Press

Image of Giant Old-Growth Cedar Receives Award in Earth Photo 2024 Contest

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The awarded image, Flores Island Cedar, features an enormous redcedar tree I found – perhaps the most impressive tree in Canada – with Tyson Atleo, an Indigenous Hereditary Representative of the local Ahousaht people, standing at the base of the tree, providing a sense of scale.

I’m thrilled and honoured to have received an award in Earth Photo 2024, an international photography contest currently on display at the Royal Geographical Society in London, UK. My image, titled Flores Island Cedar, features a gargantuan redcedar tree – perhaps the most impressive tree in Canada – with friend Tyson Atleo, a Hereditary Representative of the local Ahousaht people, standing next to the tree’s base, providing a sense of scale.

The contest, which saw over 1900 entries from around the world and 11 award winners, celebrates photography and moving images that tell compelling stories about our planet, its inhabitants, its beauty, resilience and fragility. The winning images have attracted international attention, with high-profile features in The Guardian & CNN and locally in the Times Colonist.

Amazingly, the award announcement happened within 24 hours of the biggest old-growth protected areas victory in decades when, earlier last week, the leadership of the Ahousaht, Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation, and BC NDP government declared the protection of 76,000 hectares of land in new conservancies in Clayoquot Sound near Tofino, BC. Most of the lands committed for protection are comprised of some of the grandest and most intact coastal old-growth temperate rainforests on Earth, including this ancient tree.

It’s not always the case that the forests featured in my photographs have a happy ending. But in this case, I’m so grateful that they do. The tree pictured is the largest one I’ve ever found in nearly 20 years of searching for big trees in BC. It’s more than 17 ft (5 m) wide near its base, 151 ft (46 m) tall, & likely well over a thousand years old, given its size.

I extend my deepest gratitude to the Ahousaht & Tla-o-qui-aht people for their conservation vision and leadership. A special thanks to Tyson and the Maaqutusiis Hahoulthee Stewardship Guardians for their time spent with me in the woods.

See the other winning and shortlisted photos here: www.earthphoto.world/2024-shortlist-exhibition

If you’re considering exploring the lands and waters of Ahousaht territory in Clayoquot Sound, be sure to check out the Maaqutusiis Hahoutlhee Stewardship Society website for information on planning your trip: https://mhssahousaht.ca/


Presenting at the Kennedy Center in DC on "The Search for the World’s Biggest Trees"

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I was thrilled to be invited to the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, to share photos and speak on The Search for the World’s Biggest Trees! This was part of REACH to FOREST, a two-week event blending art, science, and culture in the nation’s capital. Long-time friend and forest ecologist Andy MacKinnon also presented as part of the Big Tree Hunters Party.

After that, we had a few days to tour the city! DC is an impressive and friendly place with 17 of the 20 National Smithsonian Museums. The Natural History Museum was unbelievable! Highly recommend visiting if you're in the area.

A big thanks to the festival organizers for bringing us out there and helping raise international awareness of the importance of old-growth forests in BC.

Washington Post: "'Freak of Nature' Tree is the Find of a Lifetime for Forest Explorer"

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Amazing!! See major US news coverage in The Washington Post featuring the giant redcedar tree I located on Flores Island in Clayoquot Sound, BC, Ahousaht territory. Hear thoughts and perspectives about the tree and conservation from Ahousaht Hereditary Representative Tyson Atleo as well.

The Ahousaht First Nation is at the forefront of old-growth protection in BC, with plans to protect the majority of their territory with several Provincial Conservancies which they are asking the province to legislate. This legal designation protects First Nations subsistence uses (hunting, fishing, foraging, cultural cedar use), co-management authority, and rights and title to the land. The Ahousaht land-use vision is also a great example of how conservation financing can support new legislated protected areas that protect old-growth forests while fostering sustainable, conservation-based economies that include businesses like the new Ahous Adventures.

The story was also featured in The Independent UK as well: Rare tree hunter in Canada finds ‘freak of nature’ 1,000-year-old cedar

Canada's Most Impressive Tree - Flores Island, Clayoquot Sound, BC

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This is huge - literally! I’m thrilled to share images of what may very well be Canada’s most impressive tree. This gargantuan redcedar measures over 17 ft (5 m) wide near its base and 151 ft (46 m) tall. However, unlike most other trees, its trunk gets wider going upwards, culminating in a sprawling fortress-like crown of wooden spires akin to a massive wooden wall of an ancient castle.

This giant could possibly have the largest or near largest wood volume of any tree in Canada for about the first 50 feet of its trunk - the part you see and experience from the ground. This would make it, experientially, perhaps the most impressive tree in Canada, despite other cedars being taller or ranking higher overall.

It grows in a remote region of Flores Island in Ahousaht territory in Clayoquot Sound, BC, and has so far garnered the nickname ‘The Wall’, or ‘ʔiiḥaq ḥumiis’, meaning ‘big redcedar’ in the Nuu-chah-nulth language. The exact location has been asked to be kept private at this time.

I first located and photographed the tree while exploring with my friend, Nathaniel Glickman, as part of my project work as a National Geographic and Royal Canadian Geographical Society Explorer. Approaching it for the first time, I was almost in disbelief that it could be real. The scale of its looming trunk and sprawling canopy was absolutely mind-blowing. It's like a living fortress. In my nearly twenty years of searching for the biggest trees in BC, coming across this one has been the pinnacle of my career thus far.

In the spring of 2023, I returned with Tyson Atleo, Hereditary Representative of the Ahousaht Nation and the Natural Climate Solutions Program Director of Nature United, and members of the Maaqutusiis Hahoutlhee Stewardship Society (MHSS).

Thankfully, the incredible Land Use Vision from the Ahousaht Nation, currently in the late stages of negotiations with the BC government, calls for the protection of 80% of Ahousaht territory, including the ancient forest where this tree is found. This would happen through the creation of new Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas (IPCAs) to be legislated as Provincial Conservancies by the province.

The BC government must fully fund and support Indigenous-led protection of old-growth across BC, including in the remaining monumental old-growth stands and those identified as most at risk by the province’s science panel, the Technical Advisory Panel. Speak up here.

I commend the Ahousaht Nation for continuing to be such incredible stewards of their lands, which harbour some of the most magnificent ancient forests, trees, and wildlife on Earth. Those interested in exploring their territory near Tofino should consider joining an eco-cultural tour with Ahous Adventures.

See the Ancient Forest Alliance media release, CBC interview and article, and CHEK News video interview.

Before & After Photos and Need for Conservation Financing to Protect Old-Growth Forests Garners National Headlines

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The urgent need for conservation financing from the BC NDP government to help protect old-growth forests while supporting First Nations, along with my latest before and after photos, has made national headlines.

Tyson Atleo, a Hereditary Chief of the Ahousaht First Nation in Clayoquot Sound, notes, ”Conservation comes with economic costs…especially in communities that depend on forestry revenues. It must be paired with some kind of compensation or support for sustainable economic diversification.” The Ahousaht First Nation has been working to implement their Indigenous-led land-use vision for several years.

Conservation financing is the key element that enabled the large-scale protection of old-growth forests in the Great Bear Rainforest and is now needed elsewhere across BC as the province engages with First Nations to fulfill its commitment to protect old-growth forests.

Where will the money come from? Currently, the federal government has put forward $2.3 billion to expand protected areas in Canada – of which BC’s share could be between $200-$400 million - including a dedicated $55.1 million Old Growth Nature Fund, but only if the province matches this funding. In total, that means that anywhere between $600 million to $1 billion (including some likely additional funding from private and non-governmental sources) could be available to protect vital ecosystems in BC. Negotiations are currently underway to create a BC-Canada Nature Agreement, which is likely to be announced by the end of this year.

This agreement has the potential to be a game-changer for conservation in the province if it’s targeted correctly. Primarily, that means towards the sustainable economic diversification of First Nations’ communities linked to the creation of new Indigenous Protected Areas and focused on the most at-risk old-growth forests, such as those with the biggest trees in the rich valley bottoms, which have been the main target of industry.

The Ancient Forest Alliance has been central in advocating for this funding for years. If you haven’t already, please take a moment and send an instant message calling for conservation financing here:

Read the article below, as well as in the National Post, Globe & Mail, Vancouver Sun, Times Colonist, CHEK News, CBC, and more: https://www.thestar.com/politics/2022/11/27/giant-trees-still-fall-amid-old-growth-funding-lag-for-bc-first-nations.html

Canadian Geographic: Before and after photos show devastating effects of intensive logging on B.C.’s old-growth forests

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See this new article by Madigan Cotterill in Canadian Geographic featuring my latest before and after photo series of old-growth logging in the Caycuse Valley on Vancouver Island, BC: https://canadiangeographic.ca/articles/before-and-after-photos-show-devastating-effects-of-intensive-logging-on-b-c-s-old-growth-forests/

Ancient Forests of BC: TJ Watt Photo Exhibition, Presentation, & Fundraiser Oct. 27th, 2022

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I'm excited to share that my first major photo exhibition in a decade will be taking place from Oct. 26th-30th at the Mahon Hall on Salt Spring Island!

See: https://ancientforestalliance.org/tj-watt-photo-exhibition-salt-spring-island/

The show will feature 20 large-scale images that will be mounted on aluminum, signed, and for sale as a fundraiser for the Endangered Ecosystems Alliance and Nature-Based Solutions Foundation, organizations that Ancient Forest Alliance regularly partners with.

There will also be a special event night with snacks and presentations from myself and Ken Wu on Thursday, Oct. 27th from 6:30-9:00pm. Tickets are $35 and can be purchased at the door or online here.

The event open to the public free of charge from 10am-5pm between Oct. 26th-30th as well.

For those who can't attend in person, there is an online store where prints can be purchased.

I hope to see you there and be sure to share the details with any folks you know that might like to go!