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Do Or Die

Extinction Rebellion 2021-?

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Over 5 months, 9-18 hours a week, 30+ rebels from around the UK worked together to create the strategy for the coming year. We are XX females, XX males, 3 non-binary, 6 Bipoc, the youngest is 15 years and the oldest 70 - with an average age of 45. There are 2 disabled people/rebels and 5 neurodiverse rebels, 4 working class and 7 Lgbtq+. We acknowledge that children were not present, but 8 of us are parents, 2 are grandparents.

Contributing rebels included:

  • XR Youth
  • XR Working Class
  • XR Cymru Wales
  • UK Support - Regenerative Circle UK Support - Nonviolence
  • UK Support - Strategic Finance Circle
  • XR Scotland
  • XR South-West
  • Movement of Movements
  • UK Operations - Media and Messaging
  • UK Operations - Actions Circle
  • XR North, North East and Cumbria
  • XR Muslims
  • XR Midlands and East of England
  • XR London & South East
  • Justice Steering Group
  • XR Internationalist Solidarity Network
  • Disabled Rebels

And were Supported by the Strategy Assembly Support Network.

LOVE LETTER TO THE MOVEMENT

This is especially for all those Bipoc Rebels who have left the movement. We thank you. We heard you. Hear you. And feel your absence. And to those still hanging on - we need you.

This was triggered by George Floyd's death but goes so much deeper than that. This is about Black Lives Matter and all those affected by oppression. Everything has changed because of a life considered less worthy.

We are humans of colour, culture and identities regularly silenced. We are also known as Bipoc. We Bipoc people wrote a love letter to the movement and placed it at the top of the XR strategy for all to see. Putting the Bipoc letter first means we, XR, aren't falling for the trap of division used by the powerful to separate us. If you, as a Bipoc person have had a smooth supported time in the movement, that’s wonderful. If you find out that that hasn’t been the case for others, it’s massively distressing.

No one should be left behind. Other oppressed groups are suffering right now - our disabled, youth, Lgbtq+ and working class rebels. They are not spoken to directly in this letter but we want to say that your struggle is our struggle. We will work together. And we will strive together.

Many of our community and friends ask: why are we in XR? Isn’t it racist? Aren't you the only one in a sea of whiteness? We all know what people say about XR and its lack of ‘diversity’. We've written this love letter with words we always wanted. Now is the time to move XR towards our people with dynamic change. We have the intention and support from White sisters, brothers, and people. The bold intention is to increase Bipoc membership, visibility and power within XR UK and move us all together with urgency and love.

XR is an activist movement in powerful response to the climate crisis. This crisis is based upon historical injustice and present day oppression, whether that's racism, transphobia, disablism, homophobia, speciesism, extractivism, femicide. If we are serious about freeing ourselves and other species on mother earth, then history must be retold, decolonised and truthful. Our demands, values and principles must be brought closer and become a lived experience.

It is our ancestral homelands which are suffering now, and have been for the longest time. This is mirrored by what we see in our communities everyday in the UK: the pandemic, food security, poor health overall, alarming mental health outcomes, incinerators given planning permission in bipoc areas, harming air quality. Our right to peacefully protest is under serious threat from the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill. This racism is inbuilt, and recognising it must form part of how the Climate Ecological Emergency Bill addresses and proposes solutions. The callous irresponsibility of many governments in the world means we must look to another way, reaching towards older holders of knowledge who are women, who are black, who are indigenous and of colour.

Bipoc people will be resourced to hold key positions in the movement with accelerated mentoring, training and in XR. The next generation of Bipoc activists and leaders who are working class, Lgbtq+, and/or disabled must be found, encouraged, supported, and given space for grounding and, number one, self-care. The power of our regenerative culture and practice is essential and transformative, a life giving antidote to our toxic culture we come from.

Having Bipoc security in mind whilst rebelling is vital, so we can bring our whole selves to activism and the movement. This helps us to ground with each other and puts into action a culture of co-liberation. None of this can happen without radical love for each other: setting each other free, rooting ourselves in solidarity.

XR will move to work in a progressive and solution-based way, which will make participating safer for Bipoc people within the movement. An education on racism, bias, history, and the importance of female leadership must spread through the movement via local groups, regions and nations and coordinating groups so we can create and inhabit the world we envisage. This is not a one-time event, but learning, life-long.

There needs to be a start to repair the damage done to us Bipoc rebels and acknowledging the harm done to those who have left. Our well being and thriving needs to be seen and felt - from there we can gauge whether we are attracting and retaining bipoc rebels going into the future. This is no easy task and will require a lot of determined intentionality.

By turning towards each other, seeing, learning and changing behaviours and attitudes, we can move to truly inclusive ways of thinking led by Bipoc people, inside and outside of the movement.

The future will be different and more welcoming. We Bipoc people have the tools of resilience and we are willing to share. The opportunities that open up are endless, with engagement on a bigger scale. Bipoc people bring a different way of thinking, with intersectionality, Indigeous practices, connections to migrant communities and different ways to take on the climate crisis so our respective communities engage. You can't beat local knowledge!

We need media and messaging in languages of all ethnicities of the UK. Actions with wider options for involvement are essential, reaching into Bipoc folklore, art and collective thinking. Outreach that's engaging so we can sound the climate alarm in our way. With the richness we bring shared everywhere, all will benefit. We are the global majority. The 1st, 2nd and 3rd generation of bipoc people can then have a clear, visible path within XR UK.

The privilege we hold as Bipoc people in the North world must be acknowledged. Not only do we all have obligations to our Ancestors, brothers, sisters and people in the South world who are fighting hard to live, we are incredibly indebted to our people. Only then can we be seen to be authentic.

The impacts of ecocide need to be repaired, not only physically but culturally and mentally. Deep harm and damage has been wrought for centuries on Bipoc people and women. Only once we start to repair can true solidarity with other movements working for anti oppression emerge.

The future has to prioritise women's leadership. All women and especially Bipoc Women who in the past, present and for seven generations ahead, who hold our world together through families, communities, culture and land rights; we are the Global Majority.

Love, Rage and Resilience Bipoc Family

DO OR DIE

Extinction Rebellion UK 2021-?

Executive Summary: There is no Executive Summary. This is more than a strategy document. It’s a Thank You letter. Oh, and a Demand to defend all life on Earth, NOW.

LOVELY JUBBLY PREFACE ON THE STRATEGY ASSEMBLY PROCESS

Over XX weeks, an amazing crew of rebels, who had been selected by their nations, regions, and working groups spent over 93 hours on zooms. We were strangers to begin with, we became crew and friends. We:

  • Dissected last year’s strategy - what worked or failed, identifying the work still in progress 2020 Power Together Strategy Long Doc
  • Enjoyed sessions with 36! internal and external advisors
  • We discussed everything from animal agriculture to a zeroth demand
  • It was challenging: for those also working, the homeschooling parents, people on low income, disabled people or those living with mental ill-health, and for all those who found the experience sometimes stressful! Thank you for your service!
  • We were selflessly supported by the Strategy Assembly Support Network. Thank you 💚
  • We probably learnt as much about working in a large team, and what power means, as we did about strategy creation.

Last year’s strategy talked the talk...

Last year’s strategy was very formal, a tad corporate, with little ‘how’. Not this year. This year’s strategy is rebel all the way.

Extinction Rebellion's most active rebels are white, middle-aged and middle class (p. 51). If this is you, you are legends for your energy and commitment, and THANK YOU. We need you so much. The Strategy Assembly is a different demographic - younger, multi-racial, different faiths and class. Racism, exploitation and white fragility touched many discussions. This year, we must explore and develop our understanding of racism, colonialism and othering.

2020 - understanding the impacts of Covid-19

Covid-19 has been devastating. We all mourn the huge loss of life, despair at the failure of government, their criminal incompetence. We've seen how fragile societal systems are, and know that the Climate and Ecological Crisis will destroy us. The government’s version of Build Back Better is to bail out polluters and an inadequate 10 point plan. Greenwashing is rampant. Even the British Medical Journal described the government’s response to Covid-19 as Social Murder, and global warming increases pandemics.

But Covid-19 has shown us that the government and media have tremendous power to radically inform and change the general public’s behaviour, and this can give us active hope. Potential changes in the law cannot stop us, in fact, it can bring us together with other movements. And XR UK has survived through lockdown, adapting to circumstances with projects like Digital Rebellion and Money Rebellion. We THANK AND LOVE all those rebels staying active, being rebellious.

Rebels - you are AMAZING.

Why we’re framing our strategy with the Principles and Values…

XR’s Principles and Values are what holds us together in this movement. They are our foundation and our anchor. The XR Principles & Values need to be practiced daily, part of our everyday work and activism. It is our collective responsibility - as we act with love and rage - to be our best versions of ourselves, and stay true to our Ps & Vs. Oh, and say “Sorry” when we mess up!

Our 2021 Strategic Do or Die Goals

1. We have a shared vision of almighty change:

Reality check: we are part of a bigger world than the clique we may have become, and we are working alongside many other Movements to bring about climate and social justice. We’ve become a bit like headless chickens and it’ll take millions of people to achieve system change, the whole planet is screwed. We cannot do this without being part of the MoMs. Crickey, really it will take billions of us around the planet, and that sounds impossible. Isn’t XR all about the Impossible? Hell yeah.

Strategic Promises: XR UK will support rebels to protest in the face of this increasingly authoritarian government. We will support those able to take direct action, and CELEBRATE all those s/heroes behind the scenes. We will mobilise like our pants are on fire, focusing on the Movement of Movements (MoMs). We are one global family, and to embrace this fully we will all lovingly and humbly undertake Co-liberation work on oppression and justice, and deliver accessibility training UK-wide. Our actions can be better synchronised around the UK for greater impact, with incredible messaging.

2. We gotta welcome everyone and every part of everyone

Reality Check: what you’ll read in this strategy about treating people with equal respect may make you wince; you may deny exclusion happens. We need to face our truth. To move towards a world where everyone is treated with respect, we must begin recognising where we have failed - and continue to fail - disabled, D/deaf and neurodiverse rebels, Lgbtq+ and people with invisible conditions. All needs must be met.

Strategic Promises: XR UK will prioritise the recruitment of disabled, D/deaf, neurodiverse rebels, people with invisible conditions, Bipoc, women, Lgbtq+ and working class people to positions of power-fullness within the movement. And upskill all rebels in access and inclusion workshops. NOW!

3. We set our mighty Mission on what is necessary

Reality Check: 80% of rebels in an anonymous survey said they find doing outreach difficult and don’t enjoy it. Cue: grimace. Early 2020 saw the launch of a mass mobilisation project but when Covid-19 hit, it went belly up! Lockdown scuppered traditional outreach and whilst Digital Rebellion has been a great success, many of us have gone a bit zoomicide.

Strategic Promises: Local Groups will be asked to mobilise like never before, with full support and workshops from decentralised nations and regions, and a new mass mobilisation campaign providing the wiiiiiidest range of options to be truly inclusive.

4. We sure as heck need regenerative cultures

Reality check: hmmm, for a movement with Regenerative practices as a Principle, we’re not doing so peachy. As a movement, we’re still learning how to work in regenerative ways - some rebels are working awful hours, suffering high levels of burnout, with negative impacts on their personal lives. PS, the planet is fucked, so we must centre transformative and deep adaptation in our work and lives.

Strategic Promises: our regenerative circle has a new rebel-focused mandate, full of vibrant wellbeing ideas to reboot regenerative practices through all working groups - from national to LG level to community, faith and identity groups. Regenerative cultures are the spirit sister of adaptation and XRUK can explore this more deeply, and better promote existing decentralised adaptation projects like XR North's Dig For and trespass-defying This Land is our Land. Even 75% of the police think the new trespass laws suck.

5. We absolutely have to openly challenge ourselves and our toxic culture

Reality check: does XR UK have a shelf life? 2020 was demoralizing for our entire movement. How many big rebellions do we have left in us before rebels feel it’s time to try something else? We also navel gaze a lot. But time is running OUT. Governments and industries couldn’t care less that they’re Heading Us for Extinction. WE DO. This year - for our movement and for the planet - it’s DO OR DIE.

Strategic Promises: No holding back. Reach for the (north) stars! Here’s the XR UK Actions Calendar and Rebellion Broadcast for UK-wide action updates. Eyeball this!

  1. Rebellion of One action briefing, April 1st - sign up you beauties
  2. 1st April Global Money Rebellion
  3. XR ISN Peace Lotus Campaign, April 12th-30th #WarIsEcocide
  4. This Land Is Our Land: Trespass Action, 24th April
  5. Join here for some Cornish piracy - G7, 11-13th June
  6. Free the Press - July 3rd, hop on the Telegram
  7. Reparation events - show the love in solidarity
  8. Earth Fast 16th July
  9. Join XRCOP here
  10. LG actions calendar, with a digital action for every action for maximum inclusivity
  11. XR International Solidarity Network - sync up with global events.

6. We really, really, really, really must value reflection and learning

Reality check: ew, it’s tough looking in the mirror. The Strategy Assembly was the mother of all magnifying mirrors - did we always practise radical inclusion? Did newer rebels feel as valued as long-standing members? Did the long-standing members feel valued for their wisdom? Did we adapt working practises quickly when it started going wonky? Did we show love? All these tensions exist within our wider movement.

Then, do we apply critical thinking to each and every action and interaction? How do we even gauge success? When we fail to learn from our inevitable flaws, we struggle to evolve as individuals and as a movement. Gaffes aren’t a problem, they’re an opportunity!

Strategic Promises: we must all take Feedback and Learning more seriously, in our personal relationships and internal power structures - here’s a Personal Power form! We can be more critical and analytical of our actions, to improve our impacts. We don’t have enough volunteers in UK-wide or national working groups, and our integration skills need some TLC. Everyone should feel equal and they don’t - this year, everyone will power-up.

7. We actively mitigate power (sssshhh, we got rid of the ‘for’!)

Reality check: XR UK is slipping into a patriarchal way of working, with process stifling voices and creativity, creating unhealthy workloads that often fall on the women. Bureaucracy is replacing common sense. We passively aggressively discuss internal power without working on how to empower everyone. Sod that. Let’s fix this. We need Co-liberation to set all our magnificence free. Come on, we have toxic societal structures to defeat!

Strategic Promises: Female leader-fullness is the future, creating healthy and nurturing work practises, with Bipoc and women from marginalised spaces at the helm. End of. Not quite end of... then, there’ll also be female-designed wo-mentorship to support women and lift people into their power. Mothering is coming. Our toxic pillars of societal power better watch out. Psst Home Secretary: we won’t stop trying to save lives.

8. We avoid blaming and shaming (even though it’s oooooh sooooo tempting)

Reality check: after a year of stressful lock-down, tensions are a-plenty movement-wide. Most of us are conflict-averse and it’s clear leaving issues to fester only escalates them. So, internally we need to embrace nonviolent communication and use intervention techniques early. These same techniques will help us emotionally and publicly deal with what we often feel is pure evil - government, powerful individuals and destructive corporations. We have a secret weapon. Love.

Strategic Promises: not only are we facing protest oppression - Rest in Peace, Sarah we’re also women opposing violence against ourselves. Then, there’s systemic racism, modern slavery and post-Covid anti-green recovery. But we'll maintain our nonviolence and swot up on de-escalation training. We’ll just swear our heads off in private 😉.

9. We are a nonviolent network, hell yeah

Reality check: we’re living under state violence - 130,000 people - mostly disabled and chronically sick - have died due to Austerity since 2010, and the government has used Covid as a way of silencing dissent against climate and social injustice. We will still rise up. Being nonviolent is our movement’s backbone and heartbeat, yet many rebels don’t have a scooby about the rich history of nonviolent protest. And if rebels are going to fully explore MoMs outreach, nonviolence training may inspire others to be brave enough to rise up, together.

Strategic Promises: Deliver nonviolent workshops and support materials to all LGs, and increase the delivery of Nonviolent Direct Action (NVDA) training, and support the development of alternative versions for different groups of people, like Bipoc, faith groups, families...

10. We are based on autonomy and decentralisation

Reality check: agh, XR UK needs money to survive, that’s just the reality - in 2020, Voluntary Living Expenses were cut across the movement. To recruit people from marginalised groups, XR UK needs to boost its bank balance, and also decentralise more funds to UK-wide groups. We just don’t have enough volunteers in national and regional coordinating groups or UK-wide. So welcoming people into these spaces with great support is vital (roles from 2 hours a week!).

Many Local Group rebels still feel central working groups are inaccessible and they don’t necessarily feel heard, or have great access to resources or centralised help if needed. And every rebel must believe in their full power, and have clearer pathways to achieve it. 2021 will be hard for protest, we’ll all need each other. And love.

Strategic Promises: Funds will be better decentralised, with people from diverse backgrounds being recruited to positions of power-fullness. Workshops will be provided to empower people to take their power and fly, and we'll further open up our movement with more rebels assemblies, working group open zooms, the decentralising project connecting national to local working groups, and the Systems Realignment fixing our internal wonky bits.

OUR PRINCIPLES AND VALUES

We have a shared vision of change

Creating a world that is fit for generations to come.

“When I grow up, I hope there’s a planet to live on” Tilly, 12

“We hear history calling to us from the future. We catch glimpses of a new world of love, respect and regeneration, where we have restored the intricate web of all life. It’s a future that’s inside us all – located in the fierce love we carry for our children, in our urge to help a stranger in distress, in our wish to forgive, even when that seems too much to ask. And so we rebel for this, calling in joy, creativity and beauty. We rise up in the name of truth and withdraw our consent for ecocide, oppression and patriarchy. We rise up for a world where power is shared for regeneration, repair and reconciliation. We rise up for love in its ultimate wisdom. Our vision stretches beyond our own lifespan, to a horizon dedicated to future generations and the restoration of our planet’s integrity." About Us – Our Vision

Guardianship and Visioning Circle wrote this in 2019, it is beautiful. And whilst we may all have different visions, our shared humanity connects us, across the planet, with all species and biodiversity. The key to moving forward is Active Hope.

The rebels in the Strategy Assembly hold many individual Visions:

💚NVDA💚Faith💚Community organising💚Food Security💚Biodiversity💚Global Inequality💚Radical Inclusion💚Co-liberation through anti-racism and oppression education💚Mobilising💚Movement of Movements💚Social Justice💚Just Transition💚Unions💚Animal rights💚Community Democracy💚Art, Design & Creativity💚

BUT WHAT’S OUR COLLECTIVE VISION 2021-?

STRATEGY ASSEMBLY THREE DEMANDS

Reality Check: 2020 was hard. We’ve been cooped up! So, let’s come out of lockdown determined to defend the world’s children, Majority World, animals, Biodiversity, and the land and sea that humans are killing. Let’s:

  1. Explode from lockdown with inspirational Non Violent Direct Action, from local actions to mass actions demanding zero carbon by 2025. We won’t be intimidated by the government.
  2. Each and every rebel to mobilise for actions escalating to COP26, with all actions being accessible and inclusive, designing options for those not able to risk arrest
  3. We are part of a Movement of Movements, one global family, so to fight this toxic system we must prioritise working with all those who are oppressed and exploited, and the groups protecting our planet’s biodiversity and habitat. Check out this nifty MoMs Directory.

Never mind theories, here are the Strategies of Change

  1. Deliver UK-wide trainings and resources on Co-liberation including anti-oppression, unconscious bias, and access & inclusion to all Local Groups, and the 75% of dormant rebels on our sign-up database.
  2. Prioritise the recruitment of Bipoc, working class, Lgbtq+, disabled and neurodiverse people to positions of power-fullness at all levels, providing wo-mentoring and financial support if needed.
  3. Big-up Community Engagement and Empowerment - further resource and support grassroots activism like Trust the People, Climate Emergency Centres, HS2, Silvertown Tunnel protest and Deep Water.
  4. Female leadership. ’Nuff said.

“If we don’t solve the climate crisis, we can forget about the rest.”

Click here for XR UK’S THREE DEMANDS.

Our short-term strategic goal is working towards achieving our Three Demands, and blinking well stopping ‘business as usual’.

  1. Tell the Truth - The Government must declare a Climate and Ecological Emergency, working with other institutions to communicate the urgency for change.
  2. Act Now - Government must halt biodiversity loss and reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2025.
  3. Go Beyond Politics - Government must create and be led by the decisions of a Citizens’ Assembly on Climate and Ecological Justice.

Our long-term strategic goal is The North Star - world-destroying practices are eliminated and healthier structures take their place. So, here’s the rousing TED talk bit - to achieve the way of living our planet demands requires a total overthrow. Are you game?

Okeedokee. Here’s how we do it…

OUR VISION FOR THE YEAR IN ACTIONS

XR UK Actions Calendar

COP26 - Hope or Doom, how do you feel?

It’s A-Copalypse now! COP26 is set to fail, 2050 is too late. It’s the 26th COP. But whether you’re going to Glasgow, planning local actions and outreach to your communities to Tell The COP Truth or attend mass actions, we’ll give it some welly. It’s Do or Die. And because legal changes to protest may make it even harder for Bipoc, disabled and oppressed people to take part on the street, we’ll all make sure there are lots or other ways to act.

The 9th of November will be here before we know it, plans are evolving and offshoots will grow fast, but we must start planning escalation tactics NOW, and start MoMs work NOW:

And we'll use the Theories of Change to achieve our visions

The Climate Crisis is a symptom of EXPLOITATION and OPPRESSION

The Strategy Assembly shared a belief that XR UK must be part of a movement of movements - not just say it glibly in a document or a meeting. We must live it. And we will grow as individuals and as a movement by reframing ourselves within global justice, working alongside activists in the Global South defending their homes, families and land from Extractivism, and celebrating and honouring their commitment. Without co-opting them - that’s just more colonialism. Global justice means peace.

📢 STRATEGIC PROMISES

  1. Recruit Bipoc, disabled and neurodiverse, working class, Lgbtq+, faith rebels to positions of powerful-ness across the movement.
  2. Prioritise the training of all rebels in Co-liberation and accessibility trainings.
  3. Erm, do it yesterday!
  4. Burst out of lockdown with nonviolent mass civil disobedience, escalating to COP26 (and a weeny bit beyond 😉)

The IPCC predicts that, if things keep going as they are, by 2050 an additional 350 million people across the globe will be at risk of heat stress, an additional 420 million people will frequently be exposed to extreme heat waves, and an additional 65 million people will be exposed to exceptional heatwaves. Heat kills.

We welcome everyone and every part of everyone

Working actively to create safer and more accessible spaces.

“It makes me really sad that Aziz is really quiet and no-one wants to play with him as much as the popular boys” Ava,6

Reality Check: Recognising our failures. In some ways, the Strategy Assembly failed to achieve this Principle. We have to own it. Bipoc people expressed not feeling valued or equal, voices from marginalised spaces were quieter and quiet people contributed less. Men frequently spoke first and/or longer. We have so much work to do.

We listened to disabled rebels telling us that they feel disappointed with the movement, how they feel having their needs ignored on a regular basis, and how this ignorance is present throughout the movement. We sincerely apologise to everyone who has encountered disablism in the movement, or oppression in its many forms, and we ask that everyone reads this Inclusivity Resource Pack. The pack covers:

  • Accessibility resources
  • Neurodiversity materials
  • Rebel Toolkit’s ‘We are Everyone’ guide
  • Diversity and inclusion at Actions
  • XR Principles of Inclusivity
  • Accessibility and Inclusivity Guide for Protests/Marches
  • Disabled access checklist
  • Diabled Frequently Asked Questions
  • Disabled Rebels Feedback on their experience in XR UK

🌈 XR Rainbow Rebels

Please read this: Lgbtqia+ folk bear the brunt of climate change impacts, or alternatively, here’s the headlines:

  • Lgbtq+ people, particularly those who are migrants, disabled, trans and/or Bipoc people are facing disaster on multiple fronts
  • Homelessness is rising, with 24 percent of homeless youth identifying as Lgbtq+.

Hate crimes rose 147% in the 3 months after Brexit. We stand together with our Lgbtq+ siblings - XR UK will not tolerate transphobia and we can do much more to effectively promote and celebrate your valuable contributions within our movement. Thank you🌈.

OI! STRATEGIC PROMISES:

  • The UK-wide movement to undergo immediate trainings in disability and Lgbtq+ rights, oppression workshops on anti-racism, anti-Semitism and Islamophobia so we fully value every part of everyone.
  • We broaden participation to XR so that is truly inclusive, respecting there are barriers to engaging in Local Group spaces.
  • We need to re-establish regenerative culture at the heart of our movement.
  • We’ll provide training in the tech we use to avoid unequal access to our info & systems and avoid creating a rebel under-class... (video tutorial or written guide).

We set our mission on what is necessary

Mobilising 3.5% of the population to achieve system change - using ideas such as “Momentum-driven organising” to achieve this.

“I have learned you are never too small to make a difference”. Greta, 15

Reality Check: 3.5%. That’s 2,297,750. Gulp. Does it feel impossible? Last year’s mobilising strategy was to bring one million people to the movement - that raised eyebrows. But 76% of the UK population know that the climate crisis is serious - that’s 51,207,000 people. We need to persuade them to unite with us. We’re all up against systems of oppression and exploitation on a global scale. Our mobilising mission is daunting beyond words. Without hope, ambition, love, and rage we won’t succeed.

We will fail the next seven generations, and all life on Earth if we don’t try to mobilise everyone. No pressure, then! And we’ll do it by keeping our rebel sense of humour, and using our regenerative practices to sustain us when it’s tough. This means leaving our comfort zones, making mistakes, facing anger, disdain, denial, despair, awkward moments, feelings of failure... but we won’t give up.

Mobilising Every Opportunity

Not every person will want to join a Local Group or call themselves a rebel - every journey through climate science and understanding global oppression is unique and people’s lives have many barriers. So, in 2021 we’ll create more flexible opportunities to engage people, better promote those opportunities that already exist, and truly value all those not able to risk arrest.

RADICAL INCLUSION at the centre of Mobilising

We welcome every part of everybody. To achieve this, we’ll all have to do a better job of:

  • providing access solutions to D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent rebels
  • embracing and supporting differences in cultural, race, religious, class, age and sexuality
  • providing access solutions faced by those living with mental ill-health or caring for dependents (Local Groups, please refer to the Accessibility and Inclusivity Resources, thank you).

So, you splendid rebels who’ve been keeping your Local Groups afloat, THANK YOU here’s how we build back bigger! Remember, Outreach is our key to telling the truth.

a) Mobilising our Dormant Membership - we have 170,000 members who are inactive. We need to find out what they can do, what suits their lives and needs. Is this you? It’s OK but, pretty please, press here to find where you fit. Or here.

b) Mobilising by Local Groups - want to know how to lure back AWOL rebels and the best methods for finding new ones, contact mobilisation2021@protonmail.com

c) Mobilising the Movement of Movements - fancy knowing how to build ally-ships with other groups in harmony with our environmental, global social justice demands, plus, be empowered by accessibility, unconscious bias and anti-racism training? Workshops are coming...

And here’s XR CYMRU walking the walk on building MoMs alliances - a coalition of six groups organising to demand that the political parties of Wales prioritise the climate and nature crisis in their election manifestos. Gwaith epig!

https://www.sixprinciples.org

d) Mobilising through People’s Assemblies Hmmm, 300 Local Groups… imagine if everyone held a People’s Assembly to show community democracy and power in action! Tickle their taste buds for a Citizens Assembly - Don't imagine. Do! Or take the amazing course with Trust the People.

e) Mobilising through Community Organising Are you a scary XR extremist? Show your community you’re not by adding real value through community organising projects - it’s an extremely lovely way to build relationships between NVDA and add value to where you live. Think Climate Emergency Centres too!

f) Mobilising via Social Media 79.19% of rebels don't or probably wouldn’t share (p 27) XR UK social media*. Ouch! Mass media won’t tell the truth so we have to use social media to SHOUT IT. So, warm your social media lungs up with training pronto.

g) Mobilising via Paint the Streets Coochicoo! Who wants to cuddle their communities in creative explosions of art and vibrant messaging in coordinated mass love bombs? If you’re heading out fly posting, banner dropping or subvertising check out the newly updated Paint The Streets - Info Pack
and join Paint The Streets Telegram.

h) Mobilising through Local Issues Get your community fired up - and together - through environmental issues hitting close to home: air pollution, flooding, habitation attack, unstable food supply...

i) Mobilising through Digital Rebellion Wowser, Digital Rebellion achieved 1000 subscribers in 3 weeks - so join this online rebellion and hook your friends in - everyone can do this! Radical inclusion means having a remote or digital activity for every action on the streets.

j) Mobilising through decentralised UK-wide campaigns Woohoo, with Digital Rebellion growing so quickly let’s use this model to decentralise power to rebels everywhere and realise emerging themes from the Strategy Assembly - Land Rights and Use, Food Rebellion, Glocalisation, Strikes, Product Slavery, Strikes.

k) Mobilising through Talks and Trainings In the early days of XR, Heading for Extinction talks were the number one mobilsing method. Thousands attended this talk. But now 73.65% of active rebels said they do not attend meetings, talks or trainings*. It’s time to put the urgency back in this mobilising opportunity, any rebel can create a new talk or workshop on themes everyday people care about, in less academic ways. We’re Heading for Accessible Language and Formats and Diversity of Speakers!

l) Mobilising Community Groups XR is rich in identity groups, and these groups have superpowers - they create empathy with the general public. 2021 will see an elevation of the mobilising powers of Families, Grandparents, Faith Groups, Rainbow Rebels, Scientists, Educators, Specialist Workers...

m) Mobilising through Socialsing We’ve been in lockdown. It’s time to have fun - never underestimate the power of connecting with new people through having a good time or having a ball.

MOBILISATION IS ESCALATION If you’re not actively seeking new people, it’s inward looking. This is all about mass movement building. It’s not outreach if it’s just your most active members - publicise like there’s no tomorrow. Or one day, there won’t be. 🧠So, if you’re looking for tried and tested great outreach ideas, visit The Rebel Toolkit for brainwaves and resources. ✋ And if you need mobilising help, contact xroutreach@protonmail.com - we have friendly coordinators around the UK.

✊ MASS MOBILISING FOR REBELLION ✊

We are a nonviolent civil disobedience movement. We do need people on the streets. So, we’ll recruit rebels with a bit of extra ooh la la to bring people to the Summer Rebellion. Time won’t be a barrier to helping, and we’ll factor in recent legal changes to protest.

  • These mega mobilisers will receive full and specialised training and be organised in teams throughout the nations and regions
  • They will offer a menu of options for engagement to be truly inclusive, but their goal is to engage members of the public with the CEE, and ask them to protest
  • Principle 6. Most people cannot risk arrest, so these new recruits participate in the ‘safest’ parts of mass rebellion, and receive specific NVDA training
  • New people may be new to the science, so knowing that climate grief is likely, support is created with new, specifically tailored grief circles
  • Mega mobilisers will be nurtured by a Mother Hub. Mass Mobilisation is rewarding but hard work, so we’ll look after these rebels wellbeing with love and full support.

OI! MOVEMENT BUILDING STRATEGIC PROMISES: We won’t lie. We have a vast mobilising challenge ahead of us this year. And the government is intent on banning protest. This is a violation of EVERYONE’S HUMAN RIGHTS. So, yep, it’s intimidating, and will disproportionately affect those already marginalised, but without a serious movement shift to mobilisation, XR UK will fail.

  1. LGs - mobilise like there’s no tomorrow. Don’t be put off by Patel - Know your rights!
  2. LGs to hold People's Assemblies to show the public what real democracy feels like
  3. Practise prefigurative work like community projects and collaborative events to build community empowerment Trust the People!
  4. Embrace a new mass mobilisation campaign, to bring new people in, with multiple inclusive opportunities.

Lumumba Di-Aping, G77 chief negotiator: "This is asking Africa to sign a suicide pact, an incineration pact in order to maintain the economic dependence of a few countries. It's a solution based on values that funnelled six million people in Europe into furnaces."

We need a regenerative culture

Creating a culture which is healthy, resilient and adaptable.

“I feel better when I’m outside, just playing, indoors, I have so many toys I don’t need.” Bobbi-D, 5

Regen is not just a day off XR, nor a social after an action. Regenerative cultures and practises are about reinventing the entire systems of our toxic society - agriculture, finance, education, health, economics, politics. All of which can be rebuilt regeneratively, based upon principles of fairness, deep respect, reciprocity and stewardship. Ahhhhhhhhh, can you feel the love?

Reality Check: But let’s face it - we live in a non-regen world. The UK is a deeply racist, disablist, transphobic and othering country, where Others are kept on the edges of society to oppress their freedoms, with societal fractures everywhere. Black Lives Matter demands that black people receive racial equality, social and criminal justice in society. Their vision of a world of parity is a regenerative world. We share this vision.

What regenerative cultures can we learn from our global family? Indigenous communities are often already living in harmony with their land, in self-organising communities celebrating eldership and female power. Mother Earth prevails. By contrast, the UK is in harmony with consumerism, capitalism and colonialism. And we have much to humbly learn through the XR UK International Solidarity Network.

Whilst in XR, we are in danger of replicating the toxic system we resist:

  • Burn-out and unhealthy ways of working are becoming our work culture
  • Process can easily become bureaucratic, patriarchal
  • Marginalised people are often excluded, devalued
  • Local groups express a sense of disconnection with what they perceive as a powerful centre - the worker/boss syndrome
  • And how do we support talented and dedicated people in working groups to maximise their potential, whilst ensuring everyone else does too? Power is tricky!

How does XR UK evolve to cope with inevitable societal collapse? Adaptation...

So, whilst Regen is self care, action care, interpersonal care, community care and planet care, there’s no escaping that the planet is FCKD. Rejecting everything toxic is a tall order and XR UK is at the start of our journey with deep adaptation and transformative adaptation. So, as the Regenerative Circle is reborn to serve our movement, ask yourself how you, your LG, your Working Group can embody regen and adaptation in all you do. As Jean-Luc Picard would say, “Make it so”.

REGEN STRATEGIC PROMISES:

  1. From NOW, we must all re-establish Regen at the heart of everything. Regen circle is launching a new campaign to make the wellbeing of rebels a UK-wide priority. From sharing Ps & Vs at the start of meetings to literally spending more time with nature, because when we’re in harmony with our planet amazing things happen…
  2. XR UK is fertile with groups protecting biodiversity and defending the land. This is adaptation. We salute and celebrate their commitment and soul. XR UK needs to treat them with the same respect and love we give NVDA.
  3. After a year of lockdown, a lot of zooms, and living with climate grief, rebels often hold a lot of “Aagghhhh”. We’re not great at advertising the help available - here’s a start:
  1. XR UK will create a movement Health and Happiness Index like Bhutan!

Over the last 5 decades vertebrate populations (fish, amphibians, reptiles, mammals and birds) have declined by ∼70% (WWF Report 2018, Living Planet Index 2020). Around half of all insect populations are at risk of extinction in the next few decades (Sanchez-Bayo et al, 2019)

We openly challenge ourselves and our toxic system

Leaving our comfort zones to take action for change.

“You spend more time on zoom calls for XR than you do on me” Max, 15

Our toxic system is hundreds of years of oppression - and it’s embedded in the pillars of our society: media, government, finance, education, the legal system, and business. ‘The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing’. Good people, let's get busy.

News, cultural and political propaganda pollutes everywhere. DO NOT SUBSCRIBE.

A) THE STATE OF OUR MEDIA

This mainstream media not only fails to accurately report on the climate and ecological emergency, but uses divisive tactics on race, gender, sexuality, disability and class in order to pursue their own personal and political agendas. Free press? Snort.

Bravo Broxbourne and Liverpool’s Knowsley 71 rebels, and huge support teams - the unsung heroes of this action. Thank you for blockading the pressworks to create the most successful actions of the September Rebellion, we send our LOVE AND RESPECT to those rebels, and the Free the Press crew for continuing to fight the billionaire press. Now, with protest being oppressed by Protection of the Police and Public Bill, numerous organisations are organising against it: Netpol, Liberty, BLM, Amnesty...

Buckle up rebels. We are going to really need each other for support, and use our regenerative practises to stay strong. This year is going to be a bumpy ride.

We need to upskill our movement, and fast - to counter the attacks on our good selves, and to proactively Tell the Truth to the general public, because the government and media - by the Crown Prosecution Service’s own definition - are committing involuntary manslaughter.

The Strategy Assembly had a lot to say about how Media and Messaging could better support our movement to Tell the Truth. Luckily, one of their team in the Strategy Development Team and had very fashionable broad shoulders, hence…

Media and Messaging STRATEGIC PROMISES:

  • Increase diversity - both within your team (M&M), and in the stories you tell
  • Help promote global voices on anti-racism, oppression and social justice EG!
  • Focus on Bipoc press (The Voice, Black Ballad), and train up Bipoc spokespeople for XR UK
  • Amplify the voices of XRYouth, Elders, Lgbtq+, disabled people and children
  • Train up Working Class voices to be press ambassadors for the movement
  • Work with Fund-raising to create a wowee fundraising communication strategy - XR needs regular monthly donations for a reliable income
  • Prioritise the upskilling of Local Groups. Whilst 76% of the general public are worried about the climate crisis, they don’t really realise this could mean extinction:
  1. Provide Spokesperson training, media literacy, and public relations skills to help them boost impacts on local press and radio Check these guides out!
  2. Develop a social media workshop for rebels to increase usage, creativity and effective messaging across all social media platforms
  3. Empower LGs to coordinate Mass Love Bombs to local news agencies
  4. Promote direct Local Group access to M&M, including open calls
  5. Support Rebels to powerfully expose greenwash by creating UK-wide Paint the Streets campaigns, and brandalising advertising (please credit Brandalism if you use their visual generator). It’s arts and crafty time.
  6. Show rebels how to create snappy press packs - including photos, videos etc to push them to feature the story.
  1. Provide regular drop-in sessions/ events for journalists to support actions
  2. Promote our amazing rebels and their stories to Right Wing journalists
  3. Proactively place spokes and opinion editorials in specialist press eg, farmers, nurses, etc
  4. Work closely with Actions to develop high impact, creatively compelling and hard-hitting visuals/messaging to increase likelihood of publication
  • Expose corruption - promote indie organisation Truthteller to help people whistle-blow crimes against the CEE https://truthteller.life.

Free the Press video

B) NONVIOLENT DIRECT ACTION AND SYSTEMIC DISRUPTION

We are in open rebellion against the government. We are not a corporatising NGO Right, let’s be honest. Not everyone in the Strategy Assembly believes in mass protest and arrest theory, so, some of you reading probably don’t either. Maybe you dispute 3.5% being possible, or disbelieve the assumption 3-5,000 arrests will overwhelm the legal system, or think it speaks to the privilege of white, middle class people, or that Covid or changes in the law now makes it impossible, or it has just plain failed? OK. It’s a theory. An experiment. An experiment in fighting for survival. A refusal to comply with killing kidskids.

Aha, hang on. Historically mass civil disobedience works. Nonviolence works. And XR has proved nonviolent rebelling works - Durham coal mine, Bristol Airport, Trinity College divestment… Plus, nonviolence is the only way to be inclusive.

Nonviolent mass civil disobedience is still the best plan for forcing change. It’s flippin obvious we need to create actions that include and value everyone, only a small portion of XR UK can consider the risk of arrest. We need the rest of you! Check out this NVDA guide for all the inclusive roles! And we all know this is just the beginning. We’re not romanticising that a legally binding citizens assembly will transform everything. XR Scotland’s impressive occupation of their Parliament and resulting disappointing Citizen’s Assembly proves this is going to be a tough ride. Grrrrrr.

Disrupting the general public: we all feel pain in disrupting the general public, especially those disproportionately affected like older or disabled people. As a movement, we’ve moved towards more targeted disruptions, but when we do interrupt daily lives, we can:

  • Do more effective outreach in these areas before, during and after to provide explanation and deescalation - check this ideas-packed guide outout.
  • Encourage rebels to hit social media to explain these actions to online communities
  • Remember the next seven generations.

Disrupting to Create Freedom from Oppression: none of us are free. We’re forced to live in a system that is destroying the planet. David Graeber, anthropologist and anarchist activist nailed it with: “Direct action is, ultimately, the defiant insistence on acting as if one is already free”. Feel free. We know our Western lifestyles hit the Majority World the hardest. How does this make you feel?

Pause...

We live in a country where we probably won’t be killed for being climate activists, but Bipoc, Lgbtq+ and trans activists may not feel this privilege. So, some of us are able to use this privilege and can choose to risk arrest or be arrested, some of us can’t, but we must all feel equal. Some feel we celebrate the arrested more than everyone else so we must work harder to value everyone. We are our own activism ecosystem. From the legal support, to the wellbeing crew, to digital rebels to everyone not mentioned here... YOU ARE ALL INCREDIBLE PEOPLE. WE ARE ALL CREW!

DISRUPTING OUR TOXIC SYSTEM

We can analyse data from Feedback and Learning, Impact Assessments, critical opinion pieces, media response, social media hits… but ultimately we all feel when we’re winning. Here’s how we win:

WHO ARE OUR LOVEABLE 2021 TARGETS?

  • MEDIA CORPORATIONS - Printing presses and media head offices watch WATCH OUT. We’ll continue to expose media lies and reveal the oppression by the mainstream and social media by constantly disrupting them. From love bombs, to on-air engagements to direct protest, we won’t be silenced. Post-Knowsley - Broxbourne, only 28% of a the UK think we have a free press. So, to whet your appetite, we have Free the Press on July 3rd. Yum. Think cunning and creative.
  • BANKING & FINANCE - Cause Economic disruption: our taxes and investments will NOT be used to destroy earth: the Government, Bank of England, Barclays and HSBC, the Treasury, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Department of Transport, UK Export Finance, dirty insurers, fossil foul extractors and local authorities or universities that haven’t divested. How bleeping dare you. XR UK demands COP 26 puts a central ban on all central banks and financial institutions on any new fossil fuel projects, research and development. The Bank of England Action caused cyber mayhem with little effort 😉. Think Reddit.
  • GOVERNMENT - lobby, lobby and then lobby on MPs about the Climate and Ecological Emergency Bill, and all your contacts. Take your love and rage to your local council to borough council to your Parliaments - like “Peidiwch â ffycio gyda’r Cymry” - Don't mess with the Welsh, https://xrcymru.wales. Think relentless.
  • FOSSIL FUELS AND OIL - Greenwashing is obvious to rebels. Not the general public, they’re buying it. XR UK demands fossil fuel industries commit to a five-year transition to net zero by 2025. And end all fossil fuel projects by 2025. Think hogwash - get out there and expose their lies.
  • TRADE AND INDUSTRY - Brexit means our government can get away with all manner of crap. Food, pharmaceuticals, planet degradation, dodgy tax havens and tax abuse… not on our watch. Join Animal Rebellion in their ace campaigning against DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs), and animal and land exploitation in general.

GIMME GIMME GIMME ME SOME JUICY TACTICS

  • Threat of digital disruption & Comms blockades: this is what power holders fear most - it costs them money and reputation. So, we’ll go for the heart of power - Digital Rebellion has had high impact effectiveness for tiddly effort, harnessing the power of rebels at home.
  • Creative Hijacking - live phone-ins, televised events, sports events, where can rebels interrupt with huge audiences? Be brave, be funny, and Know your Rights
  • Obstructing vanity projects like HS2: expose the Government expenditure on planet-destroying projects and cost them dearly. Honour HS2 protesters by supporting them every way possible: supply drops, stop HS2 suppliers, donate money - as of 29.03.2021, 234 supporters have donated £7,635.
  • Iconic targets - psychological disruptive actions have huge reach in the media, impact on public opinion and strongest response from institutions. And bonus, they don’t need many rebels: think Rebellion of One, Cenotaph, Murdoch. These spicy actions need mass outreach, with M&M and LG rebels working hard to create our own news streams. Complete care must be provided to these rebels - from psychological preparation to pre/post legal support - they’ll cop some flack.
  • Pre-figurative actions - enacting the world we want to live in, like Gandhi's salt march in 1930, XR Scotland’s occupation of their Parliament or Waterloo Bridge.

But if none of this appeals, why not join XRPetitions.com

XR YOUTH SHOUT OUT

EDUCATION - if you were born in 1990, the year of the first IPCC report, you NEED to join XR Youth and XR Youth Solidarity, XRY Solidarity Instagram. And if you’ve joined but not active, be rebellious and jump in a role - even seasoned activists can have imposter syndrome! Sign up here volunteer@extinctionrebellion.org.uk.

Covid caused a sharp rise in mental health problems for young people, and mental health issues for children, young people and adults is at an all time high. And 70% of 18-24 year olds are more worried about climate change than a year ago. Climate anxiety is now recognized as a significant mental health epidemic - The Lancet.

Take your power back from adults who’ve ruined the planet. Challenge EVERYTHING:

  • In education? Argue with staff about your curriculum: the colonial history framing and expose geography’s greenwashing of climate change
  • Tell your Head/Head of Department or Faculty that their refusal to let you strike is signing the death warrant on the Majority World
  • Get your place of learning to divest from fossil fuels - local authorities invest teachers pensions in fossil fuels and other damaging industries
  • Get those dirty banks off your campus
  • Book a meeting with your MP, plead with them to sign the CEE bill, show your pain, hunt around for their humanity
  • Talk with your peers, rise up together
  • Be proud to reject extractivism, racism, colonialism and exploitation.

BE MALADJUSTED

BE MALADJUSTED Dr Martin Luther King's Maladjusted Speech (Please forgive him his dated sexism).

And if you have children but find it hard to attend Local Groups, join parent-friendly XR Families! On Facebook, twitter, and instagram.

PRETTY PLEASE ACTONS CIRCLE - STRATEGIC PROMISES:

  • Digital Rebellion, Money Rebellion, Actions, LG Rebels - work on an escalation plan together for COP26, focusing on economic Pillars of Power: Bank of England, Treasury, financial district, fossil fuel investors and insurers. Money hurts.
  • Promote radical inclusion, creativity and empowerment of LGs by pushing the boundaries of NVDA to include everyone - 198 methods of NVDA. Read this!
  • Encourage LGs to think big by following our new UK Action Checklist and UK Action Proposal Process But KNOW YOUR RIGHTS rebels.
  • Fully promote Cover Your AAS (Activist & Actions Support) Trainings every Sunday, 3pm designed to empower your XR tribe to run amazing, impactful actions. Click here to reserve your place, varying weekly from Witnessing Police Behaviour to DeEscalation training (NVD Breathe). Trainings Calendar here.
  • Remind rebels on Covid regulations for protesting
  • Big up LG actions calendar, with a digital action for every action for maximum inclusivity
  • XR International Solidarity Network & Global Rebellion Broadcast to align global events
  • Support Money Rebellion in tax strikes, and moving of money actions - form a cross-team with Money Rebellion, Digital Rebellion, Actions and Political Circle.

On average, 4 climate activists are killed every week, 40% are Indigenous, the majority are Bipoc

  1. We value reflecting and learning

    Following a cycle of action, reflection, learning, and planning for more action. Learning from other movements and contexts as well as our own experiences. (hyperlink)

“It’s not we’re going to be wiped out and nature will reclaim the world - we’re taking everything with us” Josh, 13

  1. Reality Check: Local Groups are reporting significant drops in attendance and activity and national working groups are down a third. We’re all running on empty, during Covid. We love everyone for staying strong. This year has shown us how much we need each other, and how we must show our unconditional love, to build our movement up. Our individual and collective vulnerability is also our strength. We learn.

    Despite the odds, September’s Rebellion was a Great Success! Even with lockdown, we all learnt just frickin amazing, resilient and determined rebels are:

    • Thousands rebelled in Cardiff, Manchester, Glasgow and London, hundreds locally
    • 680 rebels took part in nonviolent civil disobedience to the point of arrest
    • After the Knowsley/Broxbourne protest, 400 people joined XR UK the next day
    • We made global news, and were debated in Parliament
    • Fund-raising raised £100,000 in a 48 hour period

    Principle Five is radical: a movement embracing Feedback and Learning. But this Working Group also has recruitment issues. There are 3 amazing people holding this space - in fact, there are hundreds of great roles on XR UK’s job board. Help!! There’s some key learning right there! XR UK needs you!

Self-Feedback and learning! Ask yourself, do you automatically make Principle 5 a priority? And apply your learnings as you go? Self-analysis takes effort, grit and time. Facing our blindspots and dodgy bits can be uncomfortable. Here's that personal power form again for checking any iffy use of responsibility.

Feedback and learning in XR Working Spaces We need to figure out how to help newer rebels fly, and also value those who dedicate their lives to XR UK. Everyone is WOW. Power-with, always. Are you a curious learner?

  • Do you debrief fully after every action, event, project - assessing what went well, and critiquing weaknesses so solutions are built into every next step?
  • Has your Working or Local Group ever had a deep check in to make sure everyone is happy, and content with progress, you or how it’s being run?
  • Do you use the Rebel Toolkit? It’s full of great ideas from other rebels, learn from their experiences and wisdoms, and the toolkit is packed with ALL the resources!

XR Working Groups muck it up beautifully all the time! Post every Rebellion national working groups and LGs are always exhausted - rebels on the streets are truly phenomenal. But did those nations and regions rebels feel truly heard and appreciated by the ‘centre’? Probably not. For this, we are deeply sorry. What did we learn? Blooming well say thank you and we love you to rebels. You're the movement. Practically, we also learnt to plan better - Rebellion is exhausting and rebels need to rest, so it’s vital we all build non-street crew to manage post-rebellion integration of new rebels. We also spend too much time navel-gazing, and we don’t celebrate our successes. We need a culture of cuddly gratitude.

Do you ever feel despondent about XR UK? It is tough to be a rebel. But ta-da, XR is actually doing great - every social movement follows a pattern - we’re actually doing pretty frickin great, check this out! Keep the faith 💚.

LOOKY HERE!

REFLECTION & LEARNING STRATEGIC PROMISES:

  1. Feedback and learning must become holistic and second nature - that doesn’t mean loads more survey documents (a survey showed rebels hate surveys!)
  2. It must stay rooted in all our principles and values, staying curious and brave, and connect to regenerative practises.

Today, there are around 85 million refugees in the world, up ∼240% compared to 10 years ago, and around half of them are children (UNHCR 2018). 3.5 billion in food insecurity by 2050. Ecological disasters displace an average of 24 million people per year today (IEP, 2020), up to 1 billion climate refugees by 2050 (IOM 2014)

  1. We actively mitigate power

    Breaking down hierarchies of power for more equitable participation. (hyperink)

“I can’t wait for the future to be different” Drake, 4

We are a movement seeking power-with, not power-over. Following this Principle is critical for success - it asks us to undo our own individual lifetime of behaviours. Until we understand our personal power, we cannot be fully free together.

Personal Mitigating Power - be brave, do the Personal power form! Spend a day self-mitigating your power, directly addressing anyone negatively affected by your behaviour. The experience will be humbling. Spend a day in nature. Are you equal to it?

Mitigating Power in Local or Working Groups - have a deep check in regularly. This means someone neutrally facilitating the space to release suppressed tensions, explore feelings and supporting the group to collaboratively find resolutions. Further help here:

Mitigating Power inside XR UK - yep, we’re not ‘supposed’ to have one but we do! Over-throwing the universe takes some organising! Yep, some co-founders are still working hard in groups, and we thank them for their service. But we can also better integrate all new rebels entering working groups, so they too can rise up into their power. Imposter syndrome be gone! Everyone can have power and responsibility. PST! We’ve got a chronic volunteer shortage! Pleeeeeaase help - from 2 hours a week!!

Mitigating power in our societal structures - it’s our moral duty to be the rebellious thorn in power’s side. Being a rebel isn't a part-time hobby, it’s a full-time way of being. Are you non-cooperating? To Gandhi or not to Gandhi? But how do we inspire the rest of the UK about alternative forms of power?

ATTENTION!! MITIGATING POWER STRATEGIC PROMISES:

  1. Every working space to regularly review group dynamics to ensure power puddles don’t turn into lakes. Co-liberation and Regenerative circle are on the case too!
  2. Recruit Bipoc, working class, disabled, D/deaf and neurodivergent, faith and working class rebels to positions of power-fullness everywhere, providing wo-mentoring - if wanted - to mix up the power dynamic
  3. For every action - from national to Local Group - escalate the action and promotions - and DON’T STOP the dialogue.

Under a business as usual scenario, by the year 2100 there will be decline in the production of major crops (Up to: 45% in maize yields, 50% in wheat and 30% in rice) (Arora 2019)

  1. We avoid blaming and shaming

    We live in a toxic system, but no one individual is to blame. (hyperlink long explanation)

Darren’s mummy:mum: “Why am I in Extinction Rebellion?”

Darren: “To prevent the world getting extinct from pollution and degradation of environmental resources''. Uganga

How do we treat each other as individuals within the movement? Are we sincerely abiding by this principle? As individuals, resolving issues and conflicts without blaming and shaming is tough, so if someone has irked you, use Principle Number Eleven - be Super Duper Forgiving. Talk with them directly - it’s Call-in culture over Call-out culture, using nonviolent communication ← that’s a funny 10 minute film, or read this.

But if you’re still really vegan-cheesed off:

BUT HOW THE HECK DO WE SHAME-LESSLY TACKLE PILLARS OF POWER? We are living in outrageous times:

  • 9 in every 30 kids in a class are living in poverty Disgusting fact
  • In 2020, 8.4 million lived in relative poverty and 7.6 in absolute poverty Page 10
  • 11 examples of racism in the UK’s social and economic systems Gross disparity
  • 219,000 people in the UK are homeless Appalling fact
  • Unemployment is 1.72 million, predicted to rise to 2.6 million by mid-20121 Furlough support masks the truth
  • 8.4 million in the UK live with Food poverty 2 million used a food bank in 2019-20
  • The UK is in a mental health crisis - 10 million more suffering because of lockdown, 1.5 million under 18’s Poorly funded provision
  • Structural racism led to the disproportionate impact of the coronavirus pandemic on black, Asian and minority ethnic communities citation
  • 130,000 people - mostly disabled - have prematurely died due to Austerity since 2010

And still, the 1% have profited during Covid-19

  • Jeff Bezos makes $222,884 a minute, that’s $13.4 million an hour!
  • Zoom communication CEO Eric Yuan joined the world’s Billionaires list.
  • And the Tories, despite their incompetence and criminality during 210,000 Covid deaths, Tories still lead Labour in the polls.

Our motto ‘Love and Rage’ is our guiding light, the backbone of nonviolence. Ever wondered how to ground a warplane using love and a calling card?

PSSSST! XR UK NATIONAL WORKING GROUPS STRATEGIC PROMISES:

  • The Strategy Assembly felt XR UK was out of touch with the British public, and that Heading for Extinction talk must address NOW, and UK social and global injustice
  • Update Talks and Trainings to be more relevant to everyday lives: food/energy poverty, education inequality, local issues like flood, air quality, transport...
  • People from relevant backgrounds must be responsible for new materials on these themes. Pst, DIY guide to talks/workshops - short version, or long version.
  • Improve workshops for Local Groups to learn the art of action and campaign design and escalation, so local actions achieve the highest impacts
  • Celebrate and promote these successful actions through the movement, and global partners, and ensure easier access to funds, advice and resources
  • Coordinate actions/campaigns across the UK for maximum collaborative impact.

“Global warming of 4°C this century is quite possible and would bring massive risks to life and society – heatwaves, coastal and river flooding, droughts and more… We don’t know how society would respond to the massive risks of 4°C global warming. Transformational change would be needed.” Professor Richard Betts MBE, Chair of Climate Impacts at the University of Exeter, Head of Climate Impacts at the Met Office 2020

  1. We are a nonviolent network

    Using nonviolent strategy and tactics as the most effective way to bring about change. (hyperlink)

“We don’t want them to chop trees down. And we don’t want anyone to die” Ella, 3

Nonviolence & Global Justice are Two Halves of the Whole

We stand with our global justice so-called terrorists sisters and brothersbrothers.

Many rebels don’t know about the beautiful history of nonviolence or UK nonviolent protest, or that it’s the heartbeat of XR. Our collective heart beats for global justice. Nonviolence is the fundamental principle of non-harm - a respect for life and a commitment to prevent harm on every level; from the global destruction of our natural systems, through all societal practices of oppression, through our personal interactions with others, to our own respect and care for ourselves. It’s pretty epic!

Does nonviolence mean being passive? Nope! To achieve change there must be some traction, provided by confrontation without violence. Like in civil disobedience. Nonviolence is a bit like tuning a stringed musical instrument - the strings need adjusting to the right tension: too slack – no confrontation, too tight and it may spill into violence.

Nonviolent civil disobedience doesn’t have to mean breaking Laws, or getting arrested - that's not everyone’s cup of oolong. It’s all about the tension. For example, people were strip-searched by the police at a festival, other folk took their clothes off in solidarity - nakedness was a tactic to expose the police in their uniformed glory.

Or, when white people march, it doesn't usually have much traction, but when Bipoc people march, the context is different - they're pushing up against racism in the police and in society. They take a risk just by marching. And it’s inspiring, daring change. This is what Martin Luther King described as physical force meeting soul force. For a chuckle, watch White Men Can't March.

Nonviolence in Movement of Movements - this Strategy Assembly is asking our grassroots and national working groups to work their socks off to engage other MoMs. So, hmmm, how do you ask another movement if they have nonviolence written into their own constitution? It could be received as antagonistic, offensive, peculiar… A Strategy Assembly Working Group created a thoughtful plan for Nonviolence and Movement of Movements, and we thank them for their care and unity.

EXCUSEZ MOI - NONVIOLENCE CREW STRATEGIC PROMISES:

  1. This coming year, please develop and deliver presentations, workshops and/or training to Local Group rebels to deepen understanding of this core principle
  2. Spread the understanding of nonviolent communication through to Local Groups.

Droughts are set to dramatically worsen this century (Dai 2010, Dai 2013, Cook 2014), with average drought durations of 10 months at 3C warming (global average), and far longer in many regions (e.g. 5 years in northern Africa) (Naumann et al., 2018)

  1. We are based on autonomy and decentralisation

    We collectively create the structures we need to challenge power. Anyone who follows these core principles and values can take action in the name of XRXR.

    (hyperlink).

    “If the world comes to a point where nothing can live there, then the people who cause the problem and the rich people, they’re going to suffer too” Wren, 11

A. Finance and Fund-Raising - decentralising funds to community frontlines

Reality check: 2020 was a challenging year financially for XR UK. We had to make tough choices, and are working hard to develop a new financial system that will enable XR UK to achieve our strategic goals whilst remaining rooted in our Ps & Vs. Thank you Strategic Finance Circle for your time, hard work and care.

  • At the moment the majority of our budget is spent in support circles. This is unfair to our decentralised movement - we’re working on it!
  • Voluntary Living Expenses (VLE) were cut in April, resulting in many volunteers having to stop working for our movement
  • National working groups report they have one third less rebels they need
  • XXX volunteers still work full-or part-time, but only around 30 receive VLE - it just about covers basic living expenses
  • Only XX of these volunteers on VLE are from Bipoc, working class, disabled, Lgbtg+ backgrounds.

To live by our regenerative practices, supporting volunteers prepared to sacrifice their personal lives for this work is humane.

It’s VITAL we recruit Bipoc, working class, disabled, Lgbtq+ or people on poverty wages, and we must be able to support them with VLE, if they need it.

DRUM ROLL... FINANCE STRATEGIC PROMISES:

  1. We must grow our email list - our mailing list of supporters is the No 1 way we raise funds. The 2020 rebellion raised £100,000 in 48 hours from one email, but we haven't grown our database since 2019. A new all-singing recruitment and fund-raising strategy is needed to build financial resilience
  2. Support Grassroots fundraising - many Local Groups already self-funding, and we THANK YOU. But not every group can be, so we need a system for groups who have more than they need to share it with those with less. Sharing is caring!
  3. Fund-raising training and resources for Local Groups will be rolled out UK-wide to make fundraising easier. Fundraising is working on a regional trial.

If you are in a position to make a regular donation, please do so HERE

B. AUTONOMY + DECENTRALISING = PERSONAL + COLLECTIVE POWER

Reality check: you have the power to create amazing change. These children and young people believed in themselves. Adults often hold themselves back! Your rebel responsibility is to escalate everything you do!

C. 2021 - The Year of Decentralising Much Moooooore

To further support decentralising power, XR UK set up the Decentralising project to enhance communications, build relationships between XR national working groups and nations and regions. For example, Media and Messaging have been:

  • meeting with their UK-wide counterparts to get to know them - seeing what resources may be needed, or how they can better promote decentralised spaces
  • M&M have also been holding Open Calls for rebels to chat/moan/be appreciative.

So, by improving transparency and increasing communications, it means issues can be more easily identified, and fixed. And in the spirit of decentralising, for all the action and events around the UK, bonkbook herehere.

D. The Systems Realignment Project has been devised to help us understand our internal practices better, and where we might be going wonky. It’ll identify trends of weakness, and strengths, and use empathic workshops to de-wonk those spaces.

Yoohoo! Autonomy and Decentralising Strategic Promises:

  • Many LGs are still unfamiliar with the Self Organising System - it can enhance your internal relationships and empower productivity. Book at xr.mandates@gmail.com
  • Motivating DNA talks to be snazzed up - book at xr.dna.embodiment@gmail.com
  • Communications - there’s a lot! There’s no easy fix to this. We’re like decentralised rebels in a sweet shop! But Mattermost is proving popular with individual rebels and LGs - get in touch with our global movement! Weekly Hub & Mattermost training - at a friendly and slow pace, is available here:
  1. Mondays - 12:00-14:00 - Zoom link:link
    2. https://zoom.us/j/9226230167
  2. Thursdays - 11:00-13:00 - Zoom link:link
    3. https://zoom.us/j/9558973360
  3. Fridays - 14:00-16:00 - Zoom link:link
    4. https://zoom.us/j/92087889872
  • Affinity Groups are the movement’s unsung heroes and heroines. The oxygen of actions and rebellions. We MUST honour those rebels better, and amplify their voices louder still. THANK YOU Affinity Group rebels.

There are 2.2 billion children on the planet, 2 billion live in the developing world

OGGY OGGY OGGY! THE STRATEGY ASSEMBLY’S BOLSHIEST DEMANDS

It is the women, the children, the Majority World, the disabled, Bipoc and disabled who pay the heaviest price for climate breakdown. We need to behave like it’s DO OR DIE.

  1. Elect a female-leadership team, from right, right now. We need an anchor.
  2. Major recruitment and onboarding campaign for rebels from marginalised spaces to create fresh energy in national working groups
  3. Actions - react faster. Refine this year’s action strategy so it escalates for COP, with Local Groups supporting national actions, locally. Include non-Glasgow and remote options for COP
  4. Next Rebellion to be THE ONE. Cleverly design-in those people who are able to risk arrest/go to prison to create the most inspiring actions imaginable, remote options too
  5. Communications overhaul: simplify outputs, and create a sexy integrated strategy for maximising emotional impact/mobilising and increasing fund-raising
  6. Revisit all T&T, DNA and NVDA materials to update them
  7. Set deadlines for all the above to happen. Or it probably won’t.
    8. AND
YIPPEE!

NEW WORKING GROUPS - JOIN AS ORGANISERS OR AS MEMBERS

The Strategy Assembly birthed some beautiful babies during the painful labour, and some rebels stepped up to help parent them, but if you haven’t got the memo yet, XR UK has a HUGE recruitment issue. So PLEASE, jump in, we need everyone. After all, we are all crew. One amazing, passionate, resilient, brave, diverse, humble and fearless crew.

JOIN THESE NEW CREWS - WE’RE ALL LEARNING, DARING TO BE GREAT*

  • ✊PREFIGURATIVE ACTIONS AND PRACTISES
  • ✊FOOD REBELLION
  • ✊Influencer ToC Working Group
  • ✊Strikes! Strikes! Strikes!
  • ✊ Facebook Face-off - see how much press Australia boycott achieved - let’s naff off Facebook with a day of love and rage!

Jump in here, contact mobilisation2021@protonmail.com

We can all be better black allies

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