SpokenUp: a public record of British Columbians who have already spoken up
SpokenUp is an independent public-interest project created and run by the Boundary Forest Watershed Stewardship Society (BFWSS), a rural, registered non-profit society based in Grand Forks, British Columbia.
We are collecting this information to create a province-wide public record of people who have already spoken up about forestry, watersheds, flooding, fires, drinking water, community impacts, and local jobs – and what happened when they did.
This project exists because people across BC are repeatedly told that “not enough people are speaking up” – despite years of letters, meetings, reports, complaints, and public processes.
SpokenUp documents that reality, clearly and credibly.
This is not a government program, and it is not a consultation. It is an independently collected record intended to show – with real numbers and real experiences – that British Columbians have been speaking up for years.
Ready to add your experience to the public record?
Why we are collecting this information
Across the province, people have:
- written to MLAs and ministries
- attended meetings and hearings
- submitted reports and complaints
- organized locally to protect forests and water
And yet, again and again, those efforts are dismissed, delayed, or ignored.
SpokenUp exists to gather that scattered effort into one place, so decision-makers, media, and the public can no longer claim that concern is minimal or isolated.
Our goal is to:
- document the scale and persistence of public action
- show where people are being ignored or sent in circles
- provide credible evidence for policy discussions and reform
- support the case for structural change to BC’s forestry laws, including the New Forest Act
Who we are
The Boundary Forest Watershed Stewardship Society (BFWSS) is a grassroots, non-profit organization working on forest and watershed issues in British Columbia.
We have spent years working with communities across BC on:
- forest policy and legislation
- watershed impacts and public safety
- forestry jobs and local economies
- long-term structural reform, including the development of the New Forest Act proposal
SpokenUp is part of that work.
How your information will be used
When you add your experience to SpokenUp:
- Your submission is reviewed before being included
- Your contact details are never published
- You choose how (or if) your story and name appear publicly
- Information is shared only in aggregated form unless you opt otherwise
We compile submissions into summary reports and patterns that are shared publicly and used to support policy discussions and advocacy for forest reform.
The data will be used to:
- publish province-wide summaries (by region, watershed, and type of action)
- brief MLAs, councils, journalists, and researchers
- demonstrate patterns of ignored public input
- support public education and advocacy around forestry reform
We do not sell data. You may request removal of your submission at any time.
Add your experience to the public record
Across British Columbia, people are witnessing and experiencing the impacts of how forests are managed – from muddy creeks and disappearing drinking water to floods, fires, landslides, mill closures, and lost livelihoods.
Many have tried to raise concerns. Many have been ignored.
SpokenUp provides one place to record what you tried, where, and what happened.
It takes about 5 minutes. Click the gold button to record your story.
British Columbians documenting what’s happening in their forests and watersheds due to forestry.
For years, people across British Columbia have been seeing the warning signs:
- creeks running brown
- landslides where they’ve never happened before
- floods hitting harder
- drinking water disappearing
- wildlife vanishing
- mills closing
- lakes logged to the edge
Until now, there was no single place to record these experiences. Everything was scattered – and easy for government to ignore.
SpokenUp changes that.
SpokenUp is a public, province-wide database of real experiences from people living with the impacts of BC’s forestry system – anyone who’s watched the impacts of industrial forestry up close.
Your story matters. And it helps build accountability.
Why SpokenUp matters
✔ It gives British Columbians one place to speak with a unified voice.
✔ It puts lived experience beside hard data.
✔ It gives MLAs and councils information they can’t pretend they never saw.
✔ It helps researchers, journalists, and community groups track patterns across the province.
✔ It creates public accountability where there has been none.
Share what you’ve seen.
Whether it’s a single instance or a detailed account, every submission helps build a fuller picture of what’s happening in BC’s forests and watersheds.
Your story will appear (with your permission) in a province-wide map and/or database that shows the real impacts of broken forestry policy in a system where many people have reported concerns about policy outcomes.
This form is managed by the Boundary Forest Watershed Stewardship Society (BFWSS). Your submission becomes part of an independently maintained public record.
Privacy
You choose what’s public (your name, initials, or keep your name private when your data/story is published). Your email will never be shared.
What You Can Report
- muddy creeks
- sediment runoff
- landslides
- floods
- dried-up wells
- disappearing water
- blown-out roads
- mill closures
- safety risks
- biodiversity loss
- snowpack changes
- smoke, fire, fuel buildup
- wildlife/aquatic life issues
- recreation site problems
- rule breaking
- anything you see on the land
Want to take the next step?
Once you’ve added your experience to the record, you can also choose to add your name to the New Forest Act petition below.
This allows decision-makers to see both the evidence and the public support behind the call for structural reform.
Please consider:
- Signing the petition below.
- Donating to the New Forest Act Campaign. Help us keep this database alive.