Climate Camp Appeal

Wednesday marked a month to the day that over a thousand people peacefully blockaded the world's largest coal exporting port in Newcastle. Australia's first Camp for Climate Action was an incredible moment, and an inspiration and learning experience for future bold action on climate change.

On the Sunday, 57 people were arrested, each incursion onto the train line, banner drop, lock-on and arrest, celebrated by the crowd as a collective victory. All coal trains to Carrington port were successfully halted the day. By the Monday, the number of people arrested in peaceful acts of direct action had risen to 65, with shutdowns of the Kooragang port and other areas of the coal port network. The ABC 7.30 Report stated that battle lines in Australia's climate change debate had been redrawn.

We learnt that we can stop the reckless expansion of the polluting coal industry. We face a future of dangerous climate change, and more than ever before, the world needs activism. The world needs civil disobedience. We are a people's movement that is making the burning of fossil fuels politically, economically – and on the Newcastle coal rail line in July, even physically – impossible. The world needs people, as we did in Newcastle, to stop the polluting coal industry in its tracks.

We would like to ask you to support the brave community activists who participated in the Camp for Climate Action. We are mothers, grandfathers, students and workers who were served $28,000 in fines. The majority of these were $400 fines for trespass in the rail corridor. These fines need to be paid by the end of August. Many of the people who received fines would greatly appreciate your assistance.

A number of people will also be appealing their fines on the basis of the urgent threat of climate change. 10 people are also dealing with charges that they received from the camp. We will keep you updated about the progress of both of these matters, and future climate campaigning ideas! In the meantime, please consider donating to the Camp for Climate Action Fund to support community activists and the ongoing campaign for a safe and just climate future.

Click here to donate. (tax deductible)

Or deposit directly to: Climate Camp Australia
BSB: 650 000
Account Number: 984525802

P.S. See Pete explain his experience of stopping coal trains, being arrested and fined in a fantastic two-minute film here. He says, cheekily: "Four hundred bucks for getting arrested, but stopping runaway climate change, that's priceless."