‘Rally for Native Forests’ at Urunga one of ten across the country Coffs Coast Nambucca Valley by News Of The Area - Modern Media - October 31, 2024 The Wild Women of Anywhere Beach will perform at the Urunga rally. Photo: Bob Brown Foundation. THE Bob Brown Foundation has organised ten simultaneous events across the country on Saturday, 3 November to highlight its opposition to native forest logging. The local ‘Rally for Native Forests’ will be held at the Morgo St Reserve, Urunga from 10:00 to 11.30am. Advertise with News of The Area today. It’s worth it for your business. Message us. Phone us – (02) 4981 8882. Email us – media@newsofthearea.com.au The Foundation is expecting thousands of people to join the rallies and call for an end to native forest logging. Opponents say the practice is accelerating the climate and biodiversity crises, causing worse bushfires, and destroying critical habitat for endangered koalas and Greater Gliders. The Welcome to country will be delivered by Dean Kelly, a Gumbaynggirr man and traditional custodian of the Urunga area. Master of Ceremonies will be Cath Eaglesham, President of Bellingen Environment Centre. Speakers include Anastasia Guise, the co-editor of “Fire Stories”, a multimodal storytelling project documenting the social and environmental impacts of the Black Summer fires on the Northern Rivers region of NSW. She will be followed by Dr John Corkill, a founding member of North East Forest Alliance and Dr Grahame Douglas, an expert on the proposal for a Great Koala National Park. Young environmentalist Erik Nelson, a HSC student at Coffs Harbour Senior College, will also address attendees. Meredith Stanton from the Blicks River Guardians and representatives from the Friends of Pine Creek and Forest Ecology Alliance will discuss the grassroots resistance movement pushing back against the logging of native forests. Musicians to play at the event include the Wild Women of Anywhere Beach, Bellingen singer-songwriter Inga Van Dyke, and the Pine Creek choir, who will sing a peaceful protest song to end the Rally. By Andrew VIVIAN
