2020 in the rearview mirror, almost…

From my experience, we are all likely to get a whole pile of letters this season, as the end of the year draws near, as “giving Tuesday” approaches.

Letters that start with a version of “Well, 2020 has been quite a year…” And it’s true!

Whatever we are doing to get by, whatever causes we are passionate about and that move us to action—the context of 2020 affects us all profoundly.  A global pandemic stampedes into its ninth month; there are righteous uprisings in the streets across the nation in response to systemic and violent racial injustice; a point of no return looms in the climate crisis as truly frightening wildfires rage in the west. And let’s not forget an election year like no other.  That huge mountain of context certainly cannot be ignored. I’m particularly moved by the ecological roots of the extreme circumstances we find ourselves in, in this bizarre year 2020. From the human-caused exacerbation of the climate crisis getting so far out of our control to the transfer of disease pathogens to humans as our species pokes into and invades every nook and cranny of the habitats of other species on the planet, it becomes ever more clear that humans are not living in balance on this beautiful blue green orb.

But we carry on because we must, because it is what life is about, because it beats the alternative. We invite you to join with us in carrying on for our fellow species, for the forests, for the wild on this injured but pulsating with life planet.

Our fellow species and the environment in general are struggling as much or more than we humans, particularly under the political situation we’ve been trapped in. The last 4 years riding this bucking bronco that has had no clear path nor moral compass bring us to where we sit right now, looking for a new chapter. And now we face another uphill battle to push a multi-species agenda.
We have to prepare ourselves to fight, and we shall.

The unilateral action we just witnessed in D.C. has taken away ESA protection for the grey wolf and opened up vast acreage of the Tongass National Forest. Those battles may not be not in our physical backyards, but they might as well be.  They are certainly related to battles here, like the Northern California timber companies continuing to shrink the habitat of creatures that depend on it, whose populations are shrinking as well, like the Northern Spotted Owl and Marbled Murrelet.

Yet there is a shining light beaming from actions taking place in the forests of the north coast—a counter to other events—through the cloud of election chaos. I was bowled over by the responses that came back when I sent out news in the spring of tree sits in an active logging plan on

California’s far northern coast. Even as folks struggled with their daily lives, inspiration came knocking at their doors when they read of young activists challenging timber giant Green Diamond by declaring themselves “essential workers” as they climbed up trees to platforms to sit out part of their covid isolation getting in the way of the cutting of mature trees—all in safe, socially-distanced actions. We must broaden our concept of essential to include the jobs of locating the owl nests and blocking the logging equipment from entering areas that should be left alone.  So those who can climb, climb. Bless them. But climbers or not, there is always something each of us can do.

We face challenges everywhere we look—high biological stakes are hanging in the balance. All these campaigns are related, and even in these chaotic times, it is still up to us to figure out how to rally round and continue forward with greater fervor, greater energy, more people…and do it safely. Because it is that important.  I think you share that view.

Like you, we at BACH are not doing exactly what we thought we’d be doing right now, when we were planning our year. But we are doing what we can, we are doing what we must, as I expect many of you are. Many plans have had to be cut back, canceled or postponed. The activists we work with on the north coast are doing what they can, and they inspire me every day—whether they are “ground-truthing” logging plans in the Mattole, sleeping on a platform high in a redwood, or challenging the pellet plant outside Ukiah spewing toxic pollution. Downwind Pomo activists and allies in Coyote Valley are doing the research on that pollution that public agencies should have done.

We come forward to help these and other campaigns, when asked and when needed.
We are asking you to come forward to support our work however you can.

You can donate securely online at our website www.headwaterspreserve.org—just click on the “Donate” bar at the top, or you can use the enclosed form and envelope. Make sure to write checks to: Ecology Center/BACH.

Please update your address and email with us when it changes, so we can stay in touch with you to let you know what is going on in our precious forests. You know by now that we don’t clutter your inbox with frequent unnecessary appeals, nor do we send wasteful multiple mailings.  We’ve been around a long time, working with many activists. We want to continue collaborating and conspiring with them and with you.

We hope to hear from you soon.
Power to the Planet!

For the Wild, for the forests, for our fellow species the planet over,               ~Karen