An activist looks back on a citizen campaign that shook a city,
exposing the roots of society's core values about the environment
by Catherine J. Rourke
Published January 10, 2009
The poet William Blake once said: “The tree that moves some to tears of joy is, in the eyes of others, just a green thing that stands in the way of progress.”
Global spiritual film distributor and environmental activist Jim Law, of Sedona-based VOICE Entertainment (converging spirituality, science and quantum physics), is one of those people moved to tears of joy by a tree. In 2007 he led a grass-roots citizen campaign to save Sedona’s sycamores – approximately 60 heritage, 300-year-old trees slated for demolition due to the Highway 179 road expansion project near the city’s Tlaquepaque landmark.
As a result of his collaborative effort with many other community leaders and activists, a majority of the trees were salvaged. While the story “Barking Up the Wrong Tree” (The Sedona Observer, Oct. 21, 2007) documents a chronology of this remarkable campaign, it’s time to revisit the status of the road reconstruction project and gauge its influence over the past year on the trees and surrounding environment.
Has the Arizona Dept. of Transportation responded to the Sedona community’s demand for the preservation of its irreplaceable natural heritage?
In our video by Stephen DeVol, Law answers that question, explaining in his own words the highway’s impact on the sycamores this past year, and speaks to us about the intrinsic value of these amazing trees, their critical role in reducing the effects of global warming and their benefits to the local ecosystem.
Education and enlightenment
Walking with Law in a grove of sycamores will enlighten you more about these venerable giants than any ecology book. “It’s not just about the trees,” he says, looking up into the expansive branches of a mighty sycamore near Oak Creek. “It goes much deeper than that. It’s about our values and our attitudes.”
“If trees could scream, would we be so cavalier about cutting them down?”
- Jack Handey
The Sedona Observer’s investigative report, “Secrets of the Sycamores,” combined science and spirit to highlight the wonder of the sycamores and offer a lesson in environmental stewardship from the Sedona community for others across America. No other single story has generated so many enthusiastic letters to the editor from around the nation as this one did.
By emphasizing the interconnectedness of all things − between the sycamores and the ecosystems they support…the insects that depend on these trees and work to ensure, in turn, the trees’ survival…the lizards and blue herons for whom these trees provide necessary shelter…the dozens of species of birds that rely specifically on sycamore leaves as a primary food source − we joined Law in his call to action to protect and respect these amazing creatures.
For weeks local citizens led protests around the trees and bulldozers while an anxious community waited for a Julia Butterfly-style tree sitter to emerge, most expecting one in the form of Law himself. But local leaders eventually stepped in to negotiate with ADOT representatives for a viable alternative to the road design that cut a swath through the ground these trees had rooted themselves in centuries ago.
“Tree sitting is a last resort.
When you see someone sitting in a tree trying to protect it,
you know that every level of our society has failed."
− Julia Butterfly Hill, The Legacy of Luna (HarperCollins, 2000)
Sycamore secrets
What are the secrets of the sycamores?
These trees have withstood all of the area’s storms, floods, fires, winds and droughts for more than a century. Yet they have remained firmly rooted against change and withstood so many challenges to their growth – man, weather, environment, development, cars, chemicals, bugs and now road construction. In that, they offer us lessons in resilience and fortitude for the storms and disruptions of our own lives.
Just one sycamore alone processes the pollution of 26 cars speeding along Highway 179. Just one solitary sycamore pod contains 800 seeds that provide sustenance for countless creatures. Just one of its giant roots helps to clean surrounding groundwater. Read more of these spectacular contributions to the local ecosystem and to humanity in the story, "Secrets of the Sycamores" (The Sedona Observer, Oct. 21, 2007).
What kind of society would trade this incredible gift – the beauty and splendor of the sycamores and the life that inhabits them – for road development, paper cups and two-by-fours?
To allow such a tradeoff is equivalent to destroying a great work of art that has taken centuries to create. To allow their demise is to cut off their contributions to our community and environment, slamming the door on Sedona, the planet and our very future.
“Treesare poems that earth writes upon the sky,
We fell them down and turn them into paper,
That we may record our emptiness. “
− Kahlil Gibran
Jim Law and other community members taught us to embrace the value of the sycamores while examining our own values on a much deeper level. We thank them for this tremendous lesson – and ADOT for listening.
Read the full story on the sycamores, “Barking Up the Wrong Tree,” recipient of two First Place national and state journalism awards for “News Commentary Writing for the Web” from the National Federation of Press Women and Arizona Press Women.
Catherine Rourke is an award-winning journalist who edits and publishes The Sedona Observer.Visit the WHO page for more information or e-mail editor@SedonaObserver.com.
Views and statements expressed here do not necessarily represent the editorial stance of this newspaper. The Sedona Observer abides by media law and upholds the time-honored policies of the Journalism Code of Ethics. It publishes all opinions under the First Amendment and welcomes those with opposing views to post their comments and letters.
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