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I've only just remembered about this wonderful forum just a day (or two) before I leave to join up with this year's climate camp in Kent. I imagine the memory of this place has welled up for entirely unrelated reasons, but I'm going to pretend it's because of a subconscious desire to spread the word online to people who might genuinely be interested. Are you? Do you give a shit?
It will be my first time going to the camp, encouraged by a friend who went last year. He credits the camp as one the most exciting, educational and galvanizing experiences he has ever been through. It's something entirely meaningful, extremely important, but also something to enjoy, and learn from. It's also completely free (if you have a tent) as food is provided, which is quite astonishing considering the numbers likely to attend and the wealth of workshops available.
However I'm not the most qualified person to be writing this thread, it being my first time (both thread and camp), so I'll break off here and leave it to the website:
"The Camp is a place for anyone who wants to take action on climate change; for anyone who’s fed up with empty government rhetoric and corporate spin; for anyone who’s worried that the small steps they’re taking aren’t enough to match the scale of the problem; and for anyone who’s worried about our future and wants to do something about it.
The people putting on the Camp for Climate Action are all volunteers, lots of us learning how to do it as we go along. We’re a pretty diverse bunch – teachers, nurses, students, couriers, plumbers, graphic designers, doctors, youth workers, lawyers, carpenters, campaigners, artists, carers and many, many more.
We started in August 2006, when 600 people gathered at the UK’s biggest single source of carbon dioxide, Drax coal-fired power station in West Yorkshire for ten days of learning and sustainable living, which culminated in a day of mass action against the power station. Our aim was to kick-start a social movement to tackle climate change.
Next, with over double the numbers organising the Camp, we hit the big time in summer 2007; media hysteria greeted our decision to camp a few hundred metres from Heathrow airport. Over 2,000 people came to the weeklong camp. We chose Heathrow as we wanted to help local residents stop Heathrow’s owner BAA from building a third runway.
This year, we’ll be at Kingsnorth, and be joined in our resistance to the expansion of the fossil fuel economy by eight other climate camps taking place around the world.
Every Camp for Climate Action event weaves four key themes: education, direct action, sustainable living, and building a movement to effectively tackle climate change both resisting climate crimes and developing sustainable solutions.
Everybody is welcome, so hopefully see you there." |
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