Anti-nuclear summer camp 2017/1st invitation English

<= Summer Camp 2017 | languages: English, French, German

Invitation to the International Anti-nuclear Summer Camp 2017 in Döbeln/Germany, July 17-23, 2017 In the middle between the Saxon cities of Leipzig, Dresden and Chemnitz an international anti-nuclear summer camp will take place to gather anti-nuclear activists, organizers and interested people. Due to our impression that in the last few years we lacked such a kind of international anti-nuclear gathering to exchange experiences and knowledge, to have strategic discussions and to strengthen the networks of groups and organizations in the anti-nuclear field, we have formed a group of activists from several European countries to prepare this event. This summer camp will be an opportunity to meet with interesting people from many regions of Europe and beyond, to prepare campaigns or projects, to do actions and to learn about atomic topics. It will also be a place to get to know each other in a relaxed environment and to get rid of every day stress. There will be skill-sharing events, workshops and lectures, documentaries, an excursion to the abandoned WISMUT uranium mine and opportunities for public actions. Anti-nuclear experts as well as organizers and activists will share their knowledge with us. Everyone is welcome to offer workshops or presentations on topics they are working with. We hope many participants will tell about the anti-nuclear struggles or about the nuclear policy in their regions. This gathering will be a platform to talk about your current struggles, upcoming campaigns and actions. It would be wonderful if you have issues you want to bring up. A big focus will be set on two topics we found very important for this event and useful to support ongoing campaigns and projects in the anti-nuclear struggles: uranium as material which is connecting many atomic fields, and the current attempts of the nuclear industry to extend the lifetime of reactors or to even construct new ones. We will especially get in touch with groups working in these fields so that you can expect to learn about backgrounds, strategies and opportunities to intervene. We consider the anti-nuclear summer camp to actually foster the battle of these groups by spreading the word, improving the co-operation between the several actors and connecting new supporters to their campaigns. The venue of the anti-nuclear summer camp is the orchard of the "Project House". There is space for your individual tents, a few bigger group tents and other structures will be set up, too, and an outdoor kitchen will be the center of food supplies and group meetings... We intend to set up some compost toilets and a solar shower in addition to the sanitary infrastructure of the Project House. We want this camp to be family friendly to make it also possible for activists with children to participate. We also will do our best to help with support in as many languages as possible based on (non-professional) whisper translations etc. Please consider not to bring your dogs to the camp. This invitation is just a first announcement. There will be more specific information on the camp, program, directions and more in Spring. If you are interested in the gathering, please get in touch with us via email to "summercamp AT nuclear-heritage DOT net". We will also provide more information later on the event page at http://www.nuclear-heritage.net/index.php/Anti-nuclear_summer_camp_2017 >> Uranium spiral Uranium is the material that connects almost all aspects of atomic power. It is the fuel used in most commercial reactors, it passes a number of stages of the "uranium spiral", it is connected to many radioactive shipments and it eventually also is part of the unsolvable problem of safe final disposal of nuclear waste. We are faced with issues posed by this material in uranium mines which mean large destruction of natural areas, radiation exposure to workers and significant health impacts on local residents nearby the mines frequently situated on indigenous land. Besides, uranium is used for atomic weapons and as "depleted uranium" (DU) it is part of armor as well as of armor breaking ammunition. The usage of uranium has an impact on climate change rather than providing a solution to it. In the international anti-nuclear summer camp initiatives and activists from uranium mining and processing facilities will meet each others as well as campaigns against shipment of uranium in different stages or against the military component of the uranium industry. Basic and specific knowledge will be shared, mutual activities shall be developed. For anti-nuclear groups the gathering will pose the chance to meet interested people, to find new supporters and to get in touch with new partners for their struggles against the uranium industry. Besides, we will also have a field trip to the former WISMUT uranium mining area which formerly was the third biggest uranium producer in the world - and which today is subject to heavy greenwashing approaches of both nuclear industry and authorities as well as to ongoing failures in safe reclamation of the former mining facilities. >> Struggle against lifetime extension & new construction plans In most European countries lifetime extension of old commercial reactors is a current topic. Even in states which actually follow a „nuclear phaseout“ policy the question whether aging nuclear power plants will be licensed for some more operational years has been raised, particularly by nuclear lobbyists. Aging is a big problem in the nuclear technology. Due to the strong neutrons bombardment atomic reactors are faced to higher corrosion and thus to an increasing risk of safety breaches. The leakage of radioactive material is one issue, another one is the possible lost of safety mechanisms and thus of nuclear accidents. A number of countries, e.g. Belarus, Czech Republic, Finland, Russia, United Kingdom, are pushing forwards the construction of new commercial reactors – although at last the series of reactor explosions in Fukushima, Japan, in 2011 illustrated the impossibility to guarantee the safe operation of this technology. Though the proponents of these developments try to create another impression, all these new builds are based on the old reactor models that have been built before, too. Additionally the society these days is more and more faced to an understanding that no optimistic perspective is to be expected for handling the nuclear industry's residues. Although no safe solution can be provided anywhere in the world for the radioactive waste, lifetime extension and new reactors construction will massively increase the amount of nuclear material to be dealt with. The international anti-nuclear summer camp invites activists and organizations struggling against new reactor constructions and lifetime extension to exchange experiences, inform about the situation in their regions and to figure how to strengthen the movement against these mad developments. Contact Nuclear Heritage Network Am Bärental 6, D-04720 Döbeln, GERMANY phone: +49 3431 5894177 email: summercamp AT nuclear-heritage.net http://www.nuclear-heritage.net/index.php/Anti-nuclear_summer_camp_2017 Donations welcome! account holder: Greenkids e.V. IBAN: DE75 4306 0967 1101 7406 00 BIC: GENO DE M 1 GLS bank: GLS Bank purpose: "Summer Camp"