From the Walbran to Fairy Creek, What the Forest Needs, Our Heart Needs

This publication is based on a series of discussions carried out between Elder William (Bill) Jones of the Pacheedaht First Nation, artist and researcher Leila Sujir, and other members of the Elastic Spaces research group that took place online from 2020 to 2021. Organized into five chapters developed by Jones, each one presents a selection of short quotes by Jones, arranged in a poetic and narrative flow to reflect the author’s unique voice. The quotes relate to his lived experiences in and around the Walbran Forest and his reflections on the Fairy Creek old-growth logging protests. The publication includes a map of the Fairy Creek watershed, original artwork and book design by artist Daniela Ortiz, and a portrait of the authors by Yves Mayrand.

Download FREE PDF

Book launch April 26th, 2025, at Wildwood Ecoforest, hosted by Ecoforestry Institute Society and Elastic Spaces.

Chronicles of the Forest: From the Walbran to Fairy Creek: What the Forest Needs,
Our Heart Needs
Montréal Québec, Elastic Spaces Press, 2025
ISBN: 978-1-5251-1422-9
elasticspaces.hexagram.ca
Creative Commons licence CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Project Lead: Leila Sujir
Managing Editor and Manuscript Editor: John Latour
Editorial Committee: Leila Sujir, Santiago Tavera, Sarah E. Turner, and Jorge Zavagno
Project Manager: Jorge Zavagno
Transcript Editing: John Latour and Santiago Tavera
Book Design & Illustrations: Daniela Ortiz

With thanks to the readers: Jessie Demers, Maria Lantin, Haema Sivanesan, and Rita Wong
Research Assistants: Hei Lam Ng, Sabina Gámez Ibarra, and Natasha Lavdovsky Cover paper by Atelier Retailles

The first printing of this publication uses recycled cotton paper with a cover made from handmade cotton paper. The salal and cedar leaves used for this book’s cover were carefully and respectfully collected by Natasha Lavdovsky. Gathered from forests within the Diitiida (Jordan River) watershed, the Pacheedaht First Nation’s origin site, the cedar leaves were cut from recently felled trees in a logging cut block, and the salal was harvested days before their forest was clearcut.

On Tuesday, September 23, 2025 a zoom panel, featuring Elder Bill Jones with Leila, John and Jorge, discussed how forest documents (2025) came together, with the production of three artworks on the Walbran old-growth forests (Forest Breath, 2018; Aerial, 2019) over a nine-year period and how the project continues. See more here.