Anti-nuclear summer camp 2017/1st invitation English

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

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"