To The Trees
From award-winning documentary filmmaker Eleanor Goldfield, To the Trees takes audiences deep into Northern California’s ancient redwood forests, where Indigenous leaders, forest advocates, and tree-sitters are working to protect forests threatened by logging and extraction.
Highlighting a range of forest defense tactics, the film asks us to reconsider our relationship with nature—and why reframing that relationship is vital to our survival and a livable future.
about the film
In the breathtaking redwood forests of Northern California, Indigenous people, forest advocates, and tree-sitters are working to protect the remaining old-growth redwoods and the second-growth forests beginning to thrive again.
Through tree-sits, legal action, and efforts to reclaim and steward ancestral lands, To the Trees reveals the many forms forest defense can take—and the people placing themselves on the front lines to protect fragile habitats from continued logging and extraction.
Among the most carbon-dense forests in the world, redwoods are vital to a stable climate. They also inspire something less easily measured: awe, connection, and a deeper understanding of humanity’s place within the natural world. Both an urgent environmental story and a visually stunning tribute to these ancient forests, To the Trees asks audiences to reconsider their relationship with nature—and what they are willing to do to defend what they love.
Ultimately, To The Trees is about protecting ancient forests while fostering a broader culture of stewardship and sustainability.
In-person and virtual screenings are available for classroom, campus, at-home, and community viewings. total runtime: 35 minutes
available resources
Watch Party Guide • Educational Resource Guide • Take Action
for educators
Bring the Redwoods into the Classroom
At just 35 minutes, To the Trees fits within a class period and invites students to explore the relationship between people and the natural world. Six short, topic-based resources—language, activism, economics, health, identity, and history—can be used individually or combined into a flexible, interdisciplinary unit.
professional development · six standalone resources · standards aligned · cross-curricular
Eleanor’s documentary is beautiful and contains a lot of wisdom—not just about the forests, but about resistance in general.
— Jenny Odell
New York Times bestselling author
