This is part three of our Forests Over Profits series, featuring selected presentations from the Forests Over Profits Conference that the Coast Range Association helped organize this September.

I’m so excited for you to hear this talk by John Brush of the Cedar Moon Collective and Tryon Life Farm, entitled, "Should Anyone Own The Forest?".

From the "Rights of Nature" legal movement, to community forestry, and resurgent indigenous sovereignty, Brush shared a diverse and creative set of approaches that seek to undermine capitalist extraction as the primary human relation with land.

I really appreciated how Brush’s approach made me think about forest ownership and relation to the land from a completely different perspective.

If this show helps give you a different perspective or inspires you, please consider subscribing to Coast Range Radio on apple podcasts, spotify, or any podcast app, and I would be so grateful if you would leave a good review. 

You can also learn more about the Coast Range Association at coastrange.org and my email is [email protected].

Research Links/Show Notes:
 - ‘Should anyone "own" the forest?’, by John Brush, [email protected], (includes research links in the endnotes)
https://tryonfarm.org/who.owns.forest.pdf
- New Zealand forest and river given rights of “legal person”
http://maorilawreview.co.nz/2014/10/tuhoe-crown-settlement-te-urewera-act-2014/
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/16/new-zealand-river-granted-same-legal-rights-as-human-being

This episode is dedicated to the memory of Sean Jacobson.  Sean was an incredibly passionate activist, permaculture practitioner, and an active member of many many different organizing efforts.  I knew Sean through our work with the Pacific Northwest Forest Climate Alliance, which put on the Forests Over Profits conference.

I know how bleak the world can often feel, and it can be hard not to feel hopeless sometimes.  But there is always beauty in the world, and there is always something to keep living and fighting for.

If you’re struggling, it’s not your fault and you are not alone. 

Please reach out to someone, whether it’s a friend or family member, a therapist, or as comedian Maria Bamford says, any random stranger who will listen.   Speaking of, again, my email is [email protected], and I’ve always got a willing ear to lend.

https://988lifeline.org/

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