Global – Page 85 – Earth First!

Sitting on piles of coal, revolting peasants, trashing things & fixing other things together, it’s the latest EF! Action Update

Smelters smelted and woodchippers chipped, protestors around the world have been busy again taking action against the planet-trashers – read all about it in the latest quarterly EF! Action Update.

This EF!AU is jam packed with exciting actions, plus features on international resistance against coal in time for this year’s Camp for Climate Action, a resurgence of anti-genetics campaigning, and proposals for a rolling blockade next year of Kingsnorth. You’ll be inspired to Taste the Waste, Leave it in the Ground and who knows what else!

With stories of greenwash laid bare, guerrilla-gardening, revolting peasants, protest camps against coal mines and airports, buildings burnt down, conveyors and trains stopped, tires deflated, GM fields liberated & ‘trials’ decontaminated, despite tear-gas, jail threats, and fortress-like field protection, continuing resistance in Mayo & Iceland, and campaign successes, the diverse uses of superglue just become mundane. Got a broken tea cup or an incinerator to shut down? You know what to use!

And if smashing greenhouses or hanging about 60 metres up seems wierd, read on…

Also includes full lists of ecological direct action groups, protest camps & support groups. Batteries not included.

Pick up your copy at the Camp for Climate Action or at your nearest social centre. Or drop us a line at actionupdate AT earthfirst.org.uk and we’ll post you as many as you like for distributing around town and at events.

Download the latest EF!AU to share with others, subscribe or check out some past issues. The next issue will come out at the beginning of November.

And of course, this year’s EF! Summer Gathering (click here for latest news) is from Wednesday 27th August to Monday 1st September 2008, if you want to plot & plan, and laugh & chat with old friends & new.

Latest info on Camp for Climate Action (& action reports during the camp) – useful links including ‘what’s it like’ video

All the latest info you need to have a rewarding Camp for Climate Action is below – read more.

Also please note that during the camp, the best place to get related action reports will be https://indymedia.org.uk/en/actions/2008/climatecamp/, with others on the general IMC newswire. Daily video reports trailer.

We’ll do a round-up of actions & photos afterwards, as last year.

All the latest info you need to have a rewarding Camp for Climate Action is below – read more.

We’ll do a round-up of actions & photos afterwards, as last year.

Getting there | What to bring | Neighbourhoods | Phones & security | Direct action | 9th August mass action | Other useful info about the camp | Workshop programme – you’ll find 2 workshops clearly labelled as EF! but there’ll be EF!ers, such as you dear reader, sprinkled here and there throughout the camp in all sorts of roles, or off site taking action; also check out all the exciting UK coal resistance workshops, mainly in the Welsh neighbourhood & not in the main workshop programme.

Video – Attending the camp. The practicalities, fun, and fears. Views, reassurance, clarification, and enthusiasm from people who attended in 2007, and a little bit of the magic in their words and eyes.

Saving Iceland Shuts Down Geothermal Drilling Work in Hengill

HELLISHEIDI (ICELAND) – This morning the direct action campaign Saving Iceland has occupied one of the main geothermal drill sites in Hengill where the Hellisheidi power plant is being expanded by Reykjavik Energy. 20 activists have chained themselves to machinery and have climbed the drill to hang up a banner saying “Reykjavik Energy out of Hellisheidi and Yemen”. They have also occupied the power control room of the drill site. The power to the drill was shut off and drilling was stopped for the rest of the day. Seven people got arrested. The protest was aimed at Reykjavik Energy supplying electricity to aluminium smelters in Iceland, destruction and pollution of the Hengill area and RE’s sponsoring of severe human rights abuse in Yemen.

In the last week, Saving Iceland took action at the Glencore and ALCOA headquarters in Switzerland as well as all Swiss Icelandic consulates, the Icelandic embassy in Rome, Icelandic consulate in Milan and also the headquarters of Impregilo. In Iceland Century Aluminum and Landsvirkjun both saw two actions against them and now Reykjavik Energy was targeted.

“We have been camping at Hellisheidi for two weeks now and we are witnessing the scale of destruction, most of which is not very visible to the public. People should really come and have a look what is happening here. What used to be a beautiful natural area is now full of tarmac and pollution. It used to be full of tourists. Now the hiker huts are abandoned while mountains are being blown up to power the Century smelters,” says Saving Iceland’s Jaap Krater.

Most of the work is being done by Eastern Europeans who are living in a work camp, in similar conditions to the Karahnjukar construction.

Reykjavik Energy Invest in Yemen
Saving Iceland also criticises Reykjavik Energy for it’s investments in Yemen (1,2), a country with a Shari’a regime, where there is no free press and security services are routinely involved in torture and even extrajudicial executions (3,4).

“RE say that geothermal investments will benefit the poor in the country. The reality is that the energy will not go to the poor. The regime is very corrupt and Yemen is even advertising for aluminium smelters to come there. If someone would have said ten years ago: I’m making a deal with Sadam Hussein to help the poor, would you believe them?”
“RE should not make deals with anyone involved in serious human rights violations, whether it’s a fundamentalist state or heavy industry corporations,” says Krater.

Impact of Hellisheidi extension
The environmental impact asessment for Hellisheidarvrikjun says explicitly that the only purpose is to supply energy for the Century expansion at Grundartangi and possible new ALCAN and Century plants at Straumsvik and Helguvik (5). At the same time, farmers pay twice as much for electricity as these corporations (6).
Saving Iceland has published reports documenting a long list of human rights violations of these companies (7, 8).

Saving Iceland spokespeople Miriam Rose and Jaap Krater have documented the effects of the geothermal power in Hengill in the journal the Ecologist (9):

“Laced with various and sometimes toxic compounds from deep within the bedrock, the [geothermal borehole] water is either pumped back into the borehole – which can lead to geological instability – or is pumped untreated into streams and lakes. This particular technique has already created a huge dead zone in lake Thingvallavatn.”

Pictures of the physical impact of the drilling can be seen on the Saving Iceland website (10 / see below)

About Saving Iceland
In the last two weeks, Saving Iceland stopped work at the construction site of Century Aluminum’s planned new smelter in Helguvík, they blockaded the existing Century smelter on Hvalfjordur, and took a number of actions against Landsvirkjun, Iceland’s national power company. This is part of their fourth summer of direct action against heavy industry in Iceland.
Saving Iceland was started by Icelandic environmentalists asking for help to protest the Icelandic wilderness, the largest remaining in Europe, from heavy industry. Aluminium corporations Alcoa, Century Aluminum and Rio Tinto-Alcan want to construct new smelters. This would require exploitation of all the geothermal areas in the country, as well as damming all major glacial rivers (see http://www.savingiceland.org/sos).
This year, the fourth action camp to protect Icelandic nature has been set up near the Hellisheidi geothermal plant.

More information
http://www.savingiceland.org
savingiceland at riseup.net

References

1. Yemen News Agency (2008). Yemen, Icelandic REI sign document to invest in generating electricity by geothermal. http://www.sabanews.net/en/news151190.ht… [Accessed July 27th, 2008]
I2. ceNews (208). Electricity agreement signed between Yemen and Iceland. http://www.icenews.is/index.php/2008/04/… [Accessed July 27th, 2008]
3. BBC News (2008). Country Profile: Yemen. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_… [Accessed July 17th, 2008]
4. Embassy of Yemen in the US (2008). http://www.yemenembassy.org/economic/ind…. [Accessed July 17th, 2008]
5. VGK (2006). Environmental Impact Assesment fot Helisheidarvirkjun. VGK, Reykjavik.
6. Iceland Review (2007). Century Smelter to Pay Less for Energy than Farmers. June 7th 2007. Also available at http://savingiceland.puscii.nl/?p=821. [Accessed July 27th, 2008]
7. Saving Iceland (2007). Alcan’s Links to the Arms Industry. http://savingiceland.puscii.nl/?p=882 [Accessed July 27th, 2008]
8. Saving Iceland Press Release (2007). Saving Iceland Blockades Century and ELKEM. http://savingiceland.puscii.nl/?p=841 [Accessed July 27th, 2008]
9. Krater, J., Rose, M., Anslow, M. (2007). Aluminium Tyrants. The Ecologist 2007 (10). Also available at http://savingiceland.puscii.nl/?p=1021 [Accessed July 27th, 2008]
10. Saving Iceland (2008). Destruction of Hengill. http://savingiceland.puscii.nl/?page_id=… [Accessed July 27th, 2008]

EarthFirst! gathering workshop call & travel info

LAST CALL FOR RUNNING WORKSHOPS

at the Earth First! Summer Gathering
Ecological Direct Action without Compromise
27 Aug – 1 Sept 2008, Norfolk

Get in touch if you or your campaign/group/network would like to run a workshop or session at the gathering, especially if you can offer workshops on action training, direct action campaigns, ecology, ecological restoration and sustainable living.

Email us on summergathering _ AT _ earthfirst.org.uk or ring 01524 383012

Deadline 12 August!

We’ve already got lots of workshops confirmed. Join us for:

LAST CALL FOR RUNNING WORKSHOPS

at the Earth First! Summer Gathering
Ecological Direct Action without Compromise
27 Aug – 1 Sept 2008, Norfolk

Email us on summergathering _ AT _ earthfirst.org.uk or ring 01524 383012

Deadline 12 August!

We’ve already got lots of workshops confirmed. Join us for:

DIRECT ACTION TRAINING
including: Blockading, reccies for actions, security for actions, how to plan actions, legal and arrest info, map reading for beginners, squatting, how to run legal support and police liaison

GET INVOLVED IN AND PLAN DIRECT ACTION CAMPAIGNS
Leave it in the ground – resistance to coal
Stopping GM test fields
Saving Iceland: resistance to heavy industry
Food and Climate Change info and action
Opposing the nuclear industry
Biofuels
Smash Edo – what’s happening and intersting lessons for other campaigns
Rising Tide

ECOLOGY AND SUSTAINABLE LIVING
Learn about ecology, eco-centric ethics, sustainable living and ecological restoration including field trips and hands-on work.

There’ll also be international and national action round-ups, regional get-togethers, sessions on strategy, where next and how we communicate.

———

More info about the Earth First! Summer Gathering

Want to do something to stop our planet from getting trashed?

EF! is about direct action to halt the destruction of the Earth. It’s about doing it yourself rather than relying on leaders, governments or industry.
Direct action is at the heart of it, whether you’re standing in front of a bulldozer, shutting down an open-cast mine or ripping up a field of GM crops.

We’re a loose network of people, groups and campaigns coming together for ecological direct action.

Join us for 5 days of workshops, networking and planning actions, run without leaders by everyone who comes along. The gathering is also a
practical example of low-impact eco-living and non-hierarchical organising.

WHERE IS IT?
The gathering is happening on lovely fields less than 3 miles from Diss in Norfolk, with regular trains to Diss and buses from Diss to the site.
We recommend that you arrive Tue evening, as workshops will start on Wednesday morning and run until Sunday afternoon.

FOOD AND WHAT TO BRING
Delicious vegan food will be provided by the Anarchist Teapot for £4 per day, or you can cater for yourself
Bring camping gear – if you want details of B&Bs in the area contact us.
We are asking for a contribution of £15-£25 according to what you can afford.
Dogs: the gathering is held at a dog free site, unfortunately we will have to turn away any dogs that arrive.
Please leave your car at home, it’s really easy to get to by public transport or come by bike. You can also check out our lift sharing board:
http://www.easf.org.uk/forum/viewforum.php?f=15

WHAT YOU’LL FIND ON SITE
Welcome tent at the gate
Workshop spaces
Anarchist Teapot Kitchen
Veggies Cafe
Kids space with toys
Library with books on radical thought and some relaxing fiction
Book stall by Natterjack Press
A space for leaflets and displays
Cinema showing political/campaigns films
Bar
Washing facilities and compost toilets
Sauna and hot tubs
Renewable power

(Please not that the gathering is not a festival)

Find out more and join in!

The nearest train station is up on the website (for booking advance train or coach tickets), and there’s a lift-sharing forum too.

Email us if you can offer a workshop, want to help out with the gathering or if you would like posters and leaflets to distribute.

http://www.earthfirst.org.uk, summergathering _ AT _ earthfirst.org.uk

Phones and privacy at the camp for climate action.

Traditionally it has been the content of communication that has been the focus of government surveillance but the police are increasingly interested in data mining techniques to uncover patterns of association. Simple data, when stored, aggregated and analyzed using sophisticated computer algorithms, contains far more information than is commonly appreciated. Collating mobile phone numbers, and the data retained by network providers, can provide the police with a powerful incite into our networks of associations. This is not only an invasion of our privacy but may also threaten our ability to work together effectively.

At least years climate camp the police were taking people phone from them during stop and search. As well as browsing through people
phonebooks and text messages, they were typing *#06# to get the phones unique serial number (IMEI). They would then look up the registered owner of phone then threaten the holder of the phone with being arrested on suspicion of theft if they refused to prove that they were the owner of the phone by revealing their identity.

To reduce the ability of the police to steal our identities and learn
more about our social networks, please consider the following advice.

Mobile phones are useful tools for communicating and organising – we do not advise you to leave them at home. You will find them essential for staying informed and informing others. However…

Copy the entries in your phonebook and leave it at home.

Delete from your phonebook all but the numbers that will be essential during the week.

Rename those contacts to remove surnames, perhaps using code names instead.

Erase your sent and received call logs and text messages and do repeat this regularly.

Make use of the security features of your phone so that a PIN code is required to access any of its features.

There are generally two types of security on mobile phones, the PIN that protects the phone and PIN2 that protects the SIM card so it can’t be used in another phone without the code. It may be a little inconvenient to have to type in the number each time but it’s better than allowing the cops to browse through your phone book, call logs and messages.

If you can’t set your phone to require a PIN code each time it is used, simply switch off your phone when it looks like a police stop and search is likely.

—-

Might be worth noting about mobiles:

* That the police are also able to retrieve phone calls and sent text messages, both from the phone and the SIM. Once deleted off the phone they are NOT gone for good. If you have made a foolish phone call or sent something dodgy, and you are at risk from having your phone taken, get a whole new phone and SIM card.

* Police can use your mobile as a tracking device of your whereabouts, this evidence has already been used in cases – especially if making a call. This pinpoints your exact location. So don’t take it anywhere you’d rather the cops didn’t know about. Disconnecting the phone by taking out the battery apparently can stop this as the phone is no longer connected to any electrical source.

* Police can bug a mobile and use it as a listening device… if you are saying something you don’t want the cops to hear, and you want to be extra paranoid, remove the battery from your phone or leave it elsewhere. Turning it off will not necessarily work!

* If the cops ever get your phone and give it back to you… give it to someone else not involved in anything you are, donate it to charity or burn it. Do not ever use it again!

—-

Your advice about having an alternative SIM is OK if police are searching the physical phone for text messages. However if you are concerned about surveillance involving your mobile phone company, you should be aware that text messages (and phone calls too I would think) send a SIM ID *and* the phone IMEI. On that basis, sending a message using your contract phone but a PAYG SIM will still be easily traceable to you.

The best approach is to buy a PAYG phone with cash and only top it up with vouchers bought with cash, and use that alongside your regular phone. However you can’t get away from the fact that it is still a location-tracking device. If you have special need to be careful – and that’s a personal judgement – only put the battery in when you are away from your house to collect messages or to make calls. That said if you live in a highly populated area – such as flats in a city – then you have less reason to worry – the location tracking is not very sensitive AFAIK and it’s a right royal pain for the authorities to get the data. If you’re a Climate Camp activist and not part of a terrorist cell then it’s probably too much hassle for them.

It should be obvious but also be careful when sending personally-identifiable information in text messages – telephone numbers, addresses, email addresses, account numbers etc. In theory the same goes for voice content as software now can transcribe voice content quite reliably – however this often can’t be avoided and the best thing to do is not to worry about it too much. Remember: our worrying is what some upper echelons of the police want!

Ultimately for the activist there is a anti-surveillance/convenience trade-off. Don’t get paranoid as this makes you less effective in your chosen field. Be careful but, unless you are doing activism that is targetted for the harshest oppression, tolerate a bit of surveillance rather than re-organising your habits completely to avoid it.

—

DO BRING A PHONE TO CAMP!

If you can, bring a new PAYG phone, don’t fill it with your friends numbers, don’t use it from home and don’t call your mum on it.

Don’t ever put your normal SIM in your new phone or your new SIM in your normal phone.
Use the phone at the climate camp to:
keep the legal team informed about arrests and stop & searches
keep the media team informed about protests and actions
keep yourself informed about things going on around camp and beyond
call for help in a medical emergency

http://www.activistsecurity.org/

I-69 Protesters Shut Down Asphalt Yard Again, Arrestees Face Severe Repression

Fifteen I-69 opponents were arrested Monday morning (15/7/2008) blocking the entrance to Gohmann Asphalt, and need your support and solidarity. Many of them are being held on trumped up felony charges, and some of the female-bodied arrestees have been put in exceedingly unsafe situations. As of this time they are still changing the charges on the fly, and we have been unable to bail out people with serious medical conditions. We are doing our best to make sure everyone is safe and get everyone out, but we need money. Any little bit helps! Donations can be made through our Paypal account on stopi69.wordpress.com

or to the I69 Legal Office, 323 S Walnut, Bloomington, Indiana, 47401

People who have been calling the jail constantly and demanding humane treatment of the arrestees have done a great service, but at this point stopping those calls would make the job of the legal support team significantly easier as we try to keep lines of communication open between us, the arrestees, and the jail/D.A.’s office. THANKS!

****

This morning, over 20 citizens opposed to the construction of Interstate 69 shut down work at the Haubstadt Asphalt Yard belonging to Gohmann Asphalt & Construction, Inc. Five of the opponents locked themselves together in a circle at the yard’s gate, accompanied by five others dedicated to keeping them as comfortable as possible in the face of summer heat and the threat of police violence. With construction slated to begin this week, opponents are demanding that Gohmann immediately drop their contract for work on I-69. Additionally they demand that Gohmann and their accomplices, Riverton Trucking, Inc., drop a spurious civil suit brought against the only I-69 opponent arrested at a previous lock-down at Gohmann Asphalt’s Haubstadt facility.

Gohmann A&C is the primary contractor with the Indiana Department of Transportation for the construction of the first 1.77 miles of Section 1 of the proposed highway from Evansville to Indianapolis. Several weeks prior, five opponents chained themselves to a truck leaving Haubstadt Asphalt Yard belonging to Gohmann Asphalt & Construction, Inc.. The five—accompanied by twenty-five supporters—demanded that Gohmann drop their contract with INDOT or face continued opposition and work stoppages. Until Gohmann drops its contract, opponents will continue to hold them accountable for the evictions of farmers, the disruption of communities, and the devastation of the environment caused by I-69.

I-69 has been hotly contested for almost two decades, with voices raised against its part in the destruction of the environment, the economic prosperity of Southern Indiana communities, and the violation of Hoosiers’ property rights. Although over 70% of Indiana residents are opposed to the road, the governor and corporate interests are ramming I-69 down the throats of Southern Indiana residents in a complete subversion of the democratic process.

Over 400 families will be displaced in Southern Indiana; thousands of acres of farmland, wetlands, and wildlife refuge will be paved over; and the already-polluted tri-state area will face thousands of pounds of increased daily emissions from the increased truck traffic through the region. The interstate is ultimately intended to stretch from Canada to Mexico, linking up with an extensive network of roads being constructed there. The highway is a physical manifestation of NAFTA and other free trade agreements throughout the Americas—the same free trade agreements that have cost 31,000 jobs in Indiana alone since their beginnings in 1994.

“This road is being billed as an economic stimulus for Southern Indiana, but in fact it will only bring minimum wage jobs at truck stops and fast food joints. Meanwhile, all the other jobs are shipped to sweatshops further and further south of the border. The people of Indiana deserve better,” said Judith Mayland, a protestor at the site.

Various citizens’ groups have opposed I-69 for two decades, but with construction starting this week, opponents are stepping up the resistance in order to ensure that the will of the people is enacted.

“We’ve written letters, attended public meetings, and voted, and despite massive opposition they’re still trying to build this road,” one of the locked-down opponents said. “They haven’t listened and they haven’t listened. Now it’s time to lay our bodies on the line so that they finally get it that when we say ‘No road!’ we mean ‘No f***king road!’”

for more info visit stopi69.wordpress.com

****

Legal Update on Gohmann Actions and Ensuing Repression

Southern Tasmania update

Southern Tasmania Spring D.A. Update

Little Denison – April
Over 80 people attended community protests over three days (April 27th-29th) in one of the last patches of high-density old growth forest in the Little Denison Valley, Southern Tasmania.

Southern Tasmania Spring D.A. Update

The 1000 hectare area, which will be partially cable-logged, is a nesting site for the critically endangered Tasmanian Wedge-Tailed Eagle and the endemic Denison Burrowing Crayfish.

Sunday 27th, saw 60 community members attend an Open Day facilitated by the Huon Valley Environment Centre (HVEC), where people witnessed the bleak expanse where 300 year old trees are being dynamited and cut down for the world’s largest hardwood woodchipper, Gunns Limited. That night, 20 activists remained in the forest.

The first morning rays shone upon an occupied platform, suspended 60 metres up a Eucalyptus, and the glint of a lock-on and logging machine contriving a scheme of stagnation. Four forest activists were arrested; threats of physical violence and pepper spray were made by the Police – a worrying escalation in a recent trend. Blockading continued into the third day, eventually resulting in the tree-sitter’s arrest.

Weld Valley – June
In 2006 Forestry Tasmania (FT) claimed that they were “developing a touring route that will make the Weld Valley accessible to all visitors”. Two years on and the road to the Weld is still closed to all traffic but log trucks, and FT’s advertised bus tours still haven’t started.

In fact, their actions are in total opposition to their stated tourist intentions.

In early June, roading began into pristine native forest, with full scale logging operations to follow. This tract of forest is directly adjacent to the wild and well-loved Weld River & Fletcher’s Eddy.

In immediate response 25 people conducted a walk-in along the new road, the first forest protest under the reign of the new Premier, David Bartlett. While an activist locked-on to a gravel truck, Premier Bartlett declared his continued support for native forest destruction.

Giant Garrett – National – June 5th
A National Day of Action highlighting the Australian Labor Party’s (ALP) failure to protect Tasmania’s ancient forests. Hobart, Melbourne, Canberra, Newcastle, Brisbane and Darwin all targeted Environment Minister Peter Garrett’s support for the Tasmanian Regional Forest Agreement (TRFA) and Gunns Ltd.’s proposed pulp mill, with giant effigies of Garrett as a ‘climate criminal’.

ALP Environment Offices – Sydney – July 4th
Activists scaled the exterior of Environment Minister, Peter Garrett’s 6 storey office building to hang a banner reading ‘The Australian Government is Destroying Tasmania’s Old Growth Forests’ and a 5 metre high ‘Giant Garrett’ puppet.
“Peter Garrett and the ALP pay lip service to climate change and environmental protection while actively sanctioning the destruction of ancient, carbon dense forests. As we speak, the World Heritage Committee meeting in Canada is considering the
impacts of logging on wilderness forests in Southern Tasmania, with Minister Garrett’s office actively siding with the forestry industry in this matter,” a SWST spokesperson said.

5 Tasmanian forest activists were arrested, after a heavy handed police response to the peaceful occupation.

For further info & updates visit
www.huon.org
www.myspace.com/stillwildstillthreatened
www.huon.org/swstautumn.pdf
www.coolforests.org

Australian Climate Change protestors block trains and ports

14th July 2008

14th July 2008
In the last few days Australia’ Climate Camp was established at Newcastle, Australia. Yesterday, people from the camp chained themselves to a coal train, blocking access to Carrington coal terminal for most of the day and costing the company an estimated 1.2 million US dollars. Today, more climate camp activists are blocking work at the world’s largest coal port at Kooragang.

Australian coal train and world’s largest coal port peacefully blockaded.

As the G8 leaders fail to achieve any meaningful agreement on tackling climate change, thousands of activists from Britain to Australia are spearheading a radical approach to the issue. Inspired by previous Camps for Climate Action at Drax and Heathrow, six “Climate Camps” are taking place across the world throughout July and August in what is dubbed “the Convergence for Climate Action” [1].

In the last few days the first camp was established at Newcastle, Australia. Yesterday, people from the camp chained themselves to a coal train, blocking access to Carrington coal terminal for most of the day and costing the company an estimated 1.2 million US dollars [2]. Today, more climate camp activists are blocking work at the world’s
largest coal port at Kooragang [3].

The events in Australia will be followed by camps in Germany, the UK [4] and three across North America into late August. Each camp has the same messages of education on climate change and direct action against some of the major polluters and other climate criminals. Coal is a strong theme, featuring as the principle target in a number of countries.

“We are running out of time,” said Lizbeth Halloran from Australia, where hundreds of people have already gathered. “The G8 are making pitiful noises and insulting our intelligence with their so-called targets. With world leaders so clearly the puppets of the corporate profit motive, it is ordinary people who have to put the brakes on climate change when nobody else will.”

The camps share the same four key objectives: show sustainable alternatives in action, share skills and knowledge, build a grassroots movement against the root causes of climate change, and take direct action, which is seen as a proportionate and necessary response to the scale of the problem. There is also a recognition that there needs to be a ‘just transition’ [5] to bring about an environmentally and socially responsible society.

“Two years ago we started off as six hundred people in a field in Yorkshire, but it sparked something massive worldwide,” stated Connor O’Brien, a spokesperson from the UK’s Camp for Climate Action. “Now we know whatever we achieve in our local struggles this summer, they are amplified by the achievements of the five other climate camps around the world, the many more planned for next summer, and the year-round worldwide social movement that is both resisting runaway climate change caused by the pursuit of economic growth at all costs, and building pathways to a sustainable future.”

The camps bring together diverse elements of the anti-globalisation, social justice and environmental movements, united by the recognition that governments and corporations are part of the problem and therefore cannot be part of the solution. As well as taking direct action against some of the root causes, they seek to promote sustainable solutions to the challenge of climate change.

-End-

Contact: UK Camp for Climate Action media team on 0793 209 6677 or 07772 861 099; email: press@climatecamp.org.uk. Our website is at http://www.climatecamp.org.uk

Notes for editors

1. The global Camps for Climate Action are:

Newcastle, Australia, 10th -15th July ( http://www.climatecamp.org.au), targeting coal exporting from Australia Hamburg, Germany, 15th-26th August ( http://www.klimacamp.org)
United States ( http://www.climateconvergence.org)
– West Coast Convergence, 28th July-August 4th, Eugene, Oregon, resisting Liquified Natural Gas development
– North East Coast Confluence, 30th July-3rd August, High Falls, New York.
– South West Convergence, 5th- 11th August, Louisa County, Virginia, targeting coal and uranium mining.
2. See http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5gpSZdMNkmFJv-LPVY0Q2LB4_mslg
3. See http://www.climatecamp.org.au/2008/jul/13/nine-climate-camp-activists-stop-work-kooragang-co
4. The UK Camp for Climate Action will be taking place near Kingsnorth Power Station, Hoo, Kent, from 3rd – 11th August. Energy giant E.ON are pushing to build the first coal-fired power station in the UK for 30 years at Kingsnorth.
5. “Just Transition” is the principle that changes to employment or activities made for the sake of environmental sustainability should be fair and not cost workers or ommunities their health, wealth or assets; and that those affected by these changes should take a leading role in creating new policies and solutions.

photos here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/28555566@N06/

Their website is here:
http://www.climatecamp.org.au/

West Coast Climate Convergence; Canning and trainings and glitter, oh my!

August 12th, 2008

August 12th, 2008
From July 28 – Aug. 4th over 400 people gathered on a pesticide-free farm in Coburg, Oregon to learn, share, organize and network. Workshops and keynotes covered issues from the I-5 bridge expansion (Columbia River Crossing) to growing vegtables year-around. The week highlighted fossil fuel development projects throughout the West, and then created a space for people to learn the skills needed to fight them.

The phrase direct action has been invoked in many ways for many movements. Often, in the climate movement it is used to describe non-violent civil disobedience that directly confront and seek to physically halt fossil fuel development projects, such as lock-downs to equipment and road blockades. At this year’s West Coast Convergence for Climate Action, we spoke of direct action as not only taking action against dirty fossil fuel projects, but also taking action for community solutions and sustainability!

The week led up to a day of civil disobedience on Monday, which consisted of two major acts of disruption, street theater and rallies. It was awesome to learn about the details of proposed dirty energy projects, then hear the personal stories from impacted communities fighting them, and then finally organize and take action in the efforts to stop them.

The first action targeted the I-5 expansion due to proposed increase individual car and truck traffic, which would increase negative health issue in surrounding areas, increase greenhouse gas emissions, and drive dependency on oil. Maya, who learned her climbing skills at the convergence, climbed across a prominent Portland bridge dropping a banner that read, “6 more lanes = more sick people, no I-5 expansion”. Below her, convergence attendees performed theater involving huge cardboard bummers, as well as heroic bicyclists.

The rally then moved along the waterfront to the headquarters of Northwest Natural Gas Co., a company who would own and operate new pipelines proposed through Oregon associated with Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG). In front of the building three young women locked themselves to each other, blocking the entrance to the building while leading chants. The group sang, “Palomar is No Solution, LNG is New Pollution” as well as, “You can’t Fool us, We’ve been Watching: No More Greenwashing”.

The Convergence was co-sponsored by Rising Tide North America, Global Exchange and Rainforest Action Network, as well as local groups including: Energy Options, Friends of Living Oregon Waters, Columbia River Clean Energy Coalition and Cascadia Earth First!

Overall it pumped me up, gave me some new ideas, and fueled me to work harder and have more fun in our fight for a better future!

Here are a few trinkets about the week:

-One of the most popular workshops was led by a community member directly impacted by Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) development in Washington. Not only did she come to speak about LNG, but she led a workshop about canning, drying and freezing fruits and vegetables in preparation for decreasing food availability due to fuel prices and climate change.

-The NW Natural action was organized as a women’s action. We chose to do this for a few reasons, including because we were finding that the “sexy” roles were often being taken by young men in the group, while women were doing a lot of support and behind the scenes organizing. As we organized we came up with ways to make the action super fun, including by covering ourselves and our lock-boxes with glitter and heart-shaped stickers. One of our banner’s read, “Pipeline thru my heart” with a map of Oregon with a drawn pipeline through it. This actions was awesome, inspiring and fun!

-All of our keynote speakers were amazing! Including: Louise Benally with Black Mesa Water Coalition, Jane Williams with California Communities Against Toxins and John Sundquist with River’s Turn Farm.

Here are some videos, and more coverage (including a hilarious right-wing blog interpretation) to learn more:

youtube video of Post Convergence ACTIONS:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4cR-8sJHQU

Oregonian Video of No I-5 Expansion banner hang:
http://blog.oregonlive.com/breakingnews/2008/08/protesters_climb_onto_morrison.html

General Coverage of Climate Convergence:
http://www.kval.com/news/26195294.html
http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/dt.cms.support.viewStory.cls?cid=125947&sid=4&fid=1
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Slaughterhouse burned to the ground, Sweden

The Swedish ALF, Djurens Befrielsefront, has claimed responsibility for a fire at a slaughterhouse in Lövudden on Friday night, July 4th. By the time the fire brigade arrived on the scene, nothing could be salvaged. The slaughterhouse was due to open on September 1 and slaughter moose, elk and other wildlife. The owner reported that insurance will not cover the entire loss and rebuilding may not be possible.