A dehydroabietyl dipyridophenazine derivative 6 was synthesized through several steps such as bromation, dinitration, reduction and cyclization by using methyl dehydroabietate as a starting material. The title compound was characterized by 1H NMR, 13C NMR, IR, MS and elementary analysis. Its sensing behaviors toward metal ions were investigated by UV-vis and fluorescence spectroscopy methods. The results showed that compound 6 exhibited a highly selective response to Cu2+.