A life for the trees

A conservation biologist, Mitch Friedman is executive director of Conservation Northwest (known first as Greater Ecosystem Alliance, then Northwest Ecosystem Alliance), which he founded in 1988 after being an activist leader in the ancient forest battles. He was also a founding board member of both The Wildlands Project and American Lands Alliance.

Mitch has received conservation awards from Sunset Magazine, Society for Conservation Biology, The Wilderness Society, Washington Environmental Council, and Northwest Jewish Environmental Project, and in 2003 he was named by Washington Law and Politics Magazine as one of the "25 smartest people in Washington." He has published two books and produced eight video tapes on conservation issues.

Among his best known stunts include:

• many hours spent in the canopy of ancient trees as one of the first tree-sitting protesters
• organized the first spotted owl protection protests
• conceived and organized the Ancient Forest Rescue Expedition, nationwide educational tours featuring a giant log towed by a semi-truck
• executed the first non-logging high bid for a Forest Service timber sale (called Thunder Mountain)
• spearheaded the conservation acquisition of the Loomis State Forest wildlands, as well as the highly successful coalition effort, The Cascades Conservation Partnership

Mitch has two young daughters, Jessie and Carrie, and he lives in Bellingham, Washington.