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 the library space 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 and actions update on Friday morning, the regional meetings on Saturday and the gathering wide feedback and planning 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 issues page if you'd like to read up on stuff before the gathering starts.
The Workshops
Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday | Monday
The programme, complete with workshop descriptions, has been produced.
- Gathering Timetable - RTF format, works in Microsoft Word and nearly every other word processor, 55k
- Gathering Timetable - PDF format, works in Adobe Reader and others, 80k
Wednesday
Off-site workshops
- Lakeside: 2.30pm-5.30pm water based action training. From 6pm free time with kayaks.
- Details of these workshop in the morning meeting: Climbing and abseiling; Smithy forge: make your own metal tools; Vegan cake making
10:00
12:00
- Introduction to Earth First! and the Gathering
- Dealing with the mainstream media - how to get your message across
- Using radios - Basic introduction plus understanding marine radio traffic
- Future language - Arts based approach to interpreting the criteria used to warn future generations of nuclear waste storage.
- Introduction to first aid
2:30
- Introduction to consensus decision making
- Understanding sea charts in relation to water based actions
- Squatting for Action
- Debt, the financial crisis and what it means for us.
- Smash EDO - Decommissioning the Arms Trade
4:30
- Open space
- Intro To Ecology
- A guide how to spot and handle infiltrators.
- Fences - getting over them and taking them down
- Action trainers skill share - to develop 'public order situations' workshops.
6:00
- Library: Discussion on 'Ecology and the rise of the far right'
Thursday
Off-site workshops
- Lakeside: 2.30pm-5.30pm water based action training. Free time with kayaks from 11am-2pm and after 6pm.
- Details of these workshop in the morning meeting: Climbing and abseiling; Smithy forge: make your own metal tools; Vegan cake making
10:30
- Dealing with public order Situations
- Introduction to Earth First and the Gathering
- First aid around water
- Basic land navigation training
12:00
- Dealing with public order Situations - continues.
- Open space
- The Oppression Cycle
- Readying ourselves for an age of unpredictability and no security in the UK. What happens when climate change does kick in?
2:30
- Facilitation of meetings
- Agrofuels: A major threat to wilderness, the climate and land rights.
- Consensus for young people
- Feminist Self Defence
- Using tripods for blockading
- Menstrual cycle tracking
- Saving Iceland - an international direct action campaign protecting the Icelandic wilderness from new aluminium smelters and other heavy industry projects.
- What's new in the world of law?
- Advanced Land Navigation training - More advanced skills for poor visabilty and nightime adventure.
- The Antimilitarist Network
6:00
- Library space: How to get sailing. A chat about how to find affordable sailing courses, how to get taken on as crew on boats to build up nautical miles or for adventure.
8:30
- Navigation skills practical - practice your skills in the field.
Friday
Off-site workshops
- Lakeside: 2.30pm-5.30pm water based action training. Free time with kayaks from 11am-2pm and after 6pm.
- Details of these workshop in the morning meeting: Climbing and abseiling; Smithy forge: make your own metal tools; Vegan cake making
10:30
- Campaigns and Action round up
12:00
- DSEi 2009: 8th September, City of London. Destroy the Banks! Destroy the Investors! Destroy the Arms Trade!
- Introduction to Earth First and the Gathering
- Animal Rights - an Earth First Perspective.
- Action Reconnaissance for beginners
- Wild Food Walk
2:30
- An introduction to taking Direct Action; blockading tactics
- Research and Destroy. A DIY guide to researching corporations for campaigners.
- RE-wilding, restoring a battered ecology.
- Building a low impact raft.
4:30
- An introduction to taking Direct Action; blockading tactics - Continues
- Consensus decision making: in depth
- Intro to permaculture
- Breaking The Tools Of Disconnection
6:00
- Library: Skill share on water based action tactics. A chance for various campaigns using direct action on water to share strategies and tactics.
8:00
- Cinema: Seas in danger. Film and information about marine biology, what's happening where and what we can do about it.
Saturday
Off-site workshops
- Lakeside: 2.30pm-5.30pm water based action training. Free time with kayaks from 11am-2pm and after 6pm.
- Details of these workshop in the morning meeting: Climbing and abseiling; Smithy forge: make your own metal tools; Vegan cake making
10:30
- Where next for the radical climate movement?
- Workshop and discussion on planning covert actions, from small affinity groups to large scale mass actions. Some dos and don't and various techniques to keep security strong but your actions effective.
- Climate Camp International - Copenhagen Climate Talks
- Short History of Anarchy and Revolution
12:00
- Nuclear power: Planning for action
- Intro To Ecology
- FITwatch: Find out who the cops are behind the cameras and what you can do to stop them.
- Introduction to Earth First and the Gathering
2:30
- Coal: Planning for action
- What is green anarchism?
- Legal and arrest workshop
- Small is Beautiful??? A participant led exploration of the benefits and challenges involved with organising for action in affinity groups and on mass.
4:30
- Regional meetings and action planning (no other workshops)
6:00
- Library Space: Low impact living get together.A chance for anyone living on boats, in vans or yurts etc. to catch up and find out about the Low Impact Living Organisation. www.lilo.org.uk
Sunday
Off-site workshops
- Lakeside: 2.30pm-5.30pm water based action training. Free time with kayaks from 11am-2pm and after 6pm.
- Details of these workshop in the morning meeting: Climbing and abseiling; Smithy forge: make your own metal tools; Vegan cake making
10:30
- EF! house keeping: Feedback about gathering and tatting down planning.Get involved with the Action Update newsletter, organising the next winter moot and summer gathering. (No other workshops)
12:00
- GM Planning for action
- Introduction to Earth First and the Gathering
- Banner making. We will make banners!
- Practical Plant Identification for beginners
2:30
- Airport expansion: Planning for action
- Practical self defence
- Future Language for young people
- RE-wilding, restoring a battered ecology.
- Winning your climate campaign. How to get stuck into an issue and win.
4:30
- Shell to Sea: Planning for action
- Activist Trauma Support: Dealing with the psychological effects of police violence and the other stresses of activism.
- Crackdown on Anti Corporate Dissent: State Attack on the Animal Rights Movement
- Climate Chaos and migration. What do No Boarders perspectives and radical ecological perspectives have in common? What differences and challenges are there?
Monday
We're planning a trip to visit a community affected by open-cast coal mining either in South Lanarkshire or near Newcastle. We still need a minibus or two, so if you are coming by minibus, please consider whether we'd be able to use your vehicle. We will be back at the gathering site before evening.
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 and no soundsystems). You can also chill out in the library. 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.