Stories

Our forest film tour was a home run!

November 8, 2024

Over 400 people across seven towns joined our Silvicola film and forest walk tour. Read our report back from this popular event series.

Over 400 people across seven towns joined our Silvicola film and forest walk tour (Photo by Mya Van Woudenberg).

Hitting the road for forests

Thanks to the support of Sierra Club BC members, we had an incredible week talking with hundreds of community members across Vancouver Island all about forests!

Last month, we hit the road for 7 days across 7 towns to tour the award-winning B.C. forestry documentary Silvicola. Lively community town halls and forest walks followed these screenings. We were joined by Silvicola director Jean-Philippe Marquis and ecologist Erik Piikkila who helped lead our guided hikes.

Our goal was simple: Get neighbours together to talk about the state of forests and the role of forestry in their communities. As well as discussing how we can work together to better care for these ecosystems while upholding Indigenous rights and supporting a thriving economy. These conversations are especially important in light of the new provincial government, and the stark reality that only a small fraction of at-risk old-growth forests remain standing in B.C.

The tour blew our expectations out of the water!

A full house at the Cumberland film showing (Photo by Jens Wieting/Sierra Club BC).

Community members connecting with their local forest on a guided walk (Photo by Mya Van Woudenberg/Sierra Club BC).

The response was overwhelming

We engaged over 400 people and fostered rich conversations with community members across diverse backgrounds — from retired old-growth loggers to young tree planters to concerned residents. In fact, our tour was so popular that CBC came out to cover the Cumberland film screening and forest walk, publishing both a video and an article.

The response from attendees was overwhelming. Across towns, people shared their reactions to the film, witnessing big trees cut down in industrially degraded landscapes and the clear need for sustainable long-term jobs. One former old-growth logger said the scenes brought tears to his eyes reflecting about the hundreds of hectares of old growth he logged over a period of 20 years. The film makes a lasting impression.

A walk in the woods

More people joined our forest walks the morning after each screening, hungry to learn more and figure out how to better care for endangered old growth and enact forestry reforms.

We are so grateful to everyone who came out to talk forests with us. Spending time on the land with so many people energized about speaking up for these ecosystems was incredibly inspiring and restorative. And, of course, we are especially thankful to our Sierra Club BC members for making this tour a reality.

On the guided walks, attendees got to learn more about forests and the many species that call them home (Photo by Mya Van Woudenberg/Sierra Club BC).

Ecologist Erik Piikkila sharing their insights on a guided walk near Shawnigan Lake on Coast Salish territory (Photo by Mya Van Woudenberg/Sierra Club BC).

Takeaways from the tour

These events across Vancouver Island showed us that people from all walks of life share something in common: care for the future of forests and forestry. That’s consistent with recent polling showing that 85% of British Columbians support forestry reforms and protecting old growth from logging. So how do we make this a reality?

With the provincial election having wrapped, we stand on a precipice. There’s an opportunity with the new B.C. government to make key promises a reality. This includes implementing the promised paradigm shift in forest stewardship (as outlined in B.C.’s Old Growth Strategic Review), enacting biodiversity legislation co-developed with First Nations to protect at-risk species and ecosystems, and fulfilling the Nature Agreement with the goal to double protection of the lands and waters to 30 percent by 2030.

In the coming weeks, we’ll share more insights on what the recent election means for forests… and some creative ways you can help build a brighter future for old growth and all who depend on them.

We’re so glad you’re on this journey with us. If you’d like to support more impactful projects like this tour, please donate today.