy Fund is dedicated to changing human consciousness towards global environmental change by combining science with the creativity of the performing arts. |
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Healthy, happy communities begin from the ground up. Help us inspire generations to protect and preserve the natural world and confront climate change, so families, communities and nature can prosper together. |
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