24 October 2009

I'm sitting down in the office for the first time in about five weeks.  It's been a wild ride - Bill McKibben and I have been on the road talking to people all around Europe about 350 and our big October day.  So much to tell, but what's on my mind right now is the meeting we had right before wrapping up the tour - perhaps because this button Anne gave me was still pinned to my shirt when I got home.

Anne is part of the growing and vibrant civil society in Stockholm, Sweden pushing for a clean energy future.  She's involved in what sounds like has been a long fight opposing a new highway bypass, and during the meeting she came up with the brilliant idea of doing 350 geocaches in the nature reserves and World Heritage (Drottningholm) the campaign is hoping to protect.  For those of you all who are new to geocaching, think orienteering -maps and compasses in the woods- updated for the 21st century with GPS.  Very cool.

Our small meeting held a lot of promise, with people from Miljöförbundet Jordens Vänner (Friends of the Earth Sweden) and KlimatAktion, a powerful, new Swedish climate coalition, talking about how to use the October 24 date to promote their projects in Stockholm and leverage their energy towards the Copenhagen UN meeting.  Fun in the woods, with a local targeted message for better transportation options, linked with thousands of events around the world with an global demand of 350 on October 24 adding to the action in and around Stockholm.  What could be better?

I'll hope to send out some more tidbits from our recent discussions - everywhere we went, people were ready to organize - a bike messenger relay carrying the news of 350, giant "3"s, "5"s, and "0"s connecting city to city in international cooperation, maybe even 350 beer steins in southern Germany...  but, then again, maybe not.  It was fun to laugh about it with our new friends at Green City Munich though.

Onwards!

We spend a lot of time thinking about photos here at 350.org--they are, after all, our best tool to convey the breadth and diversity of the climate movement all over the world. But it's not every day that we see photos that take our breath away!

This photo from Wisconsin and the Inland Sea Society caused all of us in the office to stop work and crowd around a computer screen. These are all kayaks; taking their part to get the message out. Check out some local coverage, here.

We are very much looking forward to other Kayak-themed events for October 24, and to working with our partners at the Inland Sea Society, Waterkeeper and International Rivers.

This movement is full of stories. Whether it's villagers in Nepal who face increased floods from melting glaciers or students in Ecuador who organize to green their campuses and communities, the stories of people confronting the climate crisis are the lifeblood of this movement. Stories matter on the global scale, like the narrative we are building together around the October 24 day of action, and they matter on the local scale, giving people the information they need to face the challenges and seize the opportunities this new era of climate change brings.

Every story needs a good storyteller. That's one of the reasons that the Climate Change Media Partnership is so important. The CCMP provides annual training fellowships for journalists from the developing South to learn how to write about climate change and to attend the United Nations climate meetings. CCMP fellows come from all over the world: Nepal, Jamaica, Cambodia, and more (all places where events are being planned for this October). Check out this video for more information on the fellowship:

As you make your plans for October 24, think about how your event can tell a unique story that will capture the attention of journalists like those at the CCMP. Maybe you'll bring an unprecedented coalition of organizations together around your action, or invite a local politician, or host your event at an iconic place that makes a great backdrop for a front page photo. The more creative you are, the more likely you'll get some great media coverage.

There will be all sorts of incredible stories on October 24, let's make sure the storytellers are there to hear them.

As 350.org organizers, we get a lot of emails in our inboxes everyday from people around the world working to solve the climate crisis. Each email comes with a story -- a unique climate solution a local group is implementing, a new action being planned for October 24, a coalition that wants to join 350.org -- but few are as inspiring as that of Kim Nguyen.

Over 10 months ago, Kim left Brisbane, Australia with the goal of making it to this December's UN Climate Meetings in Copenhagen, Denmark ... on his bicycle. His blog is great reading, not only because of the personal adventure he's had and challenges he's overcome, but because of the local stories he's captured along his journey. Kim's visited with many of our new 350 partner organizations, from a network of environmental organizations in Malaysia to the student-lead Green SOS in China. We'll see where he ends up on October 24!

Check out this video introducing Kim's journey and make sure to read his blog for the latest updates from the road. And heck, if Kim can bike from Australia to Denmark, you can organize a one day event your city or town. Good luck, Kim!