Forests, war and ashes | March update (Patreon)

Dear PatronsBefore I share some feedback from our latest HGA, I want to let you know that we deeply appreciate your support during this period. We know many are feeling the pressure of increased costs as the world is dragged deeper into chaos courtesy of the orange shitgibbon. So just like during covid, we feel blessed to have our Patrons supporting us to keep chronicling the fuckery and amplifying the solutions.

Now more than ever, we need trusted voices in our media that help us to stay sanely and healthily informed about what's happening rather than sticking our heads in the sand. The Juice Media has earned a reputation as a trusted source of information, evidence-based summaries and well-placed fuck-you's, and feel we have a responsibility to continue providing this service. But let's be clear: we could never do it without your support. So our pledge to you is to keep working hard to make sure your support is converted into content that informs and helps folks stay sane and ready to take action when needed. Which is why I am stoked to see how our latest HGA about Alcoa performed.The video was shared over 25,000 times on instagram, and passed 1M views in just one week. Combined with another 700k views on other platforms, it had about 1.7M views. (Note: YouTube views have been heavily impacted since the social media ban was implemented).But views aren't the only metric here; more importantly, many people who watched our video were inspired to attend the march for forests in Perth last Sunday, which drew a huge crowd.

I know, because we had people writing to let us know they heard of the march via our video. As well as organisers, thanking us for helping to amplify the event.

I also want to share some personal feedback I received from someone I deeply admire. Jess Beckerling is a staunch defender of the forest and has been fearelessly leading the fight to expose Alcoa's fuckery in the Northern Jarrah Forest. I think of her as a human manifestation of the Lorax. (If you don't already follow her, please do so here.)

When I reached out to see if we could lend a hand, Jess met and briefed me on the situation, connecting me with other people in this fight. And we turned the video around in just 2 weeks from start to finish, just in time for the march in Perth. So it was truly special to receive this message from her; and I want to share it with you too, so that you can share in the sense of purpose I feel when we can help people like Jess do their important work in the world.

The HGA also generated some feedback in the media. Such as this piece by Gwenaël Velge at the Minerals Policy Institute, which perceptively keys into the concept of "national interest" mentioned in the HGA.

If you've been paying close attention, our government's use of a "national interest" exemption to approve Alcoa's mining is not an isolated phenomenon: the same strategy is being invoked in Canada (with the Ksi Lisims LNG and PRGT pipeline) and New Zealand (with Denniston Plateau). As the Environmental Defenders Office rightly points out, this is another way in which the rule of law is being undermined. I plan to cover this more deeply in a future HGA.I'd like to finish this post on a personal note. Some of you might recall the post I shared with you here two years ago when my mother Paula passed away. I was truly moved by the responses from many of you, thank you.Today is the anniversary of Paula's passing. So we'll be scattering what's left of her ashes.The year she died, I scattered some of her ashes from the top of Table Mountain in Cape Town, where she was born. The following year, we scattered some of her ashes from the Ponte Vecchio in Florence, a place she loved dearly and where she brought me into the world. And today we'll be scattering the rest of her ashes in another special place to her, the karri and tingle forests of south-west Australia, where mum used to bring us on summer holidays. We'll do this in memory not just of Paula. but all our loved ones. I know many of you have lost a loved one, too. They never leave us of course. They are here and live on in us.With love and gratitudeGiordano