Maybe you just found out about Rise for Climate, or you’ve been thinking about organising an event, but haven’t made a start yet. There’s now less than 2 weeks until Rise for Climate – can you make it happen?
Yes you can! Your efforts do and can make a difference – with extreme weather and climate impacts taking a huge toll on millions of people around the world, it’s time for all of us to rise for climate action.
Whether you want to see your local leaders turning your town, city, church or university to renewable energy and divesting funds from fossil fuel companies; or your local council banning fossil fuel projects; or perhaps this is the first time you are organising an event calling for action on climate change and so want to start with something small, 1 – 2 weeks is enough time to organise a Rise for Climate action. Hop to it!
If you haven’t already, check the Rise for Climate map to see if other events are happening near you (You could join them! Or make sure you’re not clashing with them.)
Here’s 4 tips of how to approach your rapid event organising, followed by a list of the key steps and resources to get you up and started right away.
1. At this point, small is beautiful
A Rise for Climate event can be done with as few as 5 friends or work mates. If you think you can turn out more, go for it! But at this point it’s probably too late to be organising a rally or large gathering of people.
But by registering your event on the Rise for Climate event map, others will also be able to find you, and get in touch to join your event.
2. Keep it simple and go deep
One of the ways to make impact is to lean into your cultural and social heritage.
“The most effective quick, small actions I’ve seen draw on an aspect of personal identity that made them meaningful. Like when 15 Latino teens wore Quinceañera dresses on the steps of the Texas Capitol building to protest an immigration law. It didn’t take a lot of people, but it took heart and smarts. It was powerful because it challenged stereotypes and showed us the beauty and strength of these young women who would be targeted by the law. Their action made headlines around the world.” – 350.org’s Mobilisation Strategist Bridget Burrows
It’s not just cultural identity that you can draw upon – for example, it might be that your identity is being a woman, concerned about how climate change will affect your community. You might be a grandparent – a classic example is the Knitting Nannas who take their knitting to protests.
Or perhaps you have an existing relationship with an unusual or interesting ally that you could ask to join for your event?
Over to you, but remember to always be respectful and don’t claim culture that isn’t yours to claim.
3.Choose a recognisable or symbolic location for your action
Whether it be a building, the ocean, a desert, or a public park, by choosing a recognisable or symbolic location you can draw on the power of association, show that diverse and iconic places are onboard with climate action, and bring interest to your action and photos of it. Some locations are sacred to local peoples, so be sure that any location you choose will be culturally appropriate.
There is a rich history of taking 350 photos at iconic locations – here are some examples:
4. Identify your demand
It’s up to you to decide on what the appropriate demand of your local leaders is – it could be in the form of a petition, or letter, or it could be a message you make visually. Here’s the overall Rise for Climate Demand to help guide you:
The bar for real climate leadership is simple: public, actionable commitments to a fast and fair transition to a fossil free world, powered by 100% renewable energy for all.
We can’t keep powering our lives with dirty fuels from the last century. It’s time to repower our communities with clean, renewable energy from the sun, earth, wind and water.
We need every local government and institution to commit to building 100% renewable energy and stopping new dirty energy projects in their community. Anything less than that is out of line with what science and justice demand.
5. Use the Rise for Climate visuals
From Bogota, Colombia to Suva, Fiji to Paris, France we’re expecting thousands of people, hundreds of events, and more than 63 countries to Rise for Climate Action on September 8th. While many of us speak different languages, we will be speaking a common language with the symbols that unite us —
The symbol of an orange X represents what we need to put a stop to: fossil fuel infrastructure and climate impacts. A yellow Sun represents the solutions we need: solar power, wind power, resilience to climate change, people power.
Read more about the symbols of Rise for Climate here.
Ready? Your first steps:
- Write out a short plan for your event. The Rise Safety & Risk Toolkit provides useful guidance for making a plan using What, When, Where, How & Who.
- Register your event – click here.
- Invite people to join you in organising the action, and assign roles between you. These are some important resources that can support your team:
- All the best!