Newsletter # 1

ZERO CARBON CARAVAN
Newsletter # 1
Hello everyone
Welcome to the first newsletter of the Zero Carbon Caravan. Thank you for the interest you have shown
in the project so far. I’ll be sending newsletters out every few weeks to keep you updated with our
progress, but if you would prefer not to receive these messages, please email me at
chris.keene@zerocarboncaravan.net and I’ll take you off the list.
The Zero Carbon Caravan will carry the message of action on climate change to the December United
Nations climate negotiations in Copenhagen in a relay of individuals and organisations travelling across
land and sea without using fossil fuels.
The importance of these talks cannot be overstated; a successor to the Kyoto Protocol has to be
agreed. With James Hansen, the world’s top climate scientist saying there is too much carbon in the
atmosphere already, we need drastic reductions in our emissions of carbon dioxide right now.
But there is hope. Paradoxically, the international financial crisis could help; if we take people off the
dole to build a new green economy, by doing things like building wind turbines and insulating people’s
houses we could end our dependence on fossil fuels. With the inauguration of a new President of the
USA who has pledged to re-engage with the climate change issue, anything is possible.
It is not as if we haven’t faced massive global challenges in the past and succeeded. Seventy years
ago we faced the threat of fascism, but we all pulled together, and together we defeated it. The Second
World War killed 45 million people. Climate change could easily kill ten times that many, and also bring
about the next mass extinction of animals and plants.
Politicians will only react if the public demand it, and with many of them not even convinced of the
reality of anthropogenic climate change (an opinion poll a few months ago showed 60% thought there
was some debate over it) it will be difficult to get the negotiators to come up with an agreement which is
adequate for the challenge.
That is where the Zero Carbon Caravancomes in. By showing it is possible to replace fossil fuels when
travelling - the activity that is showing the greatest increase in their use currently - we can convince the
public that a zero carbon lifestyle is possible. We must persuade them to demand that the negotiators
come up with the right deal in Copenhagen.
The Zero Carbon Caravan is not just about arriving at our destination. As we travel, we will be holding
zero carbon conferences to explain why we need a zero carbon world, and to discuss the means of
attaining it. We will also organise zero carbon concerts, using a minimal amount of renewable
electricity and lots of audience participation to demonstrate that entertainment can be zero carbon too,
and that the way to defeat climate change is by acting together.
Engaging with the media will be crucial to what we are aiming to achieve, so that our message will
spread far beyond the people who join the caravan and come to the conferences and concerts.
Since the project began last summer we have already made great progress: we have an excellent new
website (www.zerocarboncaravan.net) created by Alex Lockwood and Neil Bye which we will use to
reach out to people all over the world and we have obtained a grant from Artists Project Earth, against
very stiff competition. We have also recruited a number of advisors to help with the climate science and
the media.
The Zero Carbon Caravan is a very ambitious project run entirely by volunteers, and we need your
help. We want to form a steering committee of eight or nine people to guide the project. So far we
have myself, Chris Keene, as Coordinator and Spokesperson; Alex Lockwood who is responsible for
Media and Communications: and Neil Bye as Web and Email manager.
We need to fill the following positions – Fundraising Officer, Campaign Promotor, Caravan
Operations Officer, Networks and Activist Coordinator, Recruitment Officer and Problem Solver.
These roles could be done as a job share if you’re interested but a bit short of time. Please get in touch!
Email me at chris.keene@zerocarboncaravan.net or phone 01603 614535.
We also need people to act as advisors in the areas of climate science; climate solutions (climate
policy, renewable energy, energy efficiency etc); green travel (cycling, sailing, canoeing etc) and media.
Again, get in touch if interested.
Finally, we are going to need money, so if you are interested in organising a benefit concert or other
fundraising activity, please get in touch.
If you know of anyone else who may be interested in either being on the steering committee, acting as
an advisor, or raising money, please pass this email on to them, and drop a note to any relevant email
lists you’re on.
We haven’t yet made a definite decision on the route of the caravan, or caravans. We will be starting in
the autumn, probably on the equinox, 21st September, although we may start a little earlier to give us
ample time to get to Copenhagen by the beginning of December. It would be great to start at
Machynlleth, the home of the Centre for Alternative Technology in mid Wales, as they produced the
Zero Carbon Britain report in 2007 www.zerocarbonbritain.com and are currently working on an update,
so the theme for the caravan would be ‘from Zero Carbon Britain to a Zero Carbon World’. I know
several people won’t live on the route from Machynlleth to Copenhagen, so I think there may well be
more than one caravan. We already have some possible offers to host meetings of the caravan in
Holland and Germany.
Please let me know where you live and if you could host a caravan in your town if we can arrange for
one to visit.
“Or can we change our ways forever, before those reckoning times arrive? If we act now, and we act
together, our children’s children may yet survive” from ‘Ship in Distress’ by Seize the Day
Chris Keene
Zero Carbon Caravan Coordinator
chris.keene@zerocarboncaravan.net
33 Dell Crescent, Norwich, NR5 8QB.
Tel: 01603 614535 / 07801 250982

What you can do

JOIN A CARAVAN

More and more people are realising the urgency of our situation and are deciding to take action. People are planning caravans starting in Scotland (contact Eva Schonveld) , Ireland (contact Isabelle Sutton), Wales (contact Irene Willis), and Spain(contact Duncan Crowley). One will cross the North Sea to Belgium on the Keewaydin and will be joined by a velomobile in Belgium then cycle up to Copenhagen through Holland and Germany. For Belgium and Holland contact Johan Goossens and for Germany contact Peter Vogelsanger. Look at the map on our website showing the caravan routes to see if you could join in. And remember it’s a relay, so you don’t have to go all the way.

SEND INFORMATION ON CUTTING CARBON

Everywhere the caravans pass they will be collecting information about how the world can become zero carbon, uploading this to our website, and carrying the message onwards to Copenhagen, so that we will arrive and be able to demand a zero carbon world, and to present the negotiators with the means of achieving it, so they have no excuse to deny us.

Even if you don’t manage to join in or host a caravan yourself, you can send us the information about your activities in cutting carbon for our website (email chris.keene@zerocarboncaravan.net).

START A CARAVAN YOURSELF

The more caravans there are the better, because each one will spread the message of the urgency of action against climate change, and each one will add to the pressure on governments for an effective deal at Copenhagen.

Everywhere people are keen to join in, so why not host or even start a caravan in your own area and let the world know what *your* community is doing in the fight against climate change? We now have a map on our website www.zerocarboncaravan.net. You could use it to see what’s happening in your area, and perhaps offer some help with organising media, food, accommodation, and events in your area for any caravans travelling through.

HOST A CARAVAN

Even if you don’t travel, you can still play a vital role, by hosting a caravan as it passes through your area. What we are asking of hosts is that they provide:

  • Accommodation - preferably free, although we could pay a small fee. It could be in your house (for one or two of us) or you could help us by finding a church or village hall, scout hut, or, if none of these are available, a campsite (we won't necessarily be carrying tents). Accommodation is our most urgent requirement.
  • Laundry facilities - or directions to a launderette in your town.
  • Food - preferably organic as the whole point of the ZCC is to promote the solutions to climate change, and we are hoping people will make links with local organic suppliers on the way so that we will boost their business with the publicity we will give them (hopefully we will get it a bit cheaper this way - maybe even free).  Travellers on the caravan will also be likely to be vegetarian/vegan.
  • Publicity - in the media and with local people.
  • A public meeting - in the afternoon or evening (and/or a zero carbon concert - i.e. one that uses no fossil fuel electricity (acoustic, or using renewable electricity)
  • An event or notable landmark - We will be filming throughout the whole journey so any visual aids would be welcome.
  • Participants - even if they are only cycling on to the next town in the caravan's journey.

    • WORK ON OUR WEBSITE

    We need people to help with providing material for our website – on the climate science showing how urgent is the need for zero carbon emissions, and the way we can get there, by lifestyle change, energy efficiency and renewables.

    To find out how to help email chris.keene@zerocarboncaravan.net

    CONTRIBUTE FINANCIALLY

    If the Zero Carbon Caravan is to make the major impact it needs to if we are to avert abrupt climate change, we will need a lot of publicity, so money for computers, video cameras, datasticks, filming and web hosting is vital. In addition we will need some money for yachts – although the Keewaydin are not charging us, we will need money for such things as harbour fees.

    The simplest way to donate is to send a cheque payable to THE ZERO CARBON CARAVAN to Chris Keene, Coordinator, Zero Carbon Caravan, 33 Dell Crescent, Norwich NR5 8QB, but you could also arrange benefit events, get sponsored, or set up a standing order.

    Benefit screenings of The Age of Stupid

    The Age of Stupid www.ageofstupid.net is a brilliant and very moving film about the extinction of humanity by climate change. It has been showing around the country, and from May 22nd any group will be able to organise a screening, just paying a small fee (about £50) for doing so. So get in touch by emailing chris.keene@zerocarboncaravan.net if you would like to organise a screening to raise money for the Zero Carbon Caravan.

    Sponsorship

    Why not get sponsored for going on the Zero Carbon Caravan? We will shortly be putting a downloadable sponsorship form on our website

    Standing orders

    Standing orders are a great way of providing us with a steady, dependable income, and a lot of people donating a small sum (just £2 a month, but more if you can afford it) can really make a difference. The details of our bank account are - account name THE ZERO CARBON CARAVAN, Sort Code 070093, Bank Account 33333334 (that’s seven ‘3’s followed by a 4!); Account Number/Reference 1389/703 974 988

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