Brandon Letsinger, long-time Cascadian community leader and diplomat for the Department of Bioregion, was invited to speak about the Cascadia movement at the California Unity Conference in Sacramento, CA on Sunday February 3rd.

Brandon spoke for 30 mins about what makes Cascadia a unique social, cultural and political movement and on how we are rooted in bioregionalism, a philosophy stemming from a love and responsibility for the naturally-defined region in which we live.

The California Unity Conference was attended by active leaders and members of the various California independence movements, including the California National Party (CNP), YesCalifornia!, Free the Independent California Institute, and other secessionists – including direct action leaders and some running for various political positions. The conference was designed to bring all the independence-minded parties together, despite differences they may have, in order to better unify around the ultimate goal of an independent California.

As Cascadians, we were proud to represent our bioregion and introduce bioregionalism to the Californians we met today. Most had heard of Cascadia and were familiar with our beloved Doug flag, but bringing bioregionalism as a concept into the conversation brought a new and unique element of the conference. We were met with a lot of excitement and the Californians, though they love their arbitrary state borderline, agree that bioregionalism just makes sense!

For now, we’ve agreed to shelf the discussion of whether the part of Northern California that falls within Cascadia’s borders should be with an independent California nation or with Cascadia. We say let the people decide – or why not a dual citizenship zone?

Looking forward to continuing the conversations begun here!