JODY HOLMES on Keeping the Great Bear Standing /51
Namesake of the Great Bear Rainforest: Kermode bear (Ursus americanus kermodei), also known as the Spirit Bear; by Richard Sandor.
We are joined by Jody Holmes, forest defender and primary architect of the historic Great Bear Rainforest Agreements which protected the largest expanses of old growth temperate rainforest in the world. The Rainforest Solutions Project is a unique and innovative coalition consisting of Greenpeace, Sierra Club BC and Stand (formerly ForestEthics).
For almost two decades, they have had a singular mission of “pioneering collaboration between deeply divergent interests (government, First Nations, environmentalists and logging companies) in the Great Bear Rainforest to develop a world-leading legal and policy framework called Ecosystem-Based Management”.
Jody Holmes
The decades-long struggle over British Columbia's enormous coastal rainforests culminated in one of the most extraordinary conservation, social justice, and indigenous rights victories in recent memory: a historic multi-generational agreement between the parties to conserve and sustainably manage the 15-million acre Great Bear Rainforest, one of the largest old growth temperate rainforests on the planet. Eighty-five percent of these forests are now legally off-limits to logging.
♫ Music featured in this episode includes "Through The Pine Forest" by Magpahi, "Choosing Sides" by Joanne Rand and "Hey Mama Wolf" by Devendra Banhart.
For The Wild is a slow media studio dedicated to land-based protection, co-liberation, and intersectional storytelling. We are rooted in a paradigm shift away from human supremacy, endless growth, and consumerism. As we dream towards a world of grounded justice and reciprocity, our work highlights impactful stories and deeply-felt meaning making as balms for these times.