protest – Page 2 – AmeliasMagazine

Amelia’s Magazine | Reclaiming power at Copenhagen!

Earlier last week I ventured down to Somerset House to see the eagerly anticipated SHOWstudio: Fashion Revolution exhibition which charts this rise of the iconic website from its creation in 2000. This large-scale retrospective of sorts was bursting to the seams with installations of some of the best videos, and information pills podcasts, sales interviews and most importantly– live projects. Split over two levels, dosage as I entered I was greeted with a room comprised entirely of mirrors that were designed to make each person entering ‘really’ look at their reflection. After a few moments of looking at myself and feeling rather vain and awkward I felt obliged to move on and make way for the hoards of teenagers waiting to pull pranks on each other and the non-suspecting public.

In the next room I found a giant 3-D sculpture of Naomi Campbell, which was linked to an etch-a-sketch computer where visitors could get involved and draw images which were in turn projected onto Naomi’s imposing frame. Interestingly I discovered after my visit that there were several hidden cameras dotted around the Naomi sculpture to record the best comments made by visitors, so I was very relieved that I had gone alone therefore having no one to talk to.

There were many great fashion moments and highlights peppered throughout this exhibition. I think the best was watching a loop of the project ‘More Beautiful Women’ which pays homage to Andy Warhol’s ‘Thirteen Most Beautiful Women’ screen tests of 1964. It’s based on a simple idea where Nick Knight invited several iconic models from the 1960’s through to the present day and asked them to stand in front of a video camera for two minutes. Models involved were Twiggy, Marie Helvin, Kate Moss, Liberty Ross, Stella Tennant and Gisele to name but a few. The best clip that I saw was that of Stephanie Seymour who looked rather bored throughout and remarked ‘This is the longest two minutes of my life!’ This was sheer brilliance in its subversive undertones both perpetuating and playing upon the underlying opinions most people have of models.

Another project that was popular with all visitors was the 2004 collaboration between Brad Pitt and SHOWstudio titled ‘Freedom of Love’. The short film depicted Pitt frantically painting over an enlarged passport sized photograph of himself adding in captions and blurbs, whilst reciting Breton’s sixty line poem of the same name. Whilst I was there this installation drew the biggest crowd and I believe was so popular due to Brad Pitt’s global fame and heartthrob status rather than everyone’s love of the great poet Breton.

Just when I thought the exhibition was coming to an end I stumbled upon a small section dedicated to Fashion Film, which was comprised of a reel of 16 short films created for SHOWstudio. My favourite was titled ‘Sheena is a Punk Rocker’ which depicted a topless and rather energetic Kate Moss doing a frantic pogo dance which saw her head banging. This was great as I feel it showed much more of her personality than you could possibly gleam from a still image and also had a funny moment near the end where she started ripping the paper background and gets so into it that she suddenly falls to the floor which is the finishing shot.

All fans of SHOWstudio.com would absolutely love this exhibition as it was great to see highlights of the work together in one place, but most importantly it was humbling to see how fashion in general has progressed during this past decade which I feel can partly be credited to Nick Knight and the wealth of contributors who make up the SHOWstudio team. Over the years it has really pushed the boundaries of what is possible and helped guide fashion into the mainstream sphere by applying and manipulating all the modern technologies available to bring it to the masses, whilst looking forward to new and innovative ways to make fashion even more engaging. SHOWstudio: Fashion Revolution is running until 20 December.
COP15 is the next major convening of international governments to reconcile international protocol on climate change.
That’s a lot of long words, visit this what it boils down to is that we are boiling up and the world needs to tackle the issue of climate change head on.

World leaders and delegates from 189 countries will meet in December in Copenhagen to try and create initiatives and agree on ideas on how we can stop climate change destroying the planet.

COP15 is the fifteenth Conference of the Parties (COP) under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Will this one be any different from the past COP’s, for sale which have so far failed to come up with any sound initiatives?

With corporations still on the offensive, pill putting millions of pounds into trying to discredit the certainty of climate change as well as governments bickering among each other about who needs to make the first and biggest steps, a deal at this point seems unlikely.
Radically reducing the effect of climate change requires radical change and a just transition in countries across the world. With governments scared of losing electorate and backing by the rich corporations making a swift change away from profit based economics and our consumer lifestyle to a sustainable future is never going to be likely.

The struggle to change to sustainable and clean energies shows the tight grip oil corporations have and how as a society we are intent on quick and cheap energy no matter the impact on the environment around us.
With climate change predominately affecting people in the global south, rich western countries are still slow in waking up to the cold hard fact that due to climate change we too will be living in a third world state unless we act now. It is time to gather a mass movement to say it can no longer be business as usual.

Over the past few years we have also been seeing a range of market based solutions to try and combat climate change, from carbon trading, tar sands and offsetting schemes, these initiatives fail to look at the root causes and are quick fix ideas that have so far failed to have any impact. Some kind of deal at Copenhagen could see a continuation of this. We need to make sure that we no longer look to using false solutions.

A huge movement of groups and individuals are at least going to make this COP one leaders will never forget, joining thousands of activists from around the world people are going to hold a week of protests from farmers actions to a peoples summit in the conference to show that we are no longer willing for governments and corporations to make the decisions and it is time to take the power back. There will be a chance to get involved from any level you are comfortable with, although with cold temperatures and swarms of police expected it is not something for the faint hearted.

Under the banner ‘Social Change not Climate Change,’ Climate Justice Action, a coalition of social groups have been organising like crazy to make it as easy as possible for people to get to Copenhagen and make their voices and presence be known.

Climate Justice Action will bring together concerned individuals directly affected by climate change from the global south, progressive NGO’s, indigenous peoples as well as you and others from around the UK.
Buses are leaving from Leeds and London at a cut price of 100 pounds return that will give people a chance to get to know others and form an affinity with other protestors. Free accommodation is also being organised as we speak, in social centres and other spaces organised by CJA and networks in Copenhagen.
There are also activities, workshops and events in local neighbourhoods around the country in the next few weeks giving you the chance to get involved and meet up with other people and learn about what you can do and need to bring.

Copenhagen is seen as one of the last chances to create a huge global movement that will bring about the change we need before it is too late, make sure you are there to join the thousands of others in the biggest and most important protest of the decade.

Written by Adam S on Tuesday November 10th, 2009 3:36 pm

Categories ,Activists, ,Climate Change, ,Climate Justice Action, ,Cop15, ,copenhagen, ,corporations, ,delegates, ,earth, ,global south, ,indigenous, ,Politicians, ,protest, ,radical, ,social change, ,sustainable, ,Tar Sands, ,transport

Amelia’s Magazine | Agrofuels Don’t Roc(K) – Rally against Biofuels

On Monday evening as the sun set and the lights from the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) blared onto the street, ask over a hundred protesters gathered to call for an end to government subsidies on biofuels.

Agrofuels are seen as a green alternative to conventional oil but cause even more damage, indigenous communities are being dispossessed, land that was used for food is being handed over for the production of palm oil. The production of biofuel contributes the the acceleration of climate change through deforestation and its twin results of water and soil degradation . This ‘green’ subsidy is even starting to need carbon offsetting for it to meet government agenda.
Due to protests against biofuels power stations, plans to build have already been stopped at Ealing and Portland among others. However protests are still needed to push the government into action, currently agrofuel power is awarded double the number of subsidies compared to offshore wind farms.

Joining the demo were a range of musicians that kept up spirits and entertained with witty biofuel songs, as well as several speakers highlighting the issue.

John Stewart,Fight The Flights, spoke about the aviation industry plans to incorporate biofuels. Companies like BA complain about the increasing tax on fuel consumption using the inequality agenda as an argument. But when considering how agrofuels are largely made by exploiting poor countries while the rich benefit, their argument is quickly invalidated.

The demo was also held on the International Day of Solidarity with Indigenous People, which ironically falls on the same date Columbus discovered the Americas. A large group, part of ‘Global Mobilisation for Mother Earth’ called by Andean indigenous peoples joined us outside DECC and a speaker highlighted the problems faced by indigenous peoples in Latin America.

The police set up a pen as per usual, making sure the left hand side pavement wasn’t blocked which would obviously have a huge detrimental effect. Instead they crammed us all inside the narrow fences; health and safety you know, can’t have a protest stopping people from having to cross the road to the other pavement to get passed. Anyway we all managed to listen and rally in any little space we could find and as darkness fell continued to put pressure on the energy department in the 100-watt bulb luminous lit rooms above.

Written by Adam S on Wednesday October 14th, 2009 3:04 pm

Categories ,agrofuels, ,biofuels, ,deforestation, ,demo, ,Department of Energy and Climate Change, ,government, ,Indigenous People, ,Latin America, ,palm oil, ,Plane Stupid, ,protest

Amelia’s Magazine | Bloom In Bloomsbury – A student focused day of outreach and action.

A murder in a New York fashion house. A star cast including Judi Dench, pharm more about Jude Law and Eddie Izzard. You might expect a standard film, pilule but Sally Potter’s Rage is far from tame. The film is a patchwork of confessional monologues, no rx delivered in front of coloured backdrops.

The location shots common to feature films are completely absent. Simplicity is the key in this production. The characters ranging from designer, critic and photographer to pizza boy, financier and his bodyguard, are all seen from the perspective of child blogger Michelangelo. His character remains unseen but we discover that he films the exposés on his mobile phone. We can only assume that the characters thrive on the boys’ innocent gaze, as they share their intimate thoughts and reveal the sometimes-twisted nature of their personas.

I admire Potter for a creative take on a subject matter that has been in vogue for years. We’ve all seen The Devil Wears Prada or the more recent The September Issue. The film includes some great lines, which open up some important questions about the nature of the fashion industry. Fashion critic Mona Carvell (Judi Dench) suggests, “Fashion is not an art form, if anything its pornography to which millions are addicted.” Similarly, Tiny Diamonds (Eddie Izzard) the media mogul states, “In the end, everything and everyone is for sale.”

The film breaks not only the conceptual ‘norms’ of film, but is also groundbreaking in terms of its circulation. Rage premiered not only in cinemas but also on mobile phones and the Internet. I was at the interactive premier at the British Film Institute where the intention was to connect various cinemas in the UK through live satellite. From the base at the BFI, Skype linked these cinema audience members to the actors in New York and elsewhere around the globe, allowing for a unique Q+A session.

The technical hiccups were relentless but made this a hugely entertaining premier. Eddie Izzard managed to make comic genius out of the playback echo, even resorting to offering his answer written out on a notebook. Jude Law provided a thoughtful analysis of his cross-dressing character Minx, citing Leigh Bowry as reference for his performance.

Lily Cole, fresh from a fashion shoot, perhaps best embodies the contradictions of the fashion industry appearing shy and reflective.

The disappointing truth is that I found this technically clumsy Q+A more captivating than the film itself. Potter’s decision to focus entirely on the monologue performances of the actors was brave but not entirely successful. While the concept is attractive on paper, in reality the plot becomes weak. Although the actors are talented, their characters could not develop fully in the given time. Subsequently the characters float without cause.

Potter has achieved an interesting film on a tiny budget, stating herself that Rage is a celebration of ‘poor cinema’ that concentrates on text and performance and the basic art of storytelling. The simplicity and intimacy of the filming process, which included only director, actor and soundman is seductive. Equally the film is a timely antithesis to the celebrated London Fashion Week, a hint from Potter’s that we might consider the hidden agendas and invisible faces behind the glamorous face of the catwalk shows.

The inventive means of film distribution, which takes full advantage of the newest technology, could be seen as a counter to the speed at which the fashion industry has adopted the Internet.

A murder in a New York fashion house. A star cast including Judi Dench, cure Jude Law and Eddie Izzard. You might expect a standard film, sickness but Sally Potter’s Rage is far from tame. The film is a patchwork of confessional monologues, clinic delivered in front of coloured backdrops.

Lily Cole, fresh from a fashion shoot, perhaps best embodies the contradictions of the fashion industry appearing shy and reflective.

The inventive means of film distribution, which takes full advantage of the newest technology, could be seen as a counter to the speed at which the fashion industry has adopted the Internet.

A murder in a New York fashion house. A star cast including Judi Dench, viagra 100mg Jude Law and Eddie Izzard. You might expect a standard film, approved but Sally Potter’s Rage is far from tame. The film is a patchwork of confessional monologues, store delivered in front of coloured backdrops.

Lily Cole, fresh from a fashion shoot, perhaps best embodies the contradictions of the fashion industry appearing shy and reflective.

The inventive means of film distribution, which takes full advantage of the newest technology, could be seen as a counter to the speed at which the fashion industry has adopted the Internet.

A murder in a New York fashion house. A star cast including Judi Dench, sale Jude Law and Eddie Izzard. You might expect a standard film, but Sally Potter’s Rage is far from tame. The film is a patchwork of confessional monologues, delivered in front of coloured backdrops.

Lily Cole, fresh from a fashion shoot, perhaps best embodies the contradictions of the fashion industry appearing shy and reflective.

The inventive means of film distribution, which takes full advantage of the newest technology, could be seen as a counter to the speed at which the fashion industry has adopted the Internet.

My impression is that it is the star cast which holds the film together, allowing for the unusual concept. Yet, I left without really knowing the point of the film. There is a critique of the economy of fashion in the characters narrative, as well as a snub against conspicuous consumption and the power of branding. Potter has previously expressed her resentment at ‘an economic system that turns people into things’. But if her point was to express her own ‘Rage’ through the film, she failed to deliver.
Yesterday Bloom In Bloomsbury was held in Torrington Square in SOAS. The gathering was held to get people involved and engaged with the Climate Change problem. Luckily it was held under a big marquee as we were subjected to a few downpours throughout the day.

There was a stall to get people involved with The Great Climate Swoop, store the direct action to shut down Ratcliffe On Soar oal power station in 10 days time. Outreach also got people signed up to provide transport down to Nottingham, pills which is going from all across the country at special activist prices.

One of the aims was to also get people involved in the run up to Cop 15 in December where world leaders will meet in a ‘last chance’ conference to tackle Climate Change in Copenhagen. A people’s summit is being held on the 16th of December in the conference to show that we are not willing to let a government agenda govern the proceedings, and that as a social movement we need to take a stand. Again, transport from across the country will be going and coaches are being booked right now to ensure we can all get there. Climate Justice Action is an umbrella organisation that encompasses a broad range of activist organisations that will have a range of details and contacts for the event.

A stall highlighting the problem of Agrofuels was also providing information to passers by, bio fuels are linked to accelerated climate change, deforestation, human rights abuses, water and soil degradation, and are still labeled by many NGO’s and government as an answer to conventional oil practice. There is ademonstration outside The Department for Energy and Climate Change in London on Monday the 12th to protest against the so-called ‘green energy’ subsidies.

There was also the SOAS food co-op, which provides wholesale food and is run as a non-profit group set up by students. The bike maintenance workshop put on was also really popular. If you missed the event make sure you get down to Powershift being held over the weekend at the Institute of Education in London.

As the event wound down and we were outreached out, a group headed to the City University as a certain energy company, E.ON, were holding a talk at the student recruitment fair. The company is responsible for the planned new coal power stations at Kingsnorth, which combined would produce the same carbon emissions as Ghana. With the report by the Global and Humanitarian forum stating that three hundred thousand people are already dying already each year due to climate change, it isn’t a viable option.

The group of activists stormed the talks, getting past the security guards who were holding a pretty tight presence outside the doors, quite possibly due to the continued protests against E.ON at student fairs last year.
While three burly guys jumped on one activist, the others handed out flyers to the bemused students woken up from the corporate PowerPoint slumber. An activist took to the podium to tell the audience what E.ON are really about. Claiming themselves as a Green Energy Company while 95% of their investment is into non renewable energies is a clear sign of greenwashing and the corporate bullshit that students have to listen to.

Written by Adam S on Wednesday October 7th, 2009 2:27 pm

Categories ,activist, ,agro fuels, ,Bloom in Bloomsbury, ,climate, ,Climate Camp, ,Cop 15, ,copenhagen, ,demonstration, ,E-On, ,food co-op, ,outreach, ,peoples summit, ,protest, ,SOAS, ,Student Fair, ,swoop

Amelia’s Magazine | Bristol Co-Mutiny

Last week Co-mutiny was held in Bristol where people converged from around the country to attend the week long event. Workshops, skills shares and direct action were on the timetable and there was plenty to keep an activist engaged. Climate justice, financial collapse and autonomous spaces were some of the themes on the agenda.

The convergence space was an impressive cathedral with a series of passages, cavernous halls and darkened rooms perfect for the event. There was space for people to sleep, a kitchen which kept a daily supply of skipped food – never before have I been able to eat as many Waitrose Glace cherries as I wanted – and even an ingenious temporary boiler system kept us supplied with hot water.
The walls were covered in an array of murals, messages, late night graffiti rambles, as well as banners and posters which helped to give the feeling of an even bigger cultural shift from the by-gone cathedral. I slept in a room that was previously decorated by a theater company. It was quite an experience to wake up with a huge, blue mural sky, indoors. As much an art gallery as a convergence space, walking around Bristol it is apparent that this is the norm in the city, in the Montpelier area you are faced with an amazing mural or a graf piece at every corner.

Throughout the week a fair amount of time was put into making banners and props for the planned action on the Saturday. The impressive pirate ship, built onto a shopping trolley, got a lot of attention especially wheeling or careering it around the city streets where there were a lot of bemused university freshers.

The week culminated on the weekend with a carnivalesque tour of the city to repossess the banks. There were a range of costumes and masks from anarchist nuns, animals, pirates and general carnival attire.

The plan was to take a whirlwind tour of the banks and offices and to cause general havoc around the streets of Bristol. We hit our first bank and although a few people got into the lobby we were repelled by the police.

Custard pies were thrown and a vicious cat and mice game incurred with the police jumping on a few people. When we tried to help out everyone piled in, including the police horses. Yeah, good plan who’s ever idea that was. Arrests were made and we moved onto the next target. Faces from the offices peered from above with fear, no, more like general interest on their faces. Anything to take them away from their spreadsheet day lives. Big up to the guy who glued himself across the front doors of bank trapping the bankers in at lunch time.

Along the route we kept up constant outreach to onlookers and passers by who gave mostly positive feedback, promising to look into the ethical bank, Triodos, rather than the high street banks. It was a shame to see that most people were aware that banks invest into things like the arms trade and climate chaos, but find it hard to switch across because of the effort involved or the fact that the banks have them trapped into loans, morgages and interest rates.

The day progressed, but unfortunately we seemed to lose momentum as we rambled on to the tenth bank. Although a few people spoke up, it was a bit demoralising having no energy to effectively or even metaphorically ‘repossess’ the banks. The outreach was encouraging though and it was good to get back to the Cathedral at the end of the long day to get some homemade soya burger mush stuff and a brew.

Written by Adam S on Thursday September 24th, 2009 12:52 pm

Categories ,Arms Trade, ,Autonomous space, ,bristol, ,Cathedral, ,Climate Justice, ,Co-mutiny, ,outreach, ,protest, ,repossess the banks, ,skipping, ,squat

Amelia’s Magazine | Climate Rush Bike Rush

This Saturday, information pills pill The Land Is Ours collective will occupy some disused land near Hammersmith. An eco-village will take root, viagra sale peacefully reclaiming land for a sustainable settlement, and getting in touch with the local community about its aims. In a year when nearly 13,000 Britons lost their homes to repossessions in the first three months, eco-villages point the way to a more down-to-earth lifestyle.

Back in May 1996, the same collective took over a spot on the banks of the Thames in Wandsworth, in a land rights action that grew up over five and a half months into the Pure Genius community, based on sustainable living and protesting the misuse of urban land. Here are some photos from that project.

1eco%20villagepic.jpg

The Land Is Ours channel the spirit of the Diggers , a group of 17-century radicals who picked out and dug over a patch of common land in St George’s Hill in Walton-upon-Thames back in the day. They were led by Gerard Winstanley, who thought any freedom must come from free access to the land.

Here’s a little more from ‘Gerard Winstanley’ about this weekend:

What’s the first thing you’ll do when you get there?
Have a meeting. One of the first priorities is to leaflet the local area in order to inform the local people of what we are doing. Another priority is the construction of compost toilets.

Do you have lots of plans for sheds, vegetable patches and compost toilets?
Yes. Due to the nature of the site (ex-industrial) we will likely be using raised beds to grow vegetables and buckets for potatoes. It being London, there should be a good supply of thrown away materials from building sites and in skips. Compost toilets are pretty essential.

?What kinds of people are you expecting to turn up?
All sorts. Hopefully a mixture of those keen to learn and those willing to teach. ??

1ecovillage%20pic2.jpg

?I read the Chapter 7 manifesto. Have you notified the council or planning authority of your plans, or are you keeping to the idea that once you’re there, with homes under construction, it’s difficult to evict?
We haven’t notified the council yet- but we have a liaison strategy in place for when we’re in.

On that note, how long do you hope to be there?
The longevity of the Eco-village depends on how committed its residences and just as crucially how the local urban populus respond to our presence. If we receive the support we need, the council will likely think twice before embarking on an unpopular eviction (at least that’s the theory!).

Could this realistically become a permanent residence, or is it more likely to be valuable simply as campaigning?
Hopefully it can be both. There is no reason why this site cannot sustain a core group of committed individuals and serve as a brilliant awareness raiser to the issue of disused urban land, lack of affordable housing and the a sustainable way of living that is friendly to people and planet and liberating.

rainbow%201eco%20village.jpg

?Can I come along?
Of course, we are meeting at Waterloo Station at 10AM this Saturday (underneath the clock).

What might I need to do?
Bring a tent, sleeping bag and some food and water. You may be interested to read an article written by a journalist from the Guardian concerning the eco-village.

tent1%20eco%20village.jpg

So dig yourself out of bed this Saturday, and go discover the beginnings of London’s newest eco-village.
If the dark shades of under-duvet hideouts dominate the colour of your Sundays then you need to wake up and get greened. Arcola Theatre in East London hopes to be the first carbon neutral theatre in the world and has been appointed as the secretariat for the Mayor of London’s Green Theatre plan, this which aims to deliver 60 percent cuts in theatre carbon emissions by 2025.

Illustration by Faye Katirai

As part of this environmental drive, the first Sunday of every month is a Green Sunday at Arcola Theatre. June’s event is part of Love London, the biggest green festival in Europe and looks at ethical consumption, promising ‘entertainment and inspiration for the ecologically curious’. From 3pm there’s a swap shop market plus cakes and tea to take you through the evening of Senegalese percussion, cool short and feature-length films, starting from 4.30pm. As the afternoon turns to evening, there will be a discussion with Neil Boorman, author of Bonfire Of The Brands, an account of his journey from shopping and brand addiction to a life free from labels. As part of the project, Neil destroyed every branded product in his possession, incinerating over £20,000 worth of designer gear in protest of consumer culture. This will be chaired by Morgan Phillips.

Neil and Morgan will later be joined by Richard King from Oxfam to talk about their 4-a-week campaign- encouraging shoppers to do their bit for sustainability each week.

Then at 7pm – Feature length film presented by Transition Town Hackney–
A Crude Awakening: The Oil Crash

I spoke to the sustainability projects manager at Arcola Theatre, Anna Beech, to find out more about Arcola’s arts world-changing philosophies:

All at Arcola must be extremely proud that a theatre founded only 9 years ago – and on credit cards! – is well on the way to becoming the first carbon neutral theatre in the world. Can you tell us a bit about how and why you made the decision to lead the green theatre movement?

Since 2007, Arcola has launched many high-profile green initiatives (including the pioneering use of LEDs and the on-site installation of a fuel cell to power bar and stage lighting). There are a number of reasons for this – because it contributes to reducing Arcola’s carbon emissions and resource use, because it makes financial sense – reducing energy bills; because it supports funding applications; because it integrates Arcola into the local community; allows Arcola to reach a wider audience and stakeholder base; and provides an effective platform upon which to publicise the name ‘Arcola’ – as a hub of creativity and sustainability.

Sustainability is part of Arcola’s core unique business model, alongside professional theatre and our youth and community programme.

Have you found that arts and science professionals are eager to integrate and come up with exciting ideas and actions or has it been difficult to bring the two fields together?

Arcola’s ArcolaEnergy has had considerable interest from technology companies and brokers, including the Carbon Trust. As a reocgnised innovator in sustainability in the arts, Arcola has been able to broker extremely advantageous relationships with private sector companies – who have provided the theatre with free green products, including LED lights – as well as other theatres and arts organisations (National Theatre, Arts Council, Live Nation, The Theatres Trust), and Government bodies like the DCMS and Mayor of London’s Office. Arcola’s reputation as a sustainable charity has created these partnerships and allowed them to grow and develop into mutually advantageous relationships. So this demonstrates that the arts and sustainability worlds can come together to form mutually advanteous relationships. However, there is plenty of work to be done.

So far, what has been the most successful pioneering energy practice you’ve introduced?

The installation of Arcola’s fuel cell in February 2008 made the venue the first theatre in the world to power its main house shows and bar/café on hydrogen. The Living Unknown Soldier gained reverence as London’s most ecologically sustainable show, with the lighting at a peak power consumption of 4.5kW, a reduction of 60 per cent on comparable theatre lighting installations.

Previous Green Sunday events at the Arcola Theatre

Arcola’s ‘greening’ goes from the stage to the box office. Among other things, we produce ‘green’ newsletters for staff, we recycle, we provide free tap water to audiences (to lessen use of bottled water), we serve fairtrade, organic and local produce wherever possible (including organic vodka and whiskey!), we host Transition Town meetings, we installed a cycle enclosure for staff in 2009 and try to incentivise both staff and audiences to use public transport more and their cars less.

How do you think the technical creativity of sustainability has significantly shaped any of the plays Arcola has produced?

One example of the ‘greening’ of Arcola’s shows and working closely with production companies took place during the pre-production and staging of ‘Living Unknown Soldier‘ in 2008. The production explored the use of more energy efficient lanterns, including LED moving heads and batons (see Fig. 1) florescent tubes and some other filament lanterns such as low wattage source 4′s and par 16s. The crew tried to travel by public transport wherever possible, use laptops rather than PCs, limit phone use, source sustainable materials and managed to keep energy requirements low in order to use Arcola’s fuel cell to power the show.

‘‘The idea is that once you expose people to this stuff and they know you for doing it, they’ll gravitate towards you. Ultimately we should end up with some really good art about sustainability and some really good ideas about how to do art sustainably.” – Ben Todd, Executive Director and Founder of Arcola Energy.

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Illustration by David Elsley

Why do you think its particularly important for the arts to become more involved in green issues?

Because the arts have the power to influence behaviour change. Whilst the theatre industry itself has a relatively small carbon footprint (2% of total carbon emissions in London), and thus its capacity to deliver direct carbon emission reductions is relatively small; the power of theatre and the wider arts/cultural sectors to rapidly and effectively influence public behaviour and policy makers to drive significant indirect carbon emission reductions is very large (entertainment related activity accounts for up to 40% of travel emissions).

However, theatres and other arts venues must first address the ‘greening’ of their venues and practices in order to communicate climate change and environmental messages to audiences effectively and with impact.

Green Sundays is a great idea, how do you hope to see it develop in the future months?

We have a variety of themes in mind for future events, including a focus on the climate talks in Copenhagen in December, a water theme, ethical business, natural history and a Green Sunday programme tailored to children and young people.

So get over your hangover, get on your bike and cycle down to Dalston on Sunday to help spread the word about arts and sustainability coming together to communicate environmental messages to your local community.

To find out more about Green Sundays and the Arcola Theatre go to:

www.arcolatheatre.com
Continuing our odyssey of festival previews, page I bring you the amazing Green Man!

I don’t keep it secret that I’ve had a crush on Jarvis Cocker since I was 10 and first heard Common People, I suppose announcing it on a blog was just the next logical step in my snowballing lust for the bespectacled one. Imagine my delight when I saw he was headlining as a solo outfit at this year’s Green Man Festival.

Green Man 2006

Rock_en_Seine_2007%2C_Jarvis_Cocker.jpg
Jarvis Cocker

All the other festivals will be green with envy over Green Man’s line-up, one of the most exciting and diverse of the summer. Alongside Jarv, Animal Collective will also be headlining and having seen them a couple of times over the past few years they are really not to be missed live, their shows can only be described as being in an underwater topsy-turvy world where you can feel the rhythm wash over you in waves.

Animal Collective

Green Man is in no short supply of indie darlings and big names, with Wilco, Bon Iver, Gang Gang Dance, the delicious Beach House and Grizzly Bear; who I’m gagging to see live after finally getting a copy of their amazing second album Veckatimest. Not to be transatlantically out down; Green Man boasts an impressive array of home-grown talent- including Four-Tet, national treasures British Sea Power, and to woo the romantic in you; Camera Obscura.
Ex- member of my favourites Gorky’s Zygotic Mynki Euros Childs, Andrew Bird, 6 Day Riot and James Yuill also stand out as bands (as well as the above mentioned) not to be missed.

Beach House

Whilst Green Man has managed to pull in such an awesome line-up, it has a reputation for a boutique-y intimacy and a friendly atmosphere. Green Man is most definitely a festival for music lovers, and one that I won’t be missing!

Green Man Festival 2007

Green Man Festival takes place amidst the Breacon Beacons from 21st to 23rd August. Click here for ticket information.

Thumbnail by Roisin Conway
Some people have the knack for discovering those amazing pieces in charity shops – it’s generally the preserve of both the patient and the fashion-savvy who are content to rummage away until they emerge with some designer find that leaves you flapping your arms and wondering why it wasn’t you.
Now ten minutes in Topshop – that’s a quick fix. Why bother buying something old when you can buy something new? If last week’s Style Wars was only a half-formed idea, generic intent to float and suggest a concept, but not to follow through, TRAID (Textile Recycling for Aid and International Development) has articulated the remaking and reselling of used clothes as an ethical necessity. Citing the whopping £46 billion spent on clothes and accessories every year, TRAID highlights the colossal wastage resultant of constantly changing trends that are both cheap and easily available. The ease of shopping on the high street seems to problematise the feeling that the act of recycling is an almost paradoxical idea for an industry that is by name and nature grounded in an obsession with the new and the innovative.
Here lies the problem in normal charity shop shopping. The dowdy and stale image affixed to them is arguably (however unfortunately) justifiable, and TRAID has been taking the steps to rebrand the public perception of recycled clothing by actually joining the dots between the environment, recycling and fashion itself. Charity and fashion are practically mutually alienating concepts in most people’s minds. In short, charity shops aren’t trendy, so how do you turn that around? Chief Executive Maria TRAID recognises the problem and goes straight to the heart of it, saying “we have worked incredibly hard to change the face of charity retail by ensuring that our shops are stylish and affordable”, two words you might associate with the high street.

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TRAID has 900 textile recycling banks across the UK, and the company take the donations and sort by quality and style to then sell in one of their charity shops – clothes that are stained or torn are deconstructed and redesigned into a bespoke garment by the company’s own fashion label TRAIDremade.

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In a way it’s an absolute no-brainer: to take things people don’t want and make them something they do, especially as they follow high street trends, crafting sexy asymmetric dresses, bags cut from old leathers, signature hand printed tees and flirty dresses.

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Two weeks ago TRAID opened their tenth shop in their tenth year in Camden, which as well as being an area that’s a promising resource in terms of fashionable finds, is a landmark for a really inspirational company. To date TRAID has donated £1.4 million to help fight global poverty, supporting charities by funding projects in Malawi and Kenya amongst others. TRAID has ten shops located across London and Brighton, and TRAIDremade is available on getethical.co.uk.

Monday 8th June

The End of the Line

Imagine a world without fish. Released in cinemas across the country to coincide for World Ocean Day, medical an inconvenient truth about the devastating effect of overfishing.

Opens today, check your local cinema for screenings.

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Lambeth Green Communities Open Evening

Organised in partnership with Transition Town Brixton, Hyde Farm CAN and ASSA CAN, this is a chance to celebrate Lambeth’s Green Communities and be inspired to reduce your community’s environmental impact.

18.30-21.00 drop-in to Lambeth Town Hall, Brixton
Contact – Susan Sheehan, Ssheehan (at) lambeth.gov.uk

Tuesday 9th June

The Great British Refurb
Housing for a low carbon energy future – a talk at the The Royal Society

A talk by Professor Tadj Oreszczyn, chaired by Professor Chris Rapley. Theoretical carbon reductions have often been slow to materialise, new buildings can use up to twice the energy predicted, and energy use can actually go up when efficiency increases. This lecture will look at the possibilities for new building, and whether technology can solve our energy use problems. Tadj Oreszczyn is Professor of Energy and Environment and Director of the Energy Institute at UCL.

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This lecture is free – no ticket or booking required. Doors open at 5.45pm and seats are first-come first-served. Lecture starts at 6.30pm, The Royal Society

This lecture will be webcast live and available to view on demand within 48 hours of delivery at royalsociety.tv

Wednesday 10th June

Illustration by Kerry Lemon

GM Crops and the Global Food Crisis

Dominic Glover, Erik Millstone, Peter Newell talk about possible solutions to the encroaching global food crisis – how will GM crops fit in to the struggle to raise yields, and could they be part of a truly sustainable answer?

6pm, Committee Room 10, Palace of Westminster.
Contact – c.matthews (at) ids.ac.uk

Thursday 11th June

Walking on the Edge of the City

Join a popular walking group on a stroll around this fascinating part of London. There’s no charge and no need to book. Do get there ten minutes before the start time, wear comfortable shoes and bring a small bottle of water.

11am – 12.15pm, meeting at St Luke’s Centre, 90 Central Street, London, EC1V

Clothes Swap at Inc Space

Daisy Green Magazine and ethical stylist Lupe Castro have teamed up to host what is hoped to be the UK’s biggest ever clothes swap. Nicola Alexander, founder of daisygreenmagazine.co.uk, said, “It’s like a fashion treasure hunt!”

The evening will kick off at 6.30 and, as well as the swish (apparently the ‘scene’ word for a clothes swap), it will feature an ethical styling demonstration by Lupe Castro, music from top green band, The Phoenix Rose, burlesque dancing and shopping opportunities from ethical fashion brands including Bochica, Makepiece, Bourgeois Boheme, and natural beauty company, Green People.

Tickets are £10 in advance and £15 on the door.
More information can be found on our facebook page
From 18:30 at INC Space in Grape Street, London WC2

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Illustration by David Elsley.

Friday 12th June

Compost Clinic and Recycling Roadshow

Redbridge Recycling Group are running a friendly information stand all day. Want to bin the bags and green your shopping habits? Fancy making your own compost or confused about packaging labels? Pop along any time of day to have your questions answered and find out how to make the future waste free.

11am – 4pm, Ilford High Road, opposite the Town Hall/Harrison Gibson

Saturday 13th June

World Naked Bike Ride

Taking place all over the country, all over the world, the World Naked Bike Ride protests against oil dependency and car culture, celebrating the power of our bikes and bodies. Every June, more than a thousand cyclists gather in London to take part. The easy 10 km route passes through London’s busiest and best known streets. Bring your bike and body (decorate both of these ahead of time)

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Assemble from 3pm in Hyde Park (South East section, near Hyde Park Tube) – east of the Broad Walk, south of the Fountain of Joy, and north of the Achilles Statue.

Saturday 13th and Sunday 14th June

Sustainability Weekend

Celebrate the Love London, Love Your Planet Festival 2009 at the London Wetland Centre this weekend. Check out TFL’s new hybrid bus, see the Richmond shire horses and get a load of green tips and tricks. There will also be face painting for the kids, the Richmond cycling campaign and other environmentally friendly organisations.

11am-4pm, Saturday and Sunday
WWT London Wetland Centre, SW13 9WT

Maaaan, pilule those bloomers are HOT!

My morning started bright and early on Monday 1st June: called upon as I was to document a Climate Rush action at Chatham House just as the E.ON sponsored conference began: Coal: An Answer to Energy Security? (like, drug duh… NO!)

As I was sitting in the very pleasant St James Square to avoid undue police annoyance (there were vehicles parked right outside the entrance) I found my eyes drawn to the undergrowth in the thicket of vegetation at the edge of the park. I should have been looking for activity outside the venue, but instead I found myself engaged in a dance between two Robins. I always thought Robins were solitary birds, but a quick google ascertains my reasoning that this pair must have been mates, although I’m fairly sure Robins don’t scavenge at ground level. There was also a young Blackbird, happily scrabbling around in the undergrowth for some nice tasty worms (I’m guessing… but that sounds like the perfect breakfast for a Blackbird) As I sat there wondering what was to pass in the street beyond I felt my heart sing. Here, even in the centre of our grubby and concreted capital city – nature finds a way. This is what I’m fighting for, I thought! The sheer joy of the natural world.

a Blackbird in the undergrowth

And then, I noticed two coppers striding towards me. Would they find my Climate Rush badges? And pre-emptively arrest me for possible crimes against cotton with a badge pin? Asking why I was acting suspiciously by peering into the bushes I replied, “why, I’m taking photos of the birds” and showed the officers the photos on my camera playback. But they weren’t having it, and asked for my ID, which I refused. It’s not illegal to refuse to show your ID, but they took this as admission of guilt – a typical ploy of the police and one which I must check up on the legality of. They then searched me “because you must have something to hide if you don’t want to give us your name Angela Gregory” Ah!!! Clever officer! He’s been reading his little FIT watch spotter card and cribbing up on Climate Rush central. Only the trouble is, I’m not Angela Gregory – clever but not so clever officer. I’d love to see what they use as my mugshot – I hope it’s flattering.

When I questionned the validity of their reason to search me, one officer told me that “you are believed to be a member of a group called Climate Action, no that’s not it… Climate Rush, and they have committed criminal damage on buildings.” Wrong again Mr. Officer! Our parliament gluers have been bailed away to return to charges of possible criminal damage, for one drop of glue that fell on the statue in parliament. Glue that washes away with one dab of a damp cloth. Like that’s got a rat’s chance in hell of standing up in court.

Still – they got my name right after a cursory search of my camera bag, which revealed an old business card that had been lurking in a side pocket for at least three years. But they didn’t find the badges, even though they were rattling like bastards. I knew they wouldn’t, the MET not being the brightest cookies in the biscuit jar. Oh, I will be in trouble the next time we meet! Woops! If they had discovered the badge stash they would have found not only climate rush badges but also E.ON F.OFF ones from the Climate Camp campaign – that would have got them very excited no doubt, given the sponsor of said Coal Conference.

As usual I’ve gone off on a tangent… not long after the police accosted me there was a loud commotion the other side of the St James nature reserve, and the police and I were off like a flash to find out what was going on. Across the road a bunch of white clad people were trying to hold onto a bike sculpture, as the police tried to tussle it off them. Within moments the police had gained the upper hand, and instead the eleven protesters were trying to pull sashes from Deeds Not Words bags, and unfurl a lovely red banner reading No New Coal, before the police frogmarched them across the road and threw them into the “pen”.

I dashed off home in the hopes of getting some images into the London papers – alas my speed was not rewarded with any success, but our actions did reach the attendees of the conference – one academic at the conference apparently spoke with a protester, and agreed that direct action was pushing matters in the right direction (he was a specialist in CCS, but held out little hope for it’s implementation, given the probable massive costs) Score one massive point to us! I hope that E.ON and their cronies were suitably rattled, even if the press didn’t feel see fit to publicise the action. In the end five activists were arrested but most were released within hours. One brave Climate Rusher was refused bail after glueing herself onto the Chatham House railings (you go girl!) and the judge at her hearing the next morning allegedly told her that our protest had been pointless, since it had not garnered any press – before slapping a massive 40 hours community service on her for aggravated trespass. We think not…

the bike sculpture lies forlorn on the pavement

In recent weeks we’ve attracted a lot of interest from film makers, and by the time I arrived at Tamsin’s house to get ready for the Bike Rush that afternoon (and to hastily knock up one more pair of bloomers) there were cameras everywhere I turned. It’s not a sensation I particularly like, and have thus far managed to stay out of the current crop of films – leaving it to the more exhibitionist members of Climate Rush to hog the limelight. I worry that it is easy to manipulate our actions in the editing suite, and portray us in a way with which we will ultimately be unhappy and out of our control. But I guess it’s a situation that I need to grow used to – many of our sort – as well as being involved with an undoubtedly exciting group – are very attractive, garrulous and media savvy – an irresistable combination to a film maker. Me? I much prefer to stay behind the lens…

finishing off the flags

As soon as the drawstring was threaded into the last pair of bloomers it was time to hit the high roads of Kilburn – seven of us on various bikes, none of which, I noted disappointingly, were even vaguely Edwardian-esque. Instead we had Geeky Rushette on a fold-out Brompton with a helmet. And we had Virgin Rushette with wispy blonde locks and billowing white damel-in-distress dress over her bloomers, and Not-Very-Good-on-a-Bike-in-London Rushette on a crappy mountain bike with a rusty chain that nearly fell off before we even set off.

I was dressed in a simple black dress in the hope that my vintage hat from Hebden Bridge would be enough of a distraction and provide the right elegant touch – which was exciting as it tipped over both my eyes and my camera. We made a right merry site gunning down the bus lane towards Marble Arch, flags flapping behind as people turned to gawp at us. After taking a short cut through Green Park we traversed the Mall and came to a screeching halt at our destination, where we were seriously outnumbered by police. But blimey did we look good!

gathered in Green Park as we approach!

As we pulled sashes and t-shirts and badges and stickers from our panniers people began to arrive in their droves. The sun shone down as the cyclists spilled from the pen into the road and the police did little to resist.

Tim cranked up Pedals, the bike sound system, and I chatted to people – it was great to discover that people had come from afar on the strength of joining our facebook group – ah, I do love to feel vindicated on the subject of social networking. I was also very pleased to see lots of children along for the ride, suitably togged up with sashes and of course helmets.

maybe our youngest Rusher?

And a lot more customisation of sashes, which have suddenly found new lives as headbands on hats, ties around bike baskets, cumberbund style belts and a whole host more. Marina just opted to pile a whole load on, and looked a treat for it.

a basket full of skipped flowers gets the sash treatment

my fabulous vintage visor-meets-pie hat!

Then the Hare Krishnas arrived with a mighty noise that had the whole gathering swivelling their heads; a whole band seated in two trailers behind bicycles. I was astonished to see that a drum kit could indeed be transported this way (plus a rather large drummer).

Once several hundred people had gathered in place there were a few false starts before it was time to take off for a ceremonial circuit of the square, wooping all the way before we stopped off at our first destination, just yards from the starting point – BP’s head offices – they of the infamous byline “Beyond Petroleum“. And fact fans, you’ll no doubt be interested to hear that BP have in fact spent more on the whole Beyond Petroleum (as if!) advertising campaign than they have in fact spent on alternative energy. Brilliant! Why pour money into researching renewables when you can instead rape and pillage the earth for a fraction of the cost? And spend any extra cash on greenwashing instead. Fabulous plan; congratulations BP.

With that it was onwards on a winding route up to Piccadilly Circus, and from there up Charing Cross Road to Oxford Street, that grand bastion of consumerism -one of the biggest drivers of Climate Change. Tim gave a running commentary from the backseat of his tandem as we hollered our way down London’s flagship shopping street, before coming to a grand halt in the late evening sunshine smack bang in the middle of Oxford Circus. What a grand feeling! Many people seemed amused and even happy to see us, a grand diversion from the glittering goods in the windows.

stopped in the centre of Oxford Circus

As we sailed downhill along Regent Street I spotted a Lush store, still with our Trains Not Planes banner proudly displayed in the window. A bike-bound copper looked on worriedly as someone went closer to take a look. Duh! They’re our friends – just take a look at the Evening Standard-alike banner outside the shop. We love Lush. We’re not about to do anything naughty!

hmmm, the Queen’s residence ahead in the late evening sun…

On our second stop at Piccadilly Circus Tim cheekily waited until the lights went red “cos us cyclists always run red lights” before leading us across the main junction and down towards the Mall, where we sallied into the sunshine up to Buckingham Palace. I met the naked cyclists, who I’d been promised were attending. The girls had bikinis on and they all wore lots of paint, the better to cover up with, but they still looked rather fetching, if slightly less than wholely naked. And despite rumours to the contrary they were happy to sport a sash to protect their modesty as well.

It was then but a short hop down to Victoria, where we paused to consider the headquarters of BAA – boooooooo. And then on past BERR, where, funnily enough, Neil “the weasel” FIT photographer was waiting for us. We all waved “hi” to him as he lowered his massive equipment and smiled slightly sheepishly at us. You know who we are Neil, and we all know who you are too. Why don’t you just get a better job? One in which you are helping to protect a better world for all, not just the interests of the few? Still, I have to commend the actions of the police who came along for the ride – for once they really did seem to be protecting the rights of protesters – having cross words with impatient drivers revving their engines and generally preventing overly aggressive behaviour from motorists.

wave to Neil everyone!

Oh god, this has turned into a bit of an opus as usual, and I haven’t even mentioned all of our stopping off points! The fact is that unless you were right down the front near the sound system it was pretty impossible to hear the guided tour. And anyway, everyone was just so happy to be commandeering the streets of London – there’s nothing like reclaiming our public highways to feel empowered – that it didn’t matter if our tour was a little haphazard in the end (and we left our notes at home anyway, so it was a bit of an ad-lib).

solidarity with the Tamils

And then we were at Parliament Square – the police momentarily blocked our entrance onto the roundabout, but then decided better as we filtered around them anyway. Soon we were level with the Tamils, who seemed somewhat bemused by our peace signs in solidarity. But oh what an inspiration they have been! Such tenacity. And then onwards to Westminster Bridge, where we turned in a big loop near the junction on the north side and stopped. Perhaps this would be an opportune place for that picnic we promised? A statement of our intent right next to the very seat of power that is failing us? The suggestion was met with amusement as it dawned on our riders that this was what we had in mind.

that bike sign on the road has gotta mean “stop” right?

Some clearly were not expecting it, but almost everyone was soon dropping their bikes to the road and pulling out their picnic blankets and food. As the sunset on Big Ben above us we raised our bikes aloft in joy, unfurled banners aplenty, and stood our ground. The police didn’t know what to do – FIT finally made it down from BERR, and climbed on top of a barrier right above where I’d left my bike. Weirdly the bamboo pole holding up my lovely Climate Rush flag was latter found snapped in two shortly afterwards. I hate to make accusations but…

what a marvelous family!

bike aloft

As a bendy bus made an awkward 360 degree turn on the bridge passersby continued to stream past, snapping away and generally beaming at our audacity. A string of brightly coloured bunting cordoned off our blockade.

fun with a bendy bus!

The soundsystem was commandeered by a variety of eloquent speakers and Mark played us a tune or two. Sadly the promised celidh didn’t happen – our erstwhile fiddler had failed to materialise yet again and I was too busy running around like a headless chicken (taking photos) to figure out an alternative. I do apologise – multitasking got the better of me again.

astride Boudicca

gawping at their nerve

And then three Rushettes mounted the huge emblematic Boudicca statue in their stripey bloomers! One climbed right up to place a sash around Boudicca’s neck, before returning to sit astride one of the great beasts in a gesture of defiant victory. The first attempt to fly a flag from the horses’ hooves failed, but no matter, we’d been prolific in our banner making and another one was soon unfurled. Deeds Not Words. I think that powerful queen would have approved.

bike blockade

on a tandem

Shortly before 9pm the police approached us politely and charmingly (someone must have had words with them in recent weeks) to say that they would eventually have to move us on. We decided that it would be best to go out on a high and declared our intentions to the crowd, with an accompanying recommendation to come join us in a nice pub on The Cut by Waterloo. As we cycled off across the bridge I was amused to find tourists sitting in the middle of the road – thrilled with the lack of cars and the unexpected reclamation for bipedal human use.

enjoying the reclaimed bridge

At the pub we laid out our picnic blankets again and enjoyed the warm balmy night in the company of many new friends. I was particularly thrilled to speak with new Rushers and especially to those who had not expected our final destination to be quite so spikey, but who had welcomed the unexpected turn of events with open arms. Inspiring mass direct action – it’s what we do best… so join us on our next action against the dirty palm oil biofuel business; responsible for massive environmental degradation, huge contributions of CO2 to the atmosphere, and the loss of 90% of the orangutans since the Suffragettes first walked this land. Don’t let those in power decide the future of our planet!

Written by Amelia on Thursday June 4th, 2009 5:39 pm

Categories ,activism, ,Bikes Environment, ,Climate Rush, ,Coal, ,Direct Action, ,protest

Amelia’s Magazine | Climate Rush Bike Rush – Part 36

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Here’s a little more from ‘Gerard Winstanley’ about this weekend:

?What kinds of people are you expecting to turn up?
All sorts. Hopefully a mixture of those keen to learn and those willing to teach. ??

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?Can I come along?
Of course, we are meeting at Waterloo Station at 10AM this Saturday (underneath the clock).

What might I need to do?
Bring a tent, sleeping bag and some food and water. You may be interested to read an article written by a journalist from the Guardian concerning the eco-village.

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Illustration by Faye Katirai

Neil and Morgan will later be joined by Richard King from Oxfam to talk about their 4-a-week campaign- encouraging shoppers to do their bit for sustainability each week.

Then at 7pm – Feature length film presented by Transition Town Hackney–
A Crude Awakening: The Oil Crash

I spoke to the sustainability projects manager at Arcola Theatre, Anna Beech, to find out more about Arcola’s arts world-changing philosophies:

Sustainability is part of Arcola’s core unique business model, alongside professional theatre and our youth and community programme.

Have you found that arts and science professionals are eager to integrate and come up with exciting ideas and actions or has it been difficult to bring the two fields together?

So far, what has been the most successful pioneering energy practice you’ve introduced?

Previous Green Sunday events at the Arcola Theatre

How do you think the technical creativity of sustainability has significantly shaped any of the plays Arcola has produced?

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Illustration by David Elsley

Why do you think its particularly important for the arts to become more involved in green issues?

Green Sundays is a great idea, how do you hope to see it develop in the future months?

To find out more about Green Sundays and the Arcola Theatre go to:

www.arcolatheatre.com
Continuing our odyssey of festival previews, page I bring you the amazing Green Man!

Green Man 2006

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Jarvis Cocker

Animal Collective

Beach House

Green Man Festival 2007

Green Man Festival takes place amidst the Breacon Beacons from 21st to 23rd August. Click here for ticket information.

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Monday 8th June

The End of the Line

Imagine a world without fish. Released in cinemas across the country to coincide for World Ocean Day, medical an inconvenient truth about the devastating effect of overfishing.

Opens today, check your local cinema for screenings.

0608%20dead%20fish.jpg

Lambeth Green Communities Open Evening

18.30-21.00 drop-in to Lambeth Town Hall, Brixton
Contact – Susan Sheehan, Ssheehan (at) lambeth.gov.uk

Tuesday 9th June

The Great British Refurb
Housing for a low carbon energy future – a talk at the The Royal Society

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This lecture is free – no ticket or booking required. Doors open at 5.45pm and seats are first-come first-served. Lecture starts at 6.30pm, The Royal Society

This lecture will be webcast live and available to view on demand within 48 hours of delivery at royalsociety.tv

Wednesday 10th June

Illustration by Kerry Lemon

GM Crops and the Global Food Crisis

6pm, Committee Room 10, Palace of Westminster.
Contact – c.matthews (at) ids.ac.uk

Thursday 11th June

Walking on the Edge of the City

11am – 12.15pm, meeting at St Luke’s Centre, 90 Central Street, London, EC1V

Clothes Swap at Inc Space

Tickets are £10 in advance and £15 on the door.
More information can be found on our facebook page
From 18:30 at INC Space in Grape Street, London WC2

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Illustration by David Elsley.

Friday 12th June

Compost Clinic and Recycling Roadshow

11am – 4pm, Ilford High Road, opposite the Town Hall/Harrison Gibson

Saturday 13th June

World Naked Bike Ride

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Assemble from 3pm in Hyde Park (South East section, near Hyde Park Tube) – east of the Broad Walk, south of the Fountain of Joy, and north of the Achilles Statue.

Saturday 13th and Sunday 14th June

Sustainability Weekend

11am-4pm, Saturday and Sunday
WWT London Wetland Centre, SW13 9WT

Maaaan, pilule those bloomers are HOT!

a Blackbird in the undergrowth

the bike sculpture lies forlorn on the pavement

finishing off the flags

gathered in Green Park as we approach!

maybe our youngest Rusher?

a basket full of skipped flowers gets the sash treatment

my fabulous vintage visor-meets-pie hat!

stopped in the centre of Oxford Circus

hmmm, the Queen’s residence ahead in the late evening sun…

wave to Neil everyone!

solidarity with the Tamils

that bike sign on the road has gotta mean “stop” right?

what a marvelous family!

bike aloft

fun with a bendy bus!

astride Boudicca

gawping at their nerve

bike blockade

on a tandem

enjoying the reclaimed bridge

Written by Amelia on Thursday June 4th, 2009 5:39 pm

Categories ,activism, ,Bikes Environment, ,Climate Rush, ,Coal, ,Direct Action, ,protest

Amelia’s Magazine | Copping Out: The latest from Trafalgar Square

tent
Illustration by Verity Smith

Waking on Friday morning I can tell by the sunlight streaming into my room that for a change it’s a bright and clear day, doctor cheapest good news for those taking part in the COP OUT down at Trafalgar square. I’ve been going back and forth from the square since last Saturday, cost the day when following the hugely successful event ‘The Wave’, buy in which around 40,000 decked out in blue descended on Parliament to demand direct action against climate change, the resilient bunch that is Climate Camp went the extra mile and set up camp right between Nelson’s Column and that giant Christmas tree. Known as the ‘hardy types’ the next day in The Sunday Times, they popped up their tents, hung up their banners and got the tea going on a make-shift stove.

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By the time I arrived on Sunday, learned a few names and attempted to help out in the kitchen-tent, which for me involved eating cous cous, (which was amazing) and X-factor related chit-chat, it was clear the original planned 48-hour stay was a given and this was just the tip of the melting iceberg. After a quick meeting in the afternoon drizzle, the resolution was clear; the campers would continue to occupy Trafalgar Square until the end of the Copenhagen Summit on the 19th, meaning a 2 week stay. As the meeting broke-up and everyone started to busy themselves in preparation for the ‘alternative’ carol service that evening, I began to wonder how on earth this was going to pan out; how the group would manage to stay in The Square without it ending in them being dragged away by the authorities, kicking and screaming.

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Upon my arrival on Monday, I learned I couldn’t have been more wrong. I glimpsed from the crossing on The Strand a small huddle and a flash of day-glow yellow and thought, “yikes”, this spells trouble. However all it really meant was what seemed to be a friendly discussion with a police man and a police woman who just wanted to know what was going on, but warned that the Greater London Authority planned an eviction notice for around 4.00 that afternoon. The camp by now was certainly smaller; the kitchen was reduced to a stove for tea and many loaves of organic bread, which had been donated by a local bakery. However still lots of the same determined faces, one of which was Marina who won me over on Sunday in the meeting, she is animated and commands attention, and I generally gravitate toward her and pester her about the latest goings on. Still no word from the GLA, I get handed a leaflet by a smiley chap in a blue suit whose name I didn’t catch about what I should do if I am to be arrested, “eek”, is trouble a brewing? No, that’s just the tea. Still no word so I trudge home in the rain.

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Tuesday morning and a guy in a polar bear suit has joined the camp, word is he was protesting against Tar Sands outside the nearby Canada House. Marina updates her Twitter telling how the bear has given her some shoes, as hers were soaked (her tent is by a fountain), what a bear indeed!
bear
Illustration by Verity Smith

A few new faces have appeared and the numbers are still good, the GLA eventually deliver letters to the tents saying they cannot camp in the square without permission, but it’s not an eviction notice. I rush back to work because it’s the launch of Amelia’s Anthology of Illustration later at Concrete Hermit, which goes down a treat complete with Adnam’s carbon neutral beer. On Wednesday I’m running late for work after accompanying my pal Katie to the station, so I don’t get down to the COP OUT. I hear they’ve called up Boris Johnson but he’s in Copenhagen.

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Come Thursday morning and the GLA are after the names of the campers, like they are going to tell them. Jenny Jones of the Green Party was also down there making cups of tea. I head down on Friday and the camp is buzzing. After an amazing week of action, negotiation and discussion it is time to bid farewell to those off to Copenhagen, and what better way than with a special lunch. A new kitchen has sprung up as well as yet more new faces, eager to get involved. I get a leaflet about the ‘Feeding the 5000’ event that is taking place next Wednesday the 16th, in which waste food will be used to prepare delicious meals. So with one more week in The Square what is in store? Who knows but Climate Camp still needs volunteers, as well as useful items such as water bottles, blankets etc. All week they’ve been joining forces with other groups that occupy Trafalgar Square during the festive season, from The Salvation Army to Hare Krishna’s to collectively push for effective solutions to the climate crisis.

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On Monday at 10.00am, in solidarity with the activists in Copenhagen, will be an open action taking place in The Square and at Canada House to protest against the use of Tar Sands. In order to develop these large deposits of sticky crude oil rainforests the size of our country will have to be cut down, as well as the extraction and processing of just one barrel of Tar Sands equalling 3 barrels of natural gas and 4 barrels of water; do the maths, it equals bad news for planet earth.

With COP15 in full swing those remaining in the UK need to get together and stand against the further destruction of our planet. So if that sounds like your cup of tea, why not go down to Trafalgar Square and tell your friends, as the COP OUT will only succeed if people lend as much or as little of their time as they can.
londonglobe
Illustration by Verity Smith

For more updates and information on the COP OUT and Climate Camp

Follow Twitter updates on what is happening in Copenhagen from Amelia’s Magazine’s Amelia Gregory

Written by Grace Beaumont on Sunday December 13th, 2009 6:01 pm

Categories ,activism, ,camping, ,Canada House, ,Climate Camp, ,Climate Change, ,COP OUT, ,earth, ,london, ,polar bear, ,police, ,protest, ,Tar Sands, ,Trafalgar Square

Amelia’s Magazine | Earth Listings: 12 – 18 October

Radical Nature is an exhibition at the Barbican that explores art and architecture for a changing planet, side effects illness it was held over summer and now next week is the last chance to go and see the exhibits.

The gallery has brought together an array of artists, recipe designers and architects across different generations to collaborate in the space. The ideas are drawn form environmental activism, case experimental architecture and utopianism and make for an interesting whirlwind tour of how we can look to live in the changing global climate.
With over 20 artists presenting their work there is plenty to take in take in and lots to learn, I’ve picked out my top 5 which I think we can learn the most from or are just pretty dam inspiring.

Air-Port-City
Tomas Saraceno

One of the first things you come across, the bubble cell joined up plastic blobs that relate to Tomas’s concept of Air-Port City. He wants it to challenge the political structure and look for people and nations to communicate and join in synergy with a no borders approach. The conjoined cells, and black rope make up an interesting visual and you can instantly relate it to some far off futuristic utopia.

Geodesic Dome
Richard Buckminster Fuller

Taking one of the centre places is the Geodesic dome, pioneered by Richard Fuller over sixty years ago. The revolutionary structure built up of triangular elements is now replicated all over the world. A film, Modelling Universe, where Fuller explains how universal and natural elements can be simplified down to triangles is defiantly worth a watch.

The survival Series
Newton and Helen Harrison

A collaboration in the seventies where the two began to work on projects that would benefit the ecosystem. It culminated in Full Farm, which is restaged at the Barbican. Cleverly constructed raised beds and vegetable plots are used to grow a range of crops. Tomatoes in a gallery are certainly a first for me, although not too sure about the huge watt bulbs powering the photosynthesis.

Wheatfield
Agnes Denes

An inspiring take on environmental art that can’t help to challenge peoples perceptions. Wheatfield – A Confrontation where two acres of wheat were planted in a landfill right next to New York created amazing images. The project was created at Dalston Mill for the Radical Nature exhibition. The fields and towers give an apocalyptic and futuristic feel and the idea of crops bordering towns and cities seem like an attractive idea to me.

Fallen Forest
Henrik Hakansson

Another installation to challenge perceptions, a 16metre squared piece of rainforest is flipped on its side. The massive lights create an artificial environment that Hakansson aims to point out the unbalanced relationship between man and nature, although I’m not sure if the huge electricity power needed is meant to be part of the analysis.

Waste Flow
Mierle Laderman Ukeles

Involving all of New York’s districts Mierle met every bin man in the area and personally thanked all 8,500 of them. What I found most interesting was the rubbish flow film that came out of the project, which follows the household rubbish through the streets to landfill. The amount of waste and the fact that we all distance ourselves from the process means that it is a fascinating and eye-opening documentary on our waste and throw away culture.

The exhibition is defiantly worth a visit and with plenty of other intricacies and projects to look at and learn from on the two floors. Urban Harvest Festival will also be taking place next Thursday the 15th where a DIY disco invite people to bring their own music to season the evening alongside a food and end-of-season harvest Swapshop, as well as chefs from Searcy’s cooking up a treat.

Radical Nature is an exhibition at the Barbican that explores art and architecture for a changing planet, information pills it was held over summer but is now coming to a close with next week as the last chance to go and see the exhibits.

The gallery has brought together an array of artists, web designers and architects across different generations to collaborate in the space. The ideas are drawn from environmental activism, experimental architecture and utopianism and make for an interesting whirlwind tour of how we can look to live in the changing global climate.
With over 20 artists presenting their work there is plenty to take in and lots to learn, I’ve picked out my top 5 most inspiring installations.

Air-Port-City
Tomas Saraceno

Geodesic Dome
Richard Buckminster Fuller

The survival Series
Newton and Helen Harrison

Wheatfield
Agnes Denes

Fallen Forest
Henrik Hakansson

Waste Flow
Mierle Laderman Ukeles

Radical Nature is an exhibition at the Barbican that explores art and architecture for a changing planet, symptoms it was held over summer but is now coming to a close with next week as the last chance to go and see the exhibits.

The gallery has brought together an array of artists, for sale designers and architects across different generations to collaborate in the space. The ideas are drawn from environmental activism, page experimental architecture and utopianism and make for an interesting whirlwind tour of how we can look to live in the changing global climate.
With over 20 artists presenting their work there is plenty to take in and lots to learn, I’ve picked out my top 5 most inspiring installations.

Air-Port-City
Tomas Saraceno

Geodesic Dome
Richard Buckminster Fuller

The survival Series
Newton and Helen Harrison

Wheatfield
Agnes Denes

Fallen Forest
Henrik Hakansson

Waste Flow
Mierle Laderman Ukeles

Radical Nature is an exhibition at the Barbican that explores art and architecture for a changing planet, nurse it was held over summer but is now coming to a close with next week as the last chance to go and see the exhibits.

The gallery has brought together an array of artists, malady designers and architects across different generations to collaborate in the space. The ideas are drawn from environmental activism, cost experimental architecture and utopianism and make for an interesting whirlwind tour of how we can look to live in the changing global climate.
With over 20 artists presenting their work there is plenty to take in and lots to learn, I’ve picked out my top 6 most inspiring installations.

1. Air-Port-City
Tomas Saraceno

2. Geodesic Dome
Richard Buckminster Fuller

3. The survival Series
Newton and Helen Harrison

4. Wheatfield
Agnes Denes

5. Fallen Forest
Henrik Hakansson

6. Waste Flow
Mierle Laderman Ukeles

The week kicks off with demo against agrofuels and ends with the Great Climate Swoop, page we are riding on a wave with the cancellation of Heathrow’s 3rd runway and the plans for 2 new coal power station put on hold, lets see what changes we can make this week…

Illustration by Michael Maitland

Agrofuels don’t ROC(k)! Demo
Monday 12 October 2009

Agrofuels – biofuels produced using intensive agriculture – are a major driver of deforestation, in turn, a major cause of climate change. Agrofuels from palm oil in particular are accelerating the burning of Indonesian forests and underlying peat bogs with truly astronomical emissions as a result.

Burning palm oil is probably the most environmentally damaging and climate negative way to produce power and yet this seems to be what the government wants to subsidise. A demo called by
Campaign against Climate Change, Biofuelwatch and Food not Fuel will take place on Monday outside DECC (Dept of Energy and Climate Change)

Web Address: http://www.campaigncc.org/node/336

2012 Imperative Teach-In
Monday 12 October

An event geared for the education system, students and teachers alike and how we can confront the issues of the time, resource depletion, loss of biodiversity and especially the issue of climate change. Speakers include John Thackara, Andrew Simms, Jonathan Crinion, Stephanie Hankey, Richard Hawkins, Ben Gill and Emma Dewberry.

Website: http://www.teach-in.co.uk/
Time: 10am

Architecture and Climate Change
Tuesday 13 October 2009

The UK has one of the biggest targets of for delivering zero-carbon homes by 2016, with time pressing how is the government living up to it’s targets? Join the debate with leading Ashden Award winners as the respond to the proposition: ‘If I were the Government Minister responsible for zero carbon new buildings the key things that I would do to ensure that we are able to meet our targets would be…’
In partnership with The Ashden Awards for Sustainable Energy £8, £5 concession.

Venue: RIBA, 66 Portland Place, London W1B 1AD
Time: 6.00pm
Venue: www.architecture.com/WhatsOn/Talks/Events/2009/Autumn/Talks/IntDiaPorritt.aspx

Earthwatch lecture: Meeting Marine Needs
Thursday 15 October

Human activities and climate change pose multiple threats to marine species. At the lecture you will hear how their conservation needs are being addressed, while also bringing social and economic benefits to the local communities.

Time: 7.00pm-8.30pm
Venue: Royal Geographical Society, 1 Kensington Gore, London, SW7 2AR
Website: www.earthwatch.org/europe/get_involved/events09/lecture09-marine/

Naturewise Workshops
Date: Saturday 17 – Sunday 18 October

Feeling a bit out of touch with the how the food got onto your plate? A day dedicated to an overview of traditional ways of preserving food and to gain hands on experience of some of those techniques.

Venue: Hornsey Rise Gardens, N19
Time: 9am-5pm
Web Address: http://www.naturewise.org.uk/page.cfm

How to make a wood-burner from a gas bottle
Date: Saturday 17 – Sunday 18 October

Been impressed with someone with a wood burner, here is your chance to learn how to construct a wood-burning stove out of recycled materials quickly and easily. Suitable for home, workshop, motor-home, yurt, shed or canal boat. Learn how to design, build and install a strong, effective, durable stove for your own needs.

Venue: Hackney City Farm, London
Web Address: http://www.lowimpact.org/

Introduction to Permaculture Design
Date: Saturday 17 – Sunday 18 October

A chance to learn the basics of permaculture, a process where plants are grown in accordance to the natural order of things.
These courses introduce the basics and show how this approach can be applied to your garden at home or allotment.

Venue: Brighton Earthship, Stanmer Park Brighton
Time: 9.30-5pm both days
Web Address: http://www.brightonpermaculture.co.uk/

The Great Climate Swoop
Saturday 17 October

This Saturday people from across the country will descend on Ratcliffe On Soar Power station to raise awareness of the huge affect coal power has on the planet and how the governments continued reliance of the energy is accelerating climate change.
There are a four different blocks to choose from that will aim to shut down the power station, make sure you get down for what’s geared to be an exciting and empowering day.

Venue: Ratcliffe On Soar Power Station, meet at Nottingham Train Station at 10am
Website: http://www.climatecamp.org.uk/actions/climate-swoop-2009

Written by Adam S on Sunday October 11th, 2009 10:40 pm

Categories ,agro fuels, ,climate, ,demo, ,earth, ,lectures, ,marine, ,permaculture, ,protest, ,Ratcliffe On Soar, ,students, ,talks, ,Teach-In, ,wood burner, ,zero carbon

Amelia’s Magazine | Earth Listings: 28th September-5th October 2009

More Earthly treasures, page store plenty to sing and shout about. Gigs, protests, fundraisers and more…

All illustrations by Katrina Kopeloff

Protest against more flights at London City Airport
Tuesday September 29th 2009

By 2030, London City Airport aims to add another 90,000 flights each year to its timetable, including bigger, noisier, jets. Each return flight to America costs in the range of £3,000.
The airport is going to make a load of noise, so is the protest. On the morning of the first London-New York flight, a group of local people will be gathering outside the entrance to show the airport what it’s like to be disturbed by unwanted noise. Bring pots and pans, trumpets, whistles, horns…anything that makes a racket.

Time: 11:45 am – 1:00 pm
Venue: London City Airport, East London

Climate Swoop Benefit
Wednesday 30th September 2009

Come along this Wednesday to help fundraise for the Great Climate Swoop that is happening in a few weeks time, entertainment will be put on by bands including, The Spiral, Five Working Days, Benoestente and Melodica, Melody and Me. Come and support the cause and have a few drinks.

Time: Doors at 7:00, first act at 7:30
The Purple Turtle
65 Crowndale Road (across from Koko), Camden NW1 1TN
London

£5 entry, proceeds go to The Great Climate Swoop
Website: http://www.thegreatclimateswoop.org

SchMOVIES Five Year Old Birthday/Benefit Bash
Wednesday 30th September

SchMOVIES (the film unit of SchNEWS) is five years old and will be screening a selection of direct-action films from the last five years, as well as some new ones.

Venue: The Cowley Club, 12 london Road, Brighton ?Time: 8pm ?Price: £3.50/Donation
?Website: http://www.schnews.org.uk/index.php

Protest – End the Oppression in China!
Thursday 1st October 2009 ?

There will be a protest to mark 60 years of oppression by the Chinese Communist Party held by the Chinese, Uighur & Tibetan Solidarity UK .
The Coalition and supporters will be calling for freedom and human rights for people and for end to one-party autocracy.

Time: 11.00am – 1.00pm
Venue: opposite the Chinese Embassy 49-51 Portland Place, London W1B 1JL.

Changing the Ethics of our Governance System from the Ground Up
Friday 2nd October 2009
?
A panel of speakers from Africa, Asia and Latin America, who are engaged with local and indigenous communities, will reflect on their work of asserting different ethics of governance, which abide by the laws of our planet and work towards a sustainable future.

Time: 7:30pm.
Tickets cost £10 book online at www.gaiafoundation.org/learning/online.php
Venue: Burgh House, New End Square, NW3 1LT
?Website: http://www.gaiafoundation.org/learning/online.php

Cyder Making
Saturday 3rd October 2009

Every wondered what to do with a load of apples or pears in the Autumn? This talk gives you the chance to meet up with a professional cyder maker, Simon Reed, who comes from the Rough Old Wife Press. He will go through the process to help make your own cyder in your home. Cyder is rarely made, at least not on a commercial scale. Cider, on the other hand, is.

Time: 10-4.30pm
Venue: Assington Mill, Suffolk?
Website: http://www.assingtonmill.com/

Resilience and Climate Change – Presenting a Green Agenda to the Copenhagen Climate Summit
Saturday 3rd October?

A day of debate, good food and performance! Resurgence is bringing together some of the UK’s most powerful environmental organisations and NGO’s to set a green agenda for the Copenhagen Climate Summit.
Supported by Greenpeace, The Green Alliance and The Green Party speakers include: Caroline Lucas MEP, Tony Juniper, John Sauven, Sir Crispin Tickell, Stephen Hale, George Marshall and Satish Kumar. As well as this great line up of speakers there will be a special award of $100,000 presented by Artist Project Earth for best climate change project.

Time: 11am – 5pm
Venue: Cecil Sharpe House, 2 Regents Park Road, Camden, London NW1 7AY.
?Website: http://www.resurgence.org/trust/resilience-climate-change.html

Green Sundays
Sunday 4th October 2009 ?

A meeting place for people and minds, Green Sundays provide an opportunity for the ecologically curious to explore environmental issues in a relaxed and fun forum through live music, film, spoken word, games and discussions.

Check Katrina’s blog

Take part in a ‘Theatre of the Oppressed’ Workshop or listen to the rhymes of Poetic Pilgrimage – a rare act, being one of the few Muslim female hip-hop outfits – while munching on delicious food and drink products from ‘Mighty Veg Delights’.
October’s Green Sundays is being run in collaboration with London Islamic Network for the Enviroment (LINE). All welcome – drop in anytime.

Time: 3pm – 7.30 pm
Venue: Arcola Theatre, 27 Arcola Street, E8 2DJ
Website: http://www.greensundays.org.uk/

Written by Adam S on Monday September 28th, 2009 1:27 pm

Categories ,Benefit Gig, ,Climate Swoop, ,Cyder making, ,earth, ,Ethics, ,listings, ,protest, ,SchNEWS

Amelia’s Magazine | Earth listings 21st – 28th September

After witnessing a whole lot of jolly sensible fashion trends being bandied about – think short, visit this generic sleek, stomach unhealthy sophisticated and feminine – we were thrilled to see a total vision of insanity at the Blow Presents… show where the models were barely human, NEVER MIND feminine. Ladies and gents, meet the new woman of 2010: the Fembot.

Wigmaker Charlie le Mindu’s collection made Danielle Scutt’s hairstyling look positively placid: models were bombing down the catwalking with “haute coiffure” teetering atop their tiny heads, like a warped modern paraphrase of 18th century wigs.

Squeezed into flesh-coloured PVC bodysuits, these were pneumatic bodies that resembled genetically mutated Barbies, with the hairpieces swelling into jackets (bearing a strong resemblance to Margiela’s two seasons ago) or even shoulder pads, evidently a trend that translates into the most avant-garde of arenas.

Next up was Gemma Slack’s collection with pieces constructed from leather and suede, it was a bold collection that turned the models into superheroes and warriors, with the conical bras making another resurgence as seen with Louise Goldin’s latest offering.

The inclusion metal studs and slashed leather also made it profoundly sexual – with the oppressive metal-plated umbrella and circular skirts mechanising the body, a territory previously explored, of course, by Hussein Chalayan. Unlike Chalayan this mechanisation was also sexualised, with the constant sado-masochistic details (even the traditional Burmese neck rings looked more like dog collars) in line with uncomfortable images of fetishised modernity that J.G Ballard expressed in Crash.

Margiela reared his head again with Lina Osterman, in a show styled by Robbie Spencer, who by masking her models also evinced a preoccupation and an evocation of Victoriana repression by playing with the effects of concealing the face and the body. A difference so far for a series of shows that has been all about long, bare legs.

A completely androgynous collection, there were undertaker-style long tailored jackets paired with trousers and shorts, with Osterman manifesting the Victorian secret obsession with sex, like Slack, with bondage-like details and choices in fabric. Lurking underneath all the bravado, however, was a surprisingly soft and wearable collection, with some fabulous knits and grandpa shirts both for the boys and the girls.

Finally upping the drama stakes was Iris van Herpen, with a slow and intense collection of sculpted leather and rubber – heavy and cumbersome pieces that were inspired by radiation waves around the body, results of collaboration with artist Bart Hess.

Proving a fantastic metaphor as a means of highlighting parts of the human body, this was true craftsmanship, with sequins and reflective panels catching the catwalk lights – as the models lined up together for the final few moments they seemed like soldiers with armour constructed from artwork.

A rather fascinating foursome on show, then, and at least Lady GaGa will have some new things to wear with those big pants of hers – well until next season anyway.
Cooperative Designs presented their latest designs aboard a Bauhaus Chessboard and on entering the presentation hall I was greeted with delicious looking (and tasting) Bauhaus birthday cake. The collection titled Happy Birthday Bauhaus was a homage to a constant source of inspiration (Bauhaus and Russian Constructivism) and the only female to become a master at the school: Gunta Stolz and her 5 Chord Weave.

The display was a feast for the eyes, viagra 60mg as the garments and dressmaker dummies found themselves positioned across the black and white squares encouraging the viewer to walk freely around the set and in-between the brilliant knitwear.

The board was also interjected with giant cardboard pieces and props or pawns from Amy Gwatkin‘s elegant film projected onto the space behind the game. Filmed through prisms, visit the film portrays the delicate fluid movements, sick the bold lines and clever tailoring of Co-operative’s designs as Rahma Mohamed dreamily paraded across the presentation hall (filmed in the same room, the moving lookbook acted as an extension to the space).

The static presentation enables the viewer the opportunity to be up close and personal with the clothes, to view the extensive variety of fabric used in construction. I enjoyed being able to carefully consider the patterns adorning large hanging pieces and the distinctive body conscience garments. Whilst the film portrayed how the clothes would move when adorning the human body complimented by the bold jewellery.

Several people became statuesque through their bodies occupying a variety of past season’s designs, displaying the constant craftsmanship of the design duo: Annalisa Dunn and Dorothee Hagemann. the collection is instantly desirable from the exquisite knitwear combining “wild silks, paper cotton and linen yards” to the jewerelly designed by Corrie Williamson and the shoes made in collaboration with Daniel Harrison.

The entire ethos of the show was Bauhaus and it’s ideas on the importance of experiment through collaboration; from the film to the set designed by alex Cunningham to the shoe and jewellery collection.

I could have stayed in the room all day, visually digesting the block colours peeking amongst the patterns. Whilst examining the construction of sleeves that hung from the manikin at right angles as if an invisible elbow occupied the negative space.

Watch the film here:

All Photographs by Matt Bramford
Explore the mindset of protest movements, website like this learn from previous campaigns and make your own affinity group, side effects this week is all about getting ready for action, page wether it be at the Climate Swoop in October or campaigning against your local Tesco.

Illustrations by Sinead O Leary

Global Wake-Up Call

Monday 21st September

A flash mob extravaganza, on the 21st of September people will be gathering at hundreds of locations around the world. It’s an opportunity to vent your frustration against the government’s lack of initiatives towards climate change and to raise awareness of the issue. Check all the events all ready happening on the website or alternatively set up your own
and register it online. Avaaz and partners will help turn out a group of fellow-citizens to participate in each event, and send you all the information you need. Remember Global leaders have only three months to get their act together and sign a strong Climate Treaty in Copenhagen.

Tourism and climate change
Tuesday 22nd September

An event to look at the problems relating to the tourism Industry and the threat of climate change. What can be done to lessen the impacts from the Industry which sees huge amounts of carbon dioxide let into the atmosphere each year. The rise of short haul flights in the UK will be discussed as well as the future threat to people and communities across the globe that
rely on tourism for their livelihood at home and abroad.

Time: 18.30 until 21.00
Venue: Royal Geographical Society (with IBG), 1 Kensington Gore, London,
SW7 2AR

Picnic to Stop Tesco
Tuesday 22nd September

A protest picnic at the proposed site for a new Tesco, just behind the current Tesco car park, I presume after taking over all the local businesses they need some more expansion. Bring food, friends and ideas to stop the plans from going ahead.

Venue: Titnore Woods
Time: Meet 12 noon, then move to the field.

Chronicle of a Road Protest
Wednesday 23rd September

The legacy of the road protest movement lives on, Adrian Arbib will be holding a talk and presentation from his experience in 1994 at camps set up in Solsbury Hill, where ‘eco warriors’ launched a bid to halt construction of the Batheaston to Swainswick bypass at Bath. The campaign was also credited for boosting numerous other activists to set up similar
camps against road building projects which eventually led to 300 road schemes being axed by the government.
Adrian Arbib lived on site photographing the events. In so doing he captured all aspects of life on the protest, a talk that is sure to inspire and educate the next generation of protest movements.

Time: 7pm till 9pm
Venue: Housmans Bookshop, 5 Caledonian Road, London N1 9DX

RSA debate: Food in a World Without Oil
Wednesday 23rd September

Hosted by Roger Harrabin, BBC Environmental Analyst, the debate will look at the politics of food and farming, and the consumers carbon footprint. The UK Government has signed up to a target to reduce our emissions by 80% by 2050 but so far hasn’t addressed the problem of the food and farming issue.
With oil running out the panel will also discuss what the implications of this are on the industry, joined by Peter Melchett, Policy Director at the Soil Association; Tim Lang, Professor of Food Policy, City University London the audience will also hear about some solutions such as Transition Towns and possible controversial methods like GM crops.

Time: 6.00-7.15
Free entrance, but places need to be booked
Venue: John Adam Street, London WC2N 6EZ

Landscapes of the Mind
Friday 25th- Sunday 27th September

One of the biggest threat to climate action is peoples lack of belief that anything can be done, how many times have you heard the phrase “but what can i do?” With the ‘tipping point’ just around the corner, where climate change will have irreversible effect on the planet, why is there such a lack of conviction in the world? Landscape of the mind, a conference held at the Eden project, will focus on this issue, along with a panel of experts and commentators. It will look at our awareness of nature and our mental health in relation to it. A fascinating weekend long set of talks and workshops chaired by Professor David Peters and Nick Totton which challenges one of the biggest challenges we face in the modern world.

Venue: The Eden project

The Incredible Veggie Roadshow
Saturday 26th September
A chance to learn everything you ever wanted to know about being a veggie or a vegan, the day is a great day out for the family with loads of stalls, food tasting, cooking demonstrations as well as a range of books, information and campaign news.

Time: 10.30am-4.30pm
Venue: Town Hall, Cheltenham

The Great Climate Swoop Affinity Group Speed
Saturday 26th September

The climate swoop is almost upon us, in only a few weeks groups like Plane Stupid, Rising Tide and Climate Rush are going to take over Ratcliffe on Soar, a coal fired power station.
This event is for people to meet up with other like-minded souls who are planning to go to Ratcliffe in October. It will also host some inspiring speakers for people that may need some convincing. Speakers will include one of the Drax 29, a Great Climate Swooper and an expert on the history of direct action.
The day is for all experience levels of direct action, from newbies to road protesting veterans. Hopefully you will finish the day with your new affinity group, with a workshop that explains the roles within an affinity group and how you can achieve your aims on your action.

Time: 5pm
Venue: Hampstead Friends Meeting House, 120 Heath Street, Hampstead, NW3 1DR
This event is free (donations welcome). There will be tea, coffee and cakes!
RSVP to London@climatecamp.org.uk

Written by Adam Sutcliffe on Monday September 21st, 2009 2:30 pm

Categories ,affinity group, ,Anti-Tesco, ,Climate Swoop, ,protest, ,swoop, ,vegetarianism

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