From Envirowiki

Direct action is a form of protest that intervenes in the problem, and is most often counter-posed to "demonstration" which attempts to communicate to decision makers to call on them to intervene.

Though there is wide variation in the use and definition of the term, the use of the word "direct" usually requires that the action be some kind of intervention. A forestry blockade that ties up machinery to prevent logging is an example of direct action, as is a picket -- where people are prevented from going to work.

Whether or not a boycott is direct action is debatable, and depends on the target and effect of the boycott. The green bans by the Builders Labourers Federation in Australia in the 1970s were direct action, since they actually prevented work on the destructive activity which was the subject of the protest.

Direct Action (DA) is often coupled with the epithet "non-violent" to form the popular acronym NVDA.