Passion and Persistence: Fifty Years of the Sierra Club in British Columbia, 1969–2019

Social unrest, political activism, worry about human impact on this earth—sound familiar? In 1969, British Columbians were facing concerns that are still making headlines today. At the end of a decade of changing technological and political landscapes associated with draft dodgers, hippie flower power and the rise of the counterculture, a group of serious-minded citizens created Sierra Club BC to protect and preserve wild places in the province.

From that moment, Sierra Club BC played an important role in many of the environmental issues in the province, from the protection of the Nitinat Triangle and the West Coast Trail in 1972; to the 1993 War in the Woods, the largest act of civil disobedience in Canadian history; to a twenty-year campaign that culminated in protection of the Great Bear Rainforest; to the ongoing opposition to the Site C Dam and the Trans Mountain pipeline. In fifty years, the club has helped to convince governments on both sides of the political spectrum to protect 15 per cent of BC’s land base and just over 3 percent of BC’s marine areas from development. Still active today, Sierra Club BC has thousands of members, volunteers and supporters, all working to protect the province’s wild areas and confront climate change.

Diane Pinch’s non-fiction homage to Sierra Club BC provides an overview of the lasting impact the group has had, not only in BC, but in all of Canada. Replete with first-hand accounts, maps and photos, the book is a heartfelt in-depth look at environmentalism in Western Canada through the years, from the perspective of one of the most influential groups in operation. Sierra Club BC’s philosophy of “passion and persistence” and commitment to science-based evidence and peaceful activism have given the club its incredible staying power.

“Author Diane Pinch, a long time Sierra Club of BC (SCBC) member, offers an important aspect of our provincial history, employing prose that is engaging and accessible and using first hand accounts, archival club materials, maps and photographs.”

“...a useful, well-grounded summary... provides a succinct account of the issues and the [Sierra Club BC] players involved, as well as a useful primer on environmental issues in the province.”

“Pinch shares the group’s work through the words of its activists. Her book contains excerpts from more than thirty interviews she conducted with the club’s founders, employees, and volunteers. They help to colour the narrative and provide valuable insight regarding different movements in which the club has participated—from fighting for the protection of wild and marine spaces to its advocacy regarding the impacts of climate change.”