Just outside the city of Newbury in England, road workers have been building a new highway. To finish it, they must clear away an old forest. But for months, the workers have been blocked. Tree pixies are in the way!
These pixies are not magical elves. They're real environmental protesters. One hundred of them have moved into tree houses in Newbury's forest, west of London, to stop construction workers from destroying the trees. "Britain is a small country," says pixie Becca Lush. "It can't afford to destroy its woodland."
The tree pixies communicate tree-to-tree by using cellular phones, two-way radios and laptop computers. Their tree houses are connected by ropes and built without nails, which might harm trees.
One style of tree house called a "twig-loo" is built on a net frame that hangs from several trees. Canvas goes over bent wooden poles attached to the frame.
Treetop life is peaceful, the pixies say. But it can be dangerous. A 50-foot fall would cause serious injuries. Tree pixies are trained to climb, and they always wear safety equipment.
Not everyone is pleased with the protesters. People in Newbury have waited 25 years for a highway to end the city's awful traffic jams. Some are angry about the construction delay.
But the pixies won't budge. "We need to defend what's left of our environment," Lush says.
Do you think living in a tree is a good way to protest? Or should the pixies let Newbury have its road?