The Climate Camp (August
26th to September 4th, 2006)The Camp for Climate Action will take place in Megawatt Valley, near Leeds and Selby.
The camp itself will be a mix of workshops, meetings, socialising, information sharing and action. It will bring
together thousands of people from the UK who want to act to stop climate change before it's too late. Everyone
is welcome to come for all of the camp or just for part of it.
The camp will feature a programme of almost 100 workshops and discussions on topics relating to climate change and what we can do to stop it.
The camp will be wheelchair accessible. People with accessibility issues are advised to email the Site
Practicalities Working Group, site[at]climatecamp.org.uk (replace the [at] with @), so that we can cater specifically
for their needs.
Families are welcome at the camp. There will be a Kids Area, with
activities for younger children, and space for
them to play and be creative, as well as a Youth Space for the older
ones. Parents are encouraged to get involved
with the childrens' activities. Children will be the responsibility of
their parents at all times, even while in the Kids Area. We welcome
volunteers to help run activities in the area. If you would like to
volunteer check out the Workshops & Activities working group or email workshops [at] climatecamp.org.uk.
The camp itself will offer a hint of what things might be like if we scale back to a more sustainable pace of
life. It will use small amounts of energy and most of the energy it does use will come from renewable sources.
The camp will be self run on a neighbourhood system, what this means is that the camp will be split into areas of roughly 200
people, each area will have it's own large marquee with a kitchen at its centre, this kitchen will provide food for
the 200 people in the neighbourhood, members of the neighborhood will be welcome to help out in the kitchen whenever
they want throughout the camp. This in effect means that the camp will have lots of communities within it, these
communities or neighbourhoods will meet everyday probably after dinner to discuss issues relating to the camp, what's
happening the next day etc..
On your arrival you will find a Welcome Tent. Here; you will receive information on the workings of
the Camp and will enable you to decide where to pitch your tent. If there isn't a neighbourhood for your
geographical area don't worry you can choose a neighbourhood of your choice where you will receive a
warm welcome.
Many groups are already hosting neighbourhoods but more are needed, if you or your group is interested in hosting
a neighbourhood go to the neighbourhoods page for more information.
Part of the aim of the camp will be to carry out non-violent direct
action against companies which are among the worst contributors to
climate change. Direct action will not occur at the camp itself but the
camp will be a place to plan and discuss actions which will take place
at nearby locations. There will be a range of different types of
actions so people can choose to take whatever role they feel
comfortable with. Of course many people will come to the Climate Camp
without taking part in any direct actions and this is fine too :-)
The camp will be run non-hierarchically. The work of running the
camp will be done by working groups, which are open for anyone to join:
if you are interested in joining a working group have a look at the working groups page or come to one of the monthly planning meetings.
Every day at the camp there will be a spokescouncil meeting in which
representatives of all the neighbourhoods and working groups will make
decisions about the day-to-day running of the camp using consensus
decision-making.
Due to difficulties in renting a site, we are using a legally occupied
(squatted) site. Squatting is legal. The police have a host of powers to
deal with gatherings whether on squatted or rented sites. In all cases,
coming to the event is completely legal. The police may ask you to leave.
refusing may in some circumstances be an offence.
People are needed to help set the camp up - putting up structures,
digging compost toilets, etc. - and later to
take it down and return the site to the state in which we found it - so
while you are at the camp please spend an hour or a day helping with
set-up, take-down, as well as cooking, cleaning, recycling, and all the
other tasks that will be required to keep the camp running smoothly.
This is a chance to learn practical skills and help to collectively
create the camp. You don't need to have any prior skills or experience
and you can do as much or
as little work as you want with the Site Practicalities working group
to guide you. How to get to the Climate Camp
The camp will be near Leeds with the nearest train station being Selby.
Selby is serviced by main line trains and easily reachable from most parts
of the country.Timetable 1
Timetable 2
There are buses from Leeds to Selby.
(Timetable)
It has been our experience that events of this kind, can occaionally
attract unwelcome attention from the forces that wish to maintain the
status quo. To prevent this and to minimise any impact this may have on
people coming to the camp the location of the camp will not be announced
until the Saturday. If you are coming to the camp on the Saturday please
arrive at Selby Train Station at 10 am, if you are coming to the camp on
Saturday with children or expensive equipment, please arrive at Selby
Train Station from 12 midday where there will be an info desk pointing you in the right direction.
if you
come by public transport there will be a shuttle bus servive to the site.
If you come by car, you will be pointed in the right direction from there
as well - if could also give someone a lift from the station at the same
time, that would be great.
There will be an introduction meeting for
the whole camp from 5.00pm to 6.00pm . If you are coming to the Camp after Saturday either head to Selby Train
Station or check out the website from midday for the announcement of the
site. We strongly encourage the use of public transport to the camp to reduce
our overall emissions.
There will be a free shuttle service from Selby rail station to the Climate
Camp for the camp's duration, There may also be the occasional run to Leeds and
back as well depending on requirement. There will also be a bicycle library available
for those who wish to cycle from Selby to the camp.
There are two vans travelling from Scotland Glasgow and Edinburgh, on August 24th and 25th
respectively. If anyone would like a lift on one of these vans please contact
transport[at]climatecamp.org These vans will be returning after the camp.
If any groups are bringing a mini bus and wish to do the occasional shuttle run to
help, out then please come to the transport tent at the camp and we will slot you
in.
Transport would like to thank all those peope offering their services as
drivers, its very much appreciated.
Transport for the climate camp will be powered by passion, determination and bio
diesel..........see you all there.
There will also be a bike-ride through the country in the run-up to the
camp travelling via Leeds which you can join. Check
www.bicycology.org.uk
We are planning to have facilities for safe bike parking. Please
book your bike with us by ringing 0845 600 1674 so we will know how
many bikes to expect. If you are bringing a bike on a train it may be
an idea to avoid peak times like 7:30 to 9:30 in the morning and 5 to 7
in the evening.
We very strongly encourage people NOT to bring a car if you can
possibly avoid it. There will be limited parking off the site and we
are trying to find places in Selby where it is possible for people to
park.
For those who absolutely MUST come by car, we recommend travel-pooling to
reduce your impact on the environment.
We have set up a lift-share scheme on freewheelers
www.freewheelers.co.uk/Camp_for_Climate_Action.
You can register
your wish for a lift or your offer of a lift on this site.
If you do come by car please note that personal vehicles (motorbikes, cars) will not be allowed on-site. Drop-offs can be made
at the gate and there will be a car-park facility nearby. There will be a
£10 flat fee per vehicle (£5 for motorbikes).
If you would like to come with a live-in vehicles please register first by emailing site[at]climatecamp.org.uk so we can
make sure we have space set aside for your vehicle.
How to get to Selby
There are several trains a day direct to Selby from London Kings Cross (train final destination: Hull)
which only take about two hours. Otherwise you need to go to Leeds and change there to get to Selby. There
are only a couple of trains from Doncaster or York each day but there is a regular
service to Hull from Leeds stopping at Selby. Return journeys for wheelchair users
need to be booked for assistance in crossing the line.
There are fairly frequent local bus services from York and Doncaster as well as
Leeds but no express services. Most services are wheelchair friendy.
Those travelling by National Coach or Megabus will do best to terminate at Leeds and use
either train or local bus to get to Selby.
The best location for pickups is the Railwaymans Social Club between the train and
bus ststions.
Hitchhikers, narrowboats and cyclists may be better convergeing at Whitley Bridge
near the A19 juncion of the M62. It is are on the Aire Calder Navigation at a mid point between the
junctions of Aire, Calder, Don and Trent Canal Systems. The Ouse, Aire and Selby
Canal are not the best locations for narrowboats though closer to Drax. There is
a local bus service from Doncaster to Selby via Whitley Bridge.
Knottingly Junction has changed and is not really suitable as a hitch-hiking
junction. A1 travellers would be better going to the Leeds-Selby Road junction (A63
I think) crossing the A1 and hitching into Selby.
If you have any additional information about how to get to Leeds or Selby from various parts of the UK,
please email website[at]climatecamp.org.uk.
This is a list of stuff it would be helpful if you could bring.
Obviously, some are more important than others, but they're all things
that we don't think we can have too much of. There will be limited
water supplies on site, as we will have to bring it
to the gate in bowsers. While you should make sure not to get
dehydrated &
follow basic hygiene, we urge you to use water sparingly.
Neighbourhoods
are encouraged to install rainwater catchment systems from marquees,
toilets etc. There will be some guttering and barrels on site, but
bring
whatever you can.
So please make sure you bring as many of the things on the list as you
can!
What not to bring: plastic and other non-recyclable
materiels. (But do bring a water bottle!) You will be asked to take
your non-recyclable materiels away with you when you leave.
Entrance to the camp is free to enable everyone to attend. We will be
asking for donations - suggested donations: kids free, teenagers £5-10,
adult on benefit £10-15, low-waged adult £15-20, above-average wage
£25-£30 etc. There will be a flat fee for parking vehicles. Cheap meals
will be available from neighbourhood kitchens on site (around £4/day). We are
hoping to run a shop on site selling essentials including local organic
veg but the nearest proper shop is likely to be several miles away.
We have a policy that says 'don't bring them'. If you need to bring a dog
you must register in advance with the facilitation group:
facilitation[at]climatecamp.org.uk. People who turn up with
unregistered dogs will be turned away. Dogs must be kept on a lead at all times. If
you don't clean up after your dog you will be asked to leave. People who bring dogs will
be asked to form a working group together to deal with issues such as mess, dogs
running around off the lead, etc.
Commercial policy- basically no activity that is primarily about profit,
though there will be NGOs there who will be happy to get new
members/subscriptions.
To provide an example of practical solutions to climate change the site
aims to use as little energy as possible and use renewable energy sources
where possible. Individual neighbourhoods will be powered by ‘stand-alone'
renewable systems. The site power group will also run a small power system
for essentials such as electric wheelchair charging and radios.
Energy use on site
Energy use will be minimised through:
Energy will be sourced from:
Entertainment
There will a sound system and cinema run entirely from solar / wind. Electricity is
stored in batteries during the day and used when required. This power will be provided
by Coltek who have made most of their equipment from unwanted scrap e.g. they have made
wind turbines and repaired broken projectors.
What to bring
The site will not be brightly lit so people are encouraged to bring lanterns (try jam
jar and tea-light) or a torch (with rechargeable batteries) as. If people bring mobile
phones they are encouraged to bring car cigarette lighter type adaptors, as many of the
renewable systems on site will operate from car batteries. No generators will be allowed
on site other than the bio-diesel generator run centrally for essential loads.
A coalition of individuals and groups determined to take positive
action against the root causes of climate change. We decided that we
wanted to create a space for people to come together to debate, protest
and take action. To this end we decided to organise the camp for
climate action in the north of England from August 26th to September
4th.
We know about the storms and spreading deserts, about drought and
species loss that climate change is causing. Deep down most of us know
that the
dream of consumption without end is becoming the nightmare of
ecological collapse.
But the real problem is that everyone is waiting, waiting for
technology to save us, waiting for the government to sort it out,
waiting for the
next series of 'Desperate Housewives'.
Waiting will achieve nothing. Techno-fixes such as nuclear power just feed denial and delay meaningful action.
The government gives us blood and tragedy, wars for the dwindling resources causing the problems in the first place.
The problem won't be solved by greenwash, petitions and voting every five years but by ending the system that
requires economic growth. Climate change is as real as it gets. Solutions need to come from the people not the
corporations or politicians. We need to take action and we need to do it now.
The Climate Camp will...
- Be a place were we explore grassroots solutions to climate change through workshops, skill-sharing, education,
debate and entertainment. The camp will also bring together people already campaigning on this and related
issues.
- Take direct action against the root causes of climate change. Yes we need to change light bulbs and stop flying
to Spain for the weekend, but we also need to act collectively. This is the only way to stop the actions of those
vested interests that watch the planet burn while counting the money they make from the fire.
- Demonstrate and live the alternatives by bringing diverse groups and individuals together to live in an
ecologically sustainable, cooperative way. The camp will aim to be as carbon neutral as possible and all energy,
except perhaps gas for cooking, will come from renewable sources.
- Be a space for celebration, for kids and families, a place to socialise with friends old and new. Western
civilisation has tried to answer the eternal question of what it is to be human by surrounding itself in a cocoon of
objects, an endless stream of meaningless stuff. This is a chance to show the opposite, that less can be so much more.
http://www.climatecamp.org.uk/ camp mobile: 07847 503 111
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Tuesday, 26 June 2007
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