When 23-year-old Julia Butterfly Hill climbed 200 feet into the canopy of a towering redwood tree in Northern California, she wasn’t just seeking adventure—she was starting a protest that would become one of the most iconic acts of environmental activism in history. The tree, affectionately named Luna, was a thousand-year-old giant, threatened by aggressive logging operations.
Hill’s mission was deeply personal and profoundly urgent: protect Luna from being cut down by the Pacific Lumber Company , a subsidiary of Maxxam Corporation. The company was clear-cutting ancient redwoods for profit, despite growing public concern about deforestation and environmental degradation.
Her tree-sit began in December 1997, and what was meant to last a few weeks turned into a 738-day stand-off—an act of courage and endurance that drew international attention.
Perched on a 6-by-8-foot platform, Hill endured howling storms, freezing temperatures, and complete isolation. She was harassed by loggers, battled illness, and survived more than two full winters suspended in the sky. Yet through it all, she remained committed to her cause.
“The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do,” Hill said during the protest.
Her platform became a symbol of resistance, and her voice—reaching the world through radio interviews and handwritten letters—galvanized a movement. Luna became more than a tree; it became a symbol of hope and defiance.
In 1999, after two years of activism and negotiations, Hill reached a landmark agreement with Pacific Lumber. The deal, brokered with help from the nonprofit Sanctuary Forest, permanently protected Luna and a two-acre buffer zone. It wasn’t without sacrifice—Hill and her supporters raised $50,000 as part of the agreement—but Luna was spared.
Tragically, the tree was vandalized in 2000, with someone sawing into its base. But thanks to emergency efforts, including the installation of steel support cables, Luna survived and continues to thrive.
Hill’s activism didn’t end there. In 2002, she was deported from Ecuador for protesting an oil pipeline that threatened indigenous lands. In 2003, she joined the war tax resistance movement. And in 2006, she supported the urban farming movement with another tree sit at South Central Farm in Los Angeles.
She chronicled her experience in her book The Legacy of Luna and, though she has since stepped back from the public spotlight, her legacy endures. She continues to inspire a new generation of environmental activists, and people who understand the fragility of our planet.
Hill’s mission was deeply personal and profoundly urgent: protect Luna from being cut down by the Pacific Lumber Company , a subsidiary of Maxxam Corporation. The company was clear-cutting ancient redwoods for profit, despite growing public concern about deforestation and environmental degradation.
Her tree-sit began in December 1997, and what was meant to last a few weeks turned into a 738-day stand-off—an act of courage and endurance that drew international attention.
Aujourd’hui, focus sur une figure emblématique de la défense de l’environnement : Julia Butterfly Hill. En 1997, elle grimpe dans un séquoia millénaire en Californie pour empêcher son abattage et y reste perchée pendant 738 jours.
— Vakita (@vakitamedia) March 24, 2025
Malgré les intempéries et les pressions de la… pic.twitter.com/B9NNgr01mp
Perched on a 6-by-8-foot platform, Hill endured howling storms, freezing temperatures, and complete isolation. She was harassed by loggers, battled illness, and survived more than two full winters suspended in the sky. Yet through it all, she remained committed to her cause.
“The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do,” Hill said during the protest.
Her platform became a symbol of resistance, and her voice—reaching the world through radio interviews and handwritten letters—galvanized a movement. Luna became more than a tree; it became a symbol of hope and defiance.
In 1999, after two years of activism and negotiations, Hill reached a landmark agreement with Pacific Lumber. The deal, brokered with help from the nonprofit Sanctuary Forest, permanently protected Luna and a two-acre buffer zone. It wasn’t without sacrifice—Hill and her supporters raised $50,000 as part of the agreement—but Luna was spared.
"Meet Julia Butterfly Hill. She climbed a giant Redwood-280ft. She stayed up there alone for 2 years, in raging winter storms, surviving many challenges, physical & mental. She saved the whole forest. Never think that YOU a single person can not make a difference" @ hilltopgina pic.twitter.com/HcVqYS5sAh
— #WOMENSART (@womensart1) July 28, 2020
Tragically, the tree was vandalized in 2000, with someone sawing into its base. But thanks to emergency efforts, including the installation of steel support cables, Luna survived and continues to thrive.
Hill’s activism didn’t end there. In 2002, she was deported from Ecuador for protesting an oil pipeline that threatened indigenous lands. In 2003, she joined the war tax resistance movement. And in 2006, she supported the urban farming movement with another tree sit at South Central Farm in Los Angeles.
She chronicled her experience in her book The Legacy of Luna and, though she has since stepped back from the public spotlight, her legacy endures. She continues to inspire a new generation of environmental activists, and people who understand the fragility of our planet.
You may also like
Right to reside in India only for citizens, Rohingya must go: Supreme Court
Man's body found at offshore windfarm as police probe mystery death
X to block over 8,000 accounts in India after government order
Rafale vs F-16: Why Pakistan's F-16s can't match India's Rafales after Operation Sindoor
BBC The One Show viewers 'in bits' as hosts honour 'special' WWII veteran
