Blog Archive Layout

Join us for the 35th Anniversary Celebration of the Meares Island Tribal Park!

Apr 13 2019/in Announcements

What: A fun and historic event to celebrate the 35th anniversary of The Meares Island Tribal Park Declaration of 1984, hosted by the Iisaak Olam Foundation
When: Wednesday, April 17th, from 6pm-9pm
Where: White Eagle Hall , Victoria B.C.
Tickets: General Admission- $35, Student |Low-income- $20

35 years ago, Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation Chief Moses Martin declared Meares Island in Clayoquot Sound a “Tribal Park” during a blockade to stop logging by MacMillan Bloedel in the island’s spectacular ancient forests. This was the first protest against old-growth logging in Canadian history and a remarkable display of solidarity between the Tla-o-qui-aht and Ahousaht First Nations and local environmentalists. As a result of this historic event, Meares Island’s extraordinary natural and cultural heritage remains safeguarded to this day and the Tribal Park has also provided a model that has inspired a movement to establish new Tribal Parks and Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas in Canada and increasingly around the world.

Join us in celebrating this monumental event on Wednesday April 17th at the White Eagle Polish Hall from 6pm until 9pm. Guest speakers include: Tla-o-qui-aht Chief Moses Martin, Dr. David Suzuki, and Mr. Miles Richardson from the Haida Nation.

The event is co-hosted by the Iisaak Olam Foundation, T’souke Nation Chief Gordon Planes, and Melissa Quesnelle of Kainai Nation with musical performances by Art Napoleon, award-winner Indigenous singer/songwriter and host of the international food show “Moosemeat & Marmalade,” and Tom van Deursen from Kalso BC band Small Town Artillery!

To learn more about the declaration of Meares Island Tribal Park, check out this video featuring Iisaak Olam Foundation founder Eli Enns.

Full event details here
Get your tickets here

Plan to allow logging of old growth forests draws criticism

Apr 7 2019/in News Coverage

Check out this Global News piece about conservationists’ disappointment with the BC NDP and their plans to auction off 1,300 hectares of old-growth on Vancouver Island, featuring Sierra Club BC’s Jens Wieting, and footage by AFA’s TJ Watt.

Keep in mind the statistics stated by the government are misleading. The BC government is combining the old-growth stats from Vancouver Island/South Coast – where very little has been protected (about 6% of Vancouver Island and 8% of the SW Mainland’s productive forests are in parks) with the Great Bear Rainforest, the northern rainforest where 85% of all the forests are off-limits due to a massive campaign of boycotts, protests, and negotiations for over two decades. To lump together the northern rainforest where regulations are strong (and where the trees are smaller and the forests are different) with the southern rainforest where the old-growth protections are sparse (and where the trees are much larger and the forests are generally more diverse) is disingenuous. When they say ‘55% of the old-growth forests on the coast are protected’ – the vast majority of that is in the Great Bear Rainforest, not on Vancouver Island where the conflict rages and old-growth logging occurs at a scale of about 11,000 hectares a year (in 2016) and where the forests are more highly endangered.

See the original clip here

The Cheewhat Giant, Canada's largest tree

3 ways to celebrate & support ancient forests this month

Apr 5 2019/in Announcements

1. Big Tree Poster Giveaway

From now until Earth Day (April 22nd, 2019), we’re giving away our Big Tree poster set featuring the San Juan Spruce, Canada’s Gnarliest Tree, and the Cheewhat Giant (valued at $25) for FREE! Pick up your poster set by visiting our Victoria office (303-620 View St) on Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday from 11am to 4:30pm, order online (S&H fee applies), or call us at 250 896 4007 to arrange for shipping.

2. Get your 2019 Calendars – NOW ONLY $15!

There’s also still time to order your 2019 AFA calendar featuring spectacular photos of the Nahmint Valley, Meares and Flores Islands, the McKelvie and Caycuse watersheds, wildlife, and more – all taken by the AFA’s TJ Watt. We’ve dropped the price from $25 to $15, with all proceeds going toward our ancient forest campaigns!

3. Celebrate Earth Day with our AFA T-shirt photo challenge

Our new AFA t-shirts are a big hit and we want to see photos of you wearing yours in the great outdoors!

Snap a photo in a forest wearing your AFA t-shirt and share it on or before Earth Day (Monday, April 22nd) on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter using the hashtag #AFAEarthDay2019 (and make sure your post is public).

Order your t-shirt online by Tuesday, April 16th to allow time for shipping before Earth Day or stop by our office to pick one up in person.

Announcements

Help AFA raise $250,000 by December 31st – we’re over halfway there!

Dec 15 2025

Support the protection of old-growth forests in BC through Indigenous-led conservation, science, and public action. Donate to help safeguard ancient forests.

Announcements

An aerial of a BCTS cutblock in the Nahmint Valley

News Coverage

Chek News: Document reveals approval to harvest remnant old-growth in B.C.’s northwest

Dec 8 2025

BC Timber Sales has ended a policy protecting remnant old-growth in northwest B.C., citing First Nations’ positions, sparking concerns from ecologists and residents.

News Coverage

Announcements

Thank You to Our Silent Auction business Donors!

Dec 8 2025

Thank you to these local businesses for generously donating items and experiences to our first-ever online Silent Auction!

Announcements

Ancient Forest Alliance photographer and campaign director TJ Watt stands beside the fallen remains of an ancient western redcedar approximately 9 feet (3 metres) wide, cut down by BC Timber Sales in the Nahmint Valley near Port Alberni in Hupačasath, Tseshaht, and Yuułuʔiłʔatḥ First Nation territory. (2024)

Announcements

Statement on the Provincial Forest Advisory Council’s Interim Report – AFA & EEA

Nov 21 2025

The Provincial Forest Advisory Council’s (PFAC) interim report falls short of addressing the root causes of BC’s forestry crisis or outlining the bold, decisive actions needed to reverse it, warn the Ancient Forest Alliance (AFA) and Endangered Ecosystem Alliance (EEA).

Announcements