We Stand Up for What we Love
A new campaign for the end of the year to honor and celebrate the things we love in this world
We stand up for what we love, and right now as we make our way to 2025, a lot of us may need a way to rekindle our love for this planet we are so lucky to live on.
This kind of love is foundational to good work, to making positive change in this world, and empowering kids to feel connected in meaningful, joy filled ways to the outdoors.
The new year is coming. Let’s make it a good one by celebrating the outdoors with pride and joy. Let’s stay curious and remember how how intricately tied we are to the more-than-human-world.
A New Campaign to Share and Show our Love
Today I’m excited to share the launch of a new campaign through an online store that my creative partner
and I have put together in connection to our educational work at Art Nature Place that is rooted in this very ethos of love and connection.The first of these features the mighty coniferous ecosystem of trees and ferns that plays such a vital role in our planet’s health.
This is a nature illustration series that we envision as first in a series of limited design releases created with the goal of bringing attention to the ways we are connected to the world beyond our front door.
It’s a design series… and it’s also education campaign.
Because coniferous trees take center stage in holiday decorations this time of year. But how much do we talk about their importance to our planet’s health?
Thinking beyond the “Christmas Tree”
Conifers are essential to our planet's biodiversity.
These ancient trees are for more than decorations for the holiday season.
They play a critical role in carbon sequestration, helping to mitigate climate change by absorbing vast amounts of CO2 and purify the air to support our own health.
They provide habitats for countless species, protect soil from erosion, and regulate water cycles.
And most of all, their resilience in harsh climates demonstrates the importance of preserving ecosystems that support life even in the most challenging conditions.
Over the next few weeks I’ll be sharing more about conifers and their symbiotic neighbor, ferns — which thrive in damp low light conditions of conifer forests.
And I’ll talk about some of the threats to conifer trees such as Western redcedar, in particular, to help us understand how we can help protect these ecosystems for future generations.
More about the Conifers Campaign
This campaign is also a celebration. And we are excited about the designs we’ve created to show that love in gift form.
We’ve created this limited edition campaign to run through the holiday season with three designs that we made especially for shirts and mugs sold through our new Bonfire Store.
Why Bonfire? Because Bonfire’s has long supported nonprofits and small creatives through a system that allows for small batch short run campaigns to support good causes. (Want to learn more? While you’re exploring our store, check out the store for Confluence, one of my favorite nonprofit orgs that I’ve been a partner with over the years).
The ferns in this design are available on mugs, and features three separate species.
The cones and conifers designs are on t-shirts and sweatshirts for kids and adults — multiple colors and size inclusive, up to 4XL in most designs.
The conifers, cones, and ferns series will only be available limited time during the holiday season.
For any gift to arrive by Christmas, we recommend a December 8 order deadline. This design series will only be available until December 31.
Finally, a Farewell to Fall
The launch of this campaign marks the beginning of the holiday season…and the end of one of the loveliest times of year.
Even if fall isn’t officially over, the signs of winter are here.
So I want end my post today on the eve of Thanksgiving with a favorite quote from the great Octavia Butler, from Parable of the Sower, that I’m drawn to whenever I am feeling the a strong sense of change. Whether you love or loathe the changing season, I hope this quote brings you peace.
“Create no images of God. Accept the images that God has provided. They are everywhere, in everything. God is Change— Seed to tree, tree to forest; Rain to river, river to sea; Grubs to bees, bees to swarm. From one, many; from many, one; Forever uniting, growing, dissolving— forever Changing. The universe is God’s self-portrait.”
May you have a wonderful week ahead — whether it’s with family, friends, in solitude, or in commune with the final days of autumn! Until next time!