Originally published in 1990, Paradise Won has been updated and details the epic 12-year struggle to stop logging in the unique global ecosystem referred to as "Canada's Galapagos."
Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve is located in the southernmost part of Haida Gwaii (formerly known as the Queen Charlotte Islands), 130 kilometres off the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. Gwaii Haanas protects an archipelago of 138 islands in the territory of the Haida people, who have lived in Haida Gwaii for well over 14,000 years.
From the 1970s through the early 1980s, plans to expand logging in the area led to the first concerted efforts to protect Gwaii Haanas and – in 1985 – the Haida Nation created the "Haida Heritage Site." In spite of efforts to protect the landscape, logging continued and resulted in a prolonged legal and political battle. In 1987, logging finally ended when the governments of Canada and British Columbia signed the South Moresby Memorandum of Understanding, which safeguarded the area and permitted shared stewardship, treating the unique marine and terrestrial environments as though they were a national park, though many land claims were still outstanding.
This updated edition of Paradise Won includes a new foreword by the author and will bring back into focus this remarkable story of the power and importance of Indigenous rights and how activism can spur average citizens to action in order to fight climate change and protect fragile ecosystems everywhere.
"In addition to being an amazing story, this book demonstrates why Elizabeth May is a leader who deserves the respect and gratitude of every Canadian. All her life she has been courageous, steadfast and principled in her tireless efforts to make Canada live up to its promise."-Robert W. Sandford, author of Water, Weather and the Mountain West; Cold Matters; Our Vanishing Glaciers; The Anthropocene Disruption; Rain Comin' Down and numerous others
"Haida Gwaii is recognized today as one of the last remaining and most spectacular intact and sustainably functioning geo-cultural regions in the world. It owes its survival and success to its own fearless Indigenous peoples certainly, but also to committed others like Elizabeth May, for whom anything less than full social and environmental justice was not just unacceptable, but simply out of the question." -Robert W. Sandford, author of Water, Weather and the Mountain West; Cold Matters; Our Vanishing Glaciers; The Anthropocene Disruption; Rain Comin' Down and numerous others
"In the 1970s, British Columbia was embroiled in dozens of battles over the future of its magnificent forests. In Haida Gwaii, billions had already been reaped by forest companies with little beyond a few jobs going to the Haida, the traditional inhabitants of the island archipelago. Forest practices of massive clearcuts decimated salmon spawning rivers and streams, topsoil on steep slopes and wildlife found nowhere else on Earth. To the Haida, forests were not just 'resources' to feed the economy, they were the primary source of food, materials and culture, so they decided to make a stand against further logging at Windy Bay. Supported by environmentalists, the Haida forced Canadians to weigh our economic, political and spiritual stake in the future of this great ecosystem. The Haida have their own powerful perspective on why Windy Bay mattered so much. Elizabeth May provides an environmentalist's insights into how popular and political support were marshalled to protect a priceless heritage. This is an inspiring DIY manual for those involved in the many battles that continue to this day." -David Suzuki, author of Letters to My Grandchildren, The Sacred Balance, Earth Time and many others
"This book is proof that, working together, we can create a better world. Paradise Won is an inspiring read and a shoulder-shake out of defeatist thinking. It is also a timely reminder that there's a lot more
