“The general principles behind Earth First! are non-hierarchical organisation and the use of direct action to confront, stop and eventually reverse the forces that are responsible for the destruction of the Earth and its inhabitants. EF! is not a cohesive group or campaign, but a convenient banner for people who share similar philosophies to work under.”
If you agree with the above and you are not racist or otherwise discriminatory, if you believe action speaks louder than words, then Earth First! is for you.
Whether you think of EF! as a movement, a network, an idea or simply a name to use for actions, get involved — you are Earth First!
Take action
Want to take direct action as an individual or with your mates?
Just do it — and post the story afterwards here to inspire others.
Set up a group
Want to set up an ecological direct action group, or you are an existing group that wants to be part of our loose community?
Talk to a few people, put up posters, stickers, cards in windows, send out emails or whatever. Pick a group name; best to have a more anonymous contact rather than your name or own email address. It only needs you and a couple of others to form a group – then you can plot and plan actions like the best.
Pick issues and approaches that suit you and where you live — you are an autonomous group, so just figure out the way you want to do it, and do it.
Don’t forget to share what you get up to, or put a shoutout if you need a hand.
Meet others
EF! has always welcomed diversity, and there are EF! groups all over the world.
EF! is many things to many people. Get started and make it how you want it to be.
Every summer we have the EF! summer gathering — come to get involved in ecological direct action, it’s also for those already involved to plan for action & share skills. Sometimes when there’s been a need, there has been an EF! winter moot, to spend a few days chatting and strategising.
Read all about it
The EF! Action Update has been printed since 1991, at first monthly, currently quaterly, for sharing news & upcoming events without having to go on the internet. Do or Die was for more in depth analysis, but sadly is no more. The EF! AU was joined by this EF! Action Reports website in 2005.
A bit of history
EF! originated in the USA in 1979, but from there spread around the world, and morphed to suit local conditions & priorities.
In the UK it was successfully started in 1991, and quickly grew, developing it’s own distinct character. Initially the biggest campaigns were around imports of tropical timber and anti-roads campaigns, though there were numerous smaller campaigns. Genetic crops, international solidarity, peat and climate change have been other strong campaigns over time. To read a bit about the history, have a look at the short articles in these EF! AUs: 1 | 2 | 3 , or read the 20 Years of British EF! leaflet. For even more voices & other notable protests, see here and here