Camp Out for Climate on Saturday, April 17

The Northern Illawarra branch of Extinction Rebellion is holding a family-friendly ‘protestival’ in Thirroul on Saturday, April 17, Kristen McDonald reports.

When you picture an ‘environmental activist’ who do you see? I pop-quizzed some people this question recently and a common description was of a young person with dreadlocks, wearing clothes that could do with an airing and is a bit shouty.

Perhaps when one imagines the group of people who make up the Extinction Rebellion (XR) Northern Illawarra chapter, then a gaggle of long-haired hippies might be expected. However, when I joined this group of passionate locals I was greeted by mothers, fathers, grandparents, school students and professionals, who share a concern for the future of our planet. Further, they are volunteering their time and efforts out of frustration that not enough is being done about the climate emergency we face.

I hesitate using phrases like the ‘future of our planet’ or ‘climate emergency’ as they have become so commonplace and politicised that they have almost lost their gravity. Yet when you stop to really process the statistics and research that have been coming out for decades on climate change and biodiversity loss I wonder how we could be experiencing such an emergency without it being treated as one.

Take this statement from 2007: “Every hour, three species disappear. Every day, up to 150 species are lost… The cause: human activities… Climate change is one of the major driving forces behind the unprecedented loss of biodiversity.”

This is a paraphrased quote from Ahmed Djoghlaf, then Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity under the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP, 2007).

It is also the inspiration for an art installation XR are organising of an extinct species graveyard to represent one of the lesser-known impacts of climate change – biodiversity loss.

Our kids, blissfully unaware they’re the motivation behind many of our voluntary efforts, have been lathering themselves in mud helping to create these symbolic tombstones (pictured) and these will be displayed at the Camp Out for Climate on Saturday, April 17, 2021.

In an ironic twist of fate, our first attempt at hosting the climate change awareness event was postponed due to the extreme rain events that travelled along the NSW coast last month. We’re excited again for the rescheduled event and encourage all of you to come along.

Professor Tim Flannery will be leading a panel of expert speakers and musical guests at this vibrant ‘protestival’. There will also be kids activities, letter-writing, a mud stomp and collaborative activities.

Together we’ll be creatively demanding the federal government declares a climate and ecological emergency and commits to zero net emissions by 2030.

We also want to see an end to coal mining in our local region beneath the water catchment, which not only threatens our climate, but our clean drinking water.

Locals and guests are invited to bring a blanket, settle in and camp out for the day, and bond as a community over this critical issue.

The Camp Out for Climate is a free, Covid Safe event. Please register your attendance at camp-out-for-climate.eventbrite.com.au

Camp Out for Climate will be held at WF Jackson Park in Thirroul from 11am on Saturday, April 17.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kristen McDonald lives in Thirroul under a 100 foot fig tree that she is continually inspired by. A mother to three-year-old twin girls, a one-year-old boy, a dog named Smokey Bear Monkey Pie, three chickens and some adopted guinea pigs. She is passionate about environmental protection, social justice, equality and education, as well as the bigger issues, such as ice-cream supply and wombat memes.