Programme
General | Workshops | Entertainment
This year's programme focusses on info and planning for actions, direct action skills as well as spaces to discuss how we can respond to and deal with the widening ecological, economic and societal crises. We hope there's something for everyone.
If you'd like to put on a spontaneous workshop or discussion please do - we 've set aside a whole marquee for this. Please speak to the workshop co-ordinator at the morning meeting to book a slot and to tell everyone about it.
The weekend will see some gathering wide sessions, with no other workshops taking place. These include the campaigns forum and the regional meetings on Saturday and the gathering wide feedback session on Sunday. Please come to these, they are vital for finding out what's going on in our network and getting involved in taking action.
Some workshops are only open to women, or queers or men - please respect this.
Inevitably there will be changes in the timetable: these will be announced in the morning meetings. You can also check on the notice-board in the main marquee (workshop space 1) before each session to find out if the session you want to go to is running and where it is being held.
Check out our issuespage if you'd like to read up on stuff before the gathering starts.
The Workshops
Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday | Monday
Wednesday
12:00
2:30
- Self-defence - mixed practise session
- Squatting FAQ - sharing tips and tricks
- Action Reconnaissance for beginners
- Introduction to the root causes of ecological destruction and an exploration of alternatives
- Advanced Navigation
4:30
- Saving Iceland - Introduction to the campaign
- Nuclear waste and nuclear weapons
- Consensus Decision-making
- Introduction to Ecology
- Confronting Abusive Behaviours within our Communities - without the police/prison.
6:00
- Library Space: Negotiating Safer Sex: tips on putting the theory into practice, and making your sex life more fun as well as safer!
8:00
- Cinema: Talk with video on resisting rainforest destruction in Tasmania
Thursday
10:30
- Dealing with Public Order situations - understanding police tactics and how we can deal with to them/turn them to our advantage (runs until lunch)
- State and corporate oppression of the Australian Aborigines
- Action reconnaissance - advanced skillshare, share your most clever tips and tricks for getting info for actions
- Practical plant identification (beginners)
- Activist trauma and recovery
12:00
- Saving Iceland - an evaluation of the camp this summer
- Security for Activists Part I: Do's and don'ts of organising action, from arranging to meet, planning and what happens after
- Arrest support for actions - how to provide support for your affinity group, medium sized actions or mega camps and gatherings.
- Introduction to Earth First! and the summer gathering
2:30
- Women's self-defence - introductory session
- Food and Climate Action: info for action
- How to plan an action
- Police liaison for actions - what it is, its uses and limitations and how to make it work.
- Changing light bulbs or smashing the system. Sharing +/- experiences of working within/outside the system
4:30
- Opposing nuclear expansion: planning for action
- How to plan and run a successful medium to long-term campaign
- Night time skills Part I: introduction (followed by practise session at 8.30pm)
- Legal and arrest workshop
- Introduction to anarchist history/potted anarchist histories
6:00
- Library space: open discussion ?Direct action or publicity stunt??
8:00
- Cinema: Seashepherd film and talk
8:30
- Night time skills Part II - practice your skills in the field.
Friday
10:30
- Blockading tactics
- Climate Camp debrief: a critical look at the climate camp, its achievements and politics
- Introduction to Earth First! And the summer gathering
- Computer Security for the non-technical
- Prison Abolition: what's wrong with prison? what do we mean by abolition and how can we make it happen?
12:00
- Food and climate change: action and campaign planning
- Self-defence mixed practise session
- Squatting to resist - occupations to resist the powers of darkness
- History of Earth First!
2:30
- The Earth First! Action Update and website: feedback and getting involved
- Resisting agrofuels - update on the situation and action planning
- Sea Shepherd - an intro to its campaigns and how to support/get involved.
- Grow your own food - share you skills and experience
- Queer Activist Forum: Radical queers organise for the future!
4:30
- Queer Self-Defence: an intro to basic self-defence skills (verbal and physical)
- Setting up new direct action groups
- Saving Iceland ? planning actions for the coming year
- Techno-fixes and climate change ? report by Corporate Watch
- Urban self-reliance and self-sufficiency
7:30
- Library: Prisoner Support - An informal get together to discuss the state of prisoner support in our movements, find out news and get advice on writing to prisoners, as well as making and writing cards to send to prisoners.
8:00
- Cinema: A talk and film by a tribal activist from Orissa opposing mining
Saturday
10:30
Campaigns and Actions Round-up: UK and international news (no other workshops)12:00
- Women's self-defence practise session plus running alongside - introduction to women's self-defence
- Stopping GM test fields - discussion on future campaign/actions
- Research and destroy - how to research corporations
- Future models of society - finding a path to sustainable living
- Introduction to Earth First! and the summer gathering
- Using tripods for blockading
2:30
- Leave it in the ground - building resistance to new coal mining and power stations
- Facilitation of meetings
- Activist Security Part III: doing actions without leaving traces
- Restoration Ecology
- Creating safer spaces
- Visit to Burston Strike School
4:30
- Regional meetings and action planning (no other workshops)
6:00
- Library Space: Working without leaders - discussion about core values of anarchism
8:00
- Cinema: Smash Edo film and talk
Sunday
11:00
- Self defence mixed practice session
- Sorting out ways of communication within EF!
- Using radios on actions
- Introduction to Earth First! And the summer gathering
- Fences: getting over them/taking them down
12:15
- The summer gathering: feedback on this year's and getting involved in organising the next one
2:30
- Condoms, capitalism and climate change
- Smash Edo
- Introduction to navigation
- What's new in the world of law?
- Feminist Health
- Climbing trees, lamp posts and anything else
4:30
- Radical politics in the age of collapse
- The Royal Bank of Scotland and Fossil Fuel Financing
- Getting your electricity from solar power and wind
- Radical Parenting
- Looking after our mental health - sharing ideas and experiences
8:00
- Cinema: films - climate camp footage, ready steady skip etc
Monday
Take-down: please stay for a day or two to help take down the site. If you've got access to a vehicle/van, it'd be great if you could help transporting marquees, recycling etc to the places they need to go. Cheers!
Entertainment
In the evenings there will be a variety of things going on. We're still looking for someone to organise the pub quiz and you're welcome to bring musical instruments (though no drumming by request of the local community). You can also chill out in the library or make use of the sauna and hot tubs on site. Please remember though that this is a gathering not a festival. We've agreed a cut-off point for noise including amplified and accoustic music for midnight every night, for everyone's comfort and good rest. On Saturday, we're giving one hour's extra time for some more chilled music until 1am.