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On the heels of issuing layoff notices to 294 public service workers Monday, the B.C. government is planning for another round of cuts in the Ministry of Forests by early summer. At a time when lumber prices are booming but the industry is far from recovering, it's either the worst time to slash jobs -- according to the leader of the Opposition -- or an opportune time to cut, according to an industry leader.

You don't have to drive hours out of Victoria to find old-growth trees or, for that matter, politicians who are hanging onto their seats by a thread.

Without the handcuffs of charitable status which forbids organizations from condemning or endorsing politicians and political parties, BC’s new Ancient Forest Alliance (AFA - visit www.ancientforestalliance.org ) is now positioned to organize hard-hitting campaigns in key provincial swing ridings. In particular, the AFA will be working to systematically train and guide activists to establish “Ancient Forest Committees” (AFC’s), or forest activist teams, in 8 to 10 provincial swing ridings over the next year. The AFC’s will be technically autonomous from the AFA, but will be trained and guided by the AFA particularly in their formative stages.

This video was made by Langara journalism students Linnaea and Jackie of the Avatar Rally to Save BC's Ancient Forests and Forestry Jobs hosted by the Ancient Forest Alliance and Point Grey Ancient Forest Committee on Saturday March 27, 2010.

I had the pleasure March 28 of joining 80 other members of the Ancient Forest Alliance to experience the small grove of old growth trees near Port Renfrew known (informally) as Avatar Grove.

As one of the 80 hikers who visited Avatar Grove on March 28 with the Ancient Forest Alliance, I find it somewhat ironic that the Vancouver Olympics showcased the natural beauty of B.C.'s old-growth forests.

Last weekend, Monday hit the road with environmentalist Ken Wu and the Ancient Forest Alliance (along with 80 other curious community members) to pay a visit to what the AFA is calling "Canada's gnarliest tree".

It didn't take long for environmentalists to tap into James Cameron's massively successful Avatar for a creative boost to their rallies.

If the northern spotted owl is healthy, it's a good sign that the old-growth forests where it lives are healthy. Unfortunately, the spotted owl is not doing well in British Columbia, the only place it lives in Canada. Only six of the beautiful brown-eyed birds remain here.