FRANKE JAMES

Who cares about the Forest?

by Franke James

“Who cares about the Forest?” is the question author/artist Franke James’ explores in her creative personal story for the Forest Stewardship Council of Canada. Franke is the author of Bothered By My Green Conscience which merges science, art and storytelling to inspire people to take action and “do the hardest thing first” for the planet.

The visual essay is below. You can also watch it as an animated video.

Drawing of Boreal Forest by Franke James
Funny that snail mail is what woke me photo illustration by Franke James
What woke Franke James
My bookkeeper asked Do you really have to kill so many trees? drawing by Franke James
How can you call yourself an enviro mental ist if you print on dead trees photo and drawing by Franke James
But the truth is, I was like a Flopsy Bunnysoporific bunny holding Beatrix Potter book drawing by Franke James
Dreaming that so long as I obeyed the three R's all wood be well, drawing by Franke James
But that soporific feeling ends as we drive into the Boreal Forest, photo illustration by Franke James
an 18 wheeler, Photo illustration by Franke James
with 70 tons of fresh cut trees whizzes by, Photo illustration by Franke James
Boreal Forest is being logged, Photo illustration by Franke James
Boreal Forest map, illustration by Franke James
Black Spruce lying on forest floor, photo illustration by Franke James
The feller buncher picks up the 50 ft tree photo illustration by Franke James
Why do they waste the tops, photo illustration by Franke James
But the bigger question, photo illustration by Franke James
Is it right to cut trees, photo illustration by Franke James
But who am I to point fingers, photo illustration by Franke James
Fiber can only be recycled a half dozen times, photo illustration by Franke James
But living without forests is unthinkable photo illustration by Franke James
Forests are the lungs of the planet, illustration by Franke James with source illustration from istockphoto
Boreal Forest is our tap, illustration by Franke James, features forest water photo by D. Langhorst, Ducks Unlimited, from A Forest of Blue, Pew Environment Group
Boreal Forest is biggest carbon storehouse piggy bank illustration by Franke James, features Boreal wetlands photo by Chad Delany, from A Forest of Blue, Pew Environment Group
I drop by WWF Canada to ask Monte Hummel, photo illustration by Franke James features head shot photo of Monte supplied by WWF
The forest is habitat photo illustration by Franke James with Owl in Tree photo from istockphoto
This is home for literally millions, text illustration by Franke James
Monte Hummel says it is not a sin to cut a tree but we need to do it the FSC way, illustration by Franke James
Sheepish illustration by Franke James
Monte says if you are looking at an FSC certified product, photo illustration by Franke James, featuring archived aerial photo from FSC archive
I buy Fairtrade and Organic so I can imagine buying FSC,  photo illustration by Franke James, featuring FairTrade logo, Certified Canada Organic Logo and FSC logo
Will I stop feeling bad whenever I use paper if I buy FSC, illustration by Franke James
Is buying good wood the answer, illustration by Franke James
Come into the forest and I will tell you what I found, photo  illustration by Franke James

how you can make a difference illustration by Franke James
War in the Woods photo illustration by Franke James
The Watchdogs have been barking, photo illustration by Franke James featuring Greenpeace logo
Sawmill photo illustration by Franke James
treeline illustration by Franke James
Some saw Opportunity illustration by Franke James
A group of people as opposite as oil and water, illustration by Franke James
vegetarian and cattle ranchers, loggers and treehuggers, illustration by Franke James
the four groups all got together, illustration by Franke James
to find a peaceful and profitable solution, photo-illustration by Franke James

The heart of FSC is social justice and love of the forest, illustration by Franke James
The four groups share power equally, illustration by Franke James
FSC is like a car, illustration by Franke James
Chief Harry St. Denis told me, illustration by Franke James
Journal features Chief Harry St. Denis, Wolf Lake First Nation, photo illustration by Franke James
treeline illustration by Franke James
Four sets of eyes want proof that everything is checked illustration by Franke James
the proof is in the mail and on the wood, photo illustration by Franke James
FSC Chain of Custody  illustration and certified recycling by Franke James
My Boreal Forest guide was Chris McDonell from Tembec
Tembec harvesting plan for an FSC forest, photo by Franke James
GPS in fellerbuncher, photo illustration by Franke James
W marks tree to protect it was wildlife habitat, photo illustration by Franke James
Narrow FSC roads photo illustration by Franke James
Header, Dr. Nicolas Lecomte, SmartWood, FSC auditor, illustration by Franke James
Dr. Nicolas Lecomte, SmartWood, FSC auditor for ecology explains why they leave the tops, photo illustration by Franke James
This whole Boreal Adventure illustration by Franke James
I feel sheepish again, illustration by Franke James
What can city people do, illustration by Franke James
Richard Brooks at Greenpeace drawing by Franke James
beliefs and behavior illustration by Franke James
Recycling is good but it is not enough drawing by Franke James
to protect our forest we need to demand FSC photo illustration by Franke James
beliefs and behavior illustration by Franke James
illustration by Franke JamesThe least footprint, illustration by Franke James

Credits:

Who cares about the Forest? © 2011 Franke James

Special thanks to the Forest Stewardship Council Canada for sponsoring this story.

And sincere appreciation to the following people and organizations for their contribution to the story:

Russell Diabo, Algonquin of Barriere Lake; Michelle White, Chapters Indigo; Drew Tremblay, Domtar; Richard Brooks, Greenpeace Canada; Peter Street, Nipissing Forest Resource Management; Roy Summers, Local Activist, North Bay Area; Eric Paradis, RONA; Nicolas Lecomte, FSC Auditor, SmartWood; Karen Whistler-Clark, TD Bank Financial Group; Chris McDonell, Elaine Marchand, Patrick Garneau, Tembec; Warren Spitz, Upper Canada Forest Products; Chief Harry St. Denis, Wolf Lake First Nations; Monte Hummel, WWF-Canada;

All trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Photographs, illustrations and writing by Franke James, except as noted:

“The Boreal Forest is Our Tap” illustration by Franke James, features a photo © D. Langhorst, Ducks Unlimited, from “A Forest of Blue” Pew Environment Group

The World’s Biggest Carbon Bank illustration by Franke James, features a Boreal wetlands photo © Chad Delany, from “A Forest of Blue” Pew Environment Group

Caribou photo © Valerie Courtois, from “A Forest of Blue” Pew Environment Group

“Lungs of the Planet” illustration by Franke James uses a source image © istockphotos; Owl and Snail illustrations use source photos © istockphotos.

Additional photos from FSC-Canada archive.

Featured books:
The Flopsy Bunnies by Beatrix Potter, published in 1909 by F. Warne & Co.
Bothered by My Green Conscience by Franke James, published by New Society Publishers

Research and Resources:

A Forest of Blue: Canada’s Boreal Forest, the World’s Waterkeeper Pew Environment Group

The Boreal Forest Adventure: Cooking Like Mother Nature by Nicolas Lecomte, Biol., PhD (Mother Nature’s Recipes available as a download.)

Turning Up the Heat: Global Warming and the Degradation of Canada’s Boreal Forest, by Christy Ferguson, Elizabeth A. Nelson and Geoff G. Sherman; Greenpeace Canada, March 2008

“The Forest Stewardship Council is the only certification system currently supported by Greenpeace. Products or pulp certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) have been given an environmental stamp of approval. The FSC certification system, which involves a third party audit of forest operations, is the only guarantee of sustainably managed forests.”

Produced by The James Gang by Franke James and Billiam James, FSC®-CAN-0031, for FSC Canada

65 Responses: 30 Comments and 35 Tweets

  • VIA TWITTER

    @ontforest Who cares about the Forest? frankejames.com/debate/?cat=370 via @frankejames

  • WWF Canada says:

    VIA TWITTER

    @WWFCanada: RT @fsc_canada: Who cares about the #forest? @WWFCanada @GreenpeaceCA @corporateknight Watch + Share http://ow.ly/4CIOO Thanks @frankejames!

  • VIA TWITTER

    @FDOrganics Who cares about the forest? @frankejames shows us what @FSC_Canada does: http://ow.ly/4CzM8 We use only FSC Certified papers in our office.

  • VIA TWITTER

    @tphcanada We do! :) RT @FSC_Canada: Who cares about the forest? @marialavis @scoutscanada @tphcanada @FDOrganics. Do you? http://ow.ly/4CPxc

  • G-Souto says:

    Dear Franke,

    Your story and visual essay is lovely! Congratulations about your creativity!

    I have published your video on my personal blog (Education and Innovation) as an inspiration to educators and students for ‘Earth Day 2011’. Educators can motivate their students to different activities in the classroom watching and reading your story.

    I respected copyright :)

    My best wishes,

  • Franke James says:

    G-Souto,

    Thank you for blogging about my story. You did a fantastic job of presenting both the visual essay and the video in a concise format.

    And I LOVED your exercises for teachers. Here are G-Souto’s Earth Day exercises for teachers:

    Education:

    * Display the video in the classroom (primary and elementary school)

    * Let your students use smartphones to read ‘Who cares about the Forest’ as a visual essay here

    * Students are invited to a storytelling about Earth and some visual essays to complete their story.

    * Educators can submit students’ projects on Your Act Green

    * Students can visit Franke James’ website (educators tutoring) and leave a comment to the author.

    BTW, I designed the video to be the right screen size on an ipad — it plays beautifully and fills the whole horizontal screen.

    Cheers,

    Franke

  • G-Souto says:

    You’re welcome, Franke :-)

    It’s a captivating story to celebrate the Forest at Earth Day, April 22.

    Students will love it. They will feel motivated to develop creative activities in the classroom, I’m sure ;-)

    Cheers,

    G-Souto

    P.S. BTW, I added iPad as a tool for students to use in the classroom.

    I would suggest iPad but I didn’t found the right information. So I only suggested smartphones. Now, there it is!

  • Franke James says:

    G-Souto,

    Thanks! I shared it with the EEON (Environmental Educators Ontario) list — and other educators. Your exercises will be inspirational to many teachers!

    Franke

  • Riona says:

    Once again you hit it out of the park, Franke. You can bet I’ll be sharing this for Earth Day.
    I also like your glowing green bunny icon.

    Have a happy Earth Day tomorrow.

  • gwyn says:

    THIS IS GREAT! I will be sharing this all over the place. I had not seen it yet when I created my current project Journey to Confluence, but part of what I am exploring is how to create multimedia projects (video and live presentation) and eBooks in lieu dead tree material. This is a tough one for me because I am an admitted bibliophile with way too many books, but I preach change so I must aspire to it. You are such a great role model. Thanks for your support!!! I’d love feed back on my project from your readers http://kck.st/f45Psq

  • […] Buy FSC Wood: Who Cares About The Forest? Posted on April 22, 2011 by TreeHugger Images credit Franke James We do go on about how important it is to buy lumber and wood products that are FSC (Forestry […]

  • […] credit Franke James We do go on about how important it is to buy lumber and wood products that are FSC (Forest […]

  • […] of the wood or paper.  It shows, as explained in this personal story by Franke James, “Who Cares About the Forest.“  If you’re in charge of purchasing wood products, you should watch this informative […]

  • […] want to plaster my walls with her visuals. The video of her latest is below, I love though I love the straight up pictorial version even more. Make the time to explore the whole […]

  • Paul Reale says:

    Very nicely done. I’m inspired by your achievement of teaching important enviro-points through story-telling, and that even though it has a children’s storybook feel about it, it’s still interesting to an adult.

  • Tess says:

    I am so happy to have found your work, courtesy of Cathyrn Wellner. I teach in Environmental Planning as an adjunct prof at UNBC and would love to include references to your work in my next class (fall 2011) if you are agreeable.

  • super teas says:

    Outstanding nature friendly blog. I think the people who live in the mountain side, riverside, farm, or even forest are the one who cares a lot to our forest. And the opposite, the rich business man, illegal loggers etc that cut the trees merciless is the one who don’t really care to the forest, all they want is money! They don’t mind the negative effect of it. I wish all of that men will realize the importance of nature. Great blog, your pictures makes me feel the beauty and the ache of our beloved forest.

  • Fantastic, Franke! From now on, seeing “FSC” will have meaning to me!

  • (and another great visual essay. I learned a lot, as usual ! Merci beaucoup Franke ;) )

  • Kaitlyn says:

    Thank you for making me aware of the FSC, I had no idea!

  • Paul says:

    Thank you for sharing this. It was very educational — very informative. I will now actually think of supporting this. I will also try to look for FSC products.

  • […] It's not just wood against wood, it's wood against steel! Image credit Franke James […]

  • Victoria Shymlosky says:

    Yes, Your ideas, images, and graphics are very cool. See CBC Market Place scoop on toilet paper…”green washing.” We are flushing trees down the drain especially some companies that pretend to be sustainable but they clear cut. Note, the really soft toilet paper comes from the hard wood trees that are slow growing. Many consumers do not know the real source of toilet paper. Some of the green logos are a scam. Yes they are cutting old growth forests in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, e.g. big company Irving who owns and leases vast tracks of crown land from government. The paper company is not sustainably harvesting the forests out east. The biodiversity variety of deciduous and coniferous trees are being loss. Then the company plant tree farms or plantations of fast growing singular varieties that are prone to disease and pests.

  • Victoria Shymlosky says:

    See the difference between FSC and SFI which is what the CBC Market place show covered on toilet paper and sustainable and unsustainable forestry practices. Treehugger site gets into the finer points of this discussion too. Another great book is the “Empire of the Beetle”, How Human Folly and a Tiny Bug are Killing North America’s Great Forests by Andrew Nikiforuk. Imagine if we could leave vast tracks of forests and wilderness alone.

  • […] © Franke JamesI have called it the Rumble in the Lumberyard; Artist/activist Franke James calls it the War in the […]

  • James Forest says:

    love your website, succinct, creative and insightful. good luck with your action-oriented work in the future!

    so what are our options as authors when we are publishing
    hard(tree)copy? hemp I guess?

    this is so important

    thank you!

    J. Forest

  • Franke James says:

    J.,

    Thanks for your comment. Actually, FSC certified paper is a great choice.
    “The Forest Stewardship Council is the only certification system currently supported by Greenpeace. Products or pulp certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) have been given an environmental stamp of approval. The FSC certification system, which involves a third party audit of forest operations, is the only guarantee of sustainably managed forests.”

    Franke

  • palika says:

    I have just discovered your blog and your incredible passion and creativity. I love how you use visual storytelling to create empathy with the mission and desire to make a difference. Thankyou so much for shining your gift so bright and gifting the people and Mama Gaia with your brilliant, wit, wisdom and LOVE!

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