Protesters arrested on March 31, 1989 during forest protests on the Willamette National Forest east of Salem.

‘Timber Wars’ episode 1: The last stand

The behind-the-scenes story of how a small group of activists and scientists turned the fight over ancient trees and the spotted owl into one of the biggest environmental conflicts of the 20th century.

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A northern spotted owl in the old growth forest of Oregon

‘Timber Wars’ episode 3: The owl

How a reclusive bird halted the march of chainsaws through the Northwest's last stands of ancient forest.


‘Timber Wars’ episode 4: Mill City

Before the protests and court cases, Mill City lived up to its name as a place where sawmills created plenty of jobs.


‘Timber Wars’ episode 5: The plan

The Timber Wars reached a scale that the president held a first-of-its-kind summit to broker peace to an environmental conflict.





‘Timber Wars’ bonus episode: Wildfire

The fight over wildfire and forest management is the newest front in the Timber Wars, so after a year of record fires, we take a deep dive into OPB's reporting on wildfire and what we should do about it.


The woman who would talk to trees

Renowned forest ecologist Suzanne Simard’s research into the ways trees communicate has inspired everything from “Avatar” to “The Overstory.” Now she has a memoir of her own sharing her journey from growing up in a small logging town to the research that revolutionized how we see forests.

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Thirty years ago, the Northwest was torn apart in a fight over trees, owls and the meaning of the natural world. “Timber Wars” looks at the history and consequences of this conflict. Subscribe now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and the NPR One app.