Draft Agenda
THE WEEKEND CLIMATE STRATEGY RETREAT:
BUILDING CANADIAN YOUTH CLIMATE LEADERSHIP
Introduction
The first step in developing a strategy is to assess the current situation – sometimes we call this ‘assessing the terrain’. This assessment helps us to get our bearings – a phrase which means figuring out one's position or situation relative to one's surroundings.
Getting our bearings is a collective task and we use a participatory process based on popular education principles to do this. Popular education methods to us means
- We begin by asking questions of participants that brings out their experience in thoughts and feelings.
- We then add information – in the form of strategy and planning tools – to deepen participants’ analysis and to make connections between participants experience and the experience – historical and current – of other struggles, of other campaigns and other activists.
- We then develop a plan of action, implement it and then reflect on the action and plan again.
Objectives:
To develop an assessment of the current situation for climate change youth activists in Canada.
To identify next steps that involves other climate change youth activists in Canada to build on this assessment and undertake the task of developing a more complete social movement strategy.
To begin building a vision of a sustainable society, and figuring out the transition processes we can catalyze.
This session will use a specific social movement analysis framework – Movement Action Plan, developed by Bill Moyer - to assess the current state of the environmental movement in Canada as it organizes a response to the climate change crisis. See http://www.indybay.org/olduploads/movement_action_plan.pdf Participants will be invited use this tool looking through the lens of Canadian youth activists. Participants will be asked to read the Movement Action Plan framework in preparation for the retreat.
Assessment Questions
Participants will be asked to consider several assessment questions:
- Who are you as activists – where are you coming from, how are you connected to each other and to other activists?
- What threat is posed by the climate change crisis?
- What needs to be done to respond to climate change?
- Can the climate crisis be averted through market mechanisms?
- What are the underlying premises and systems that are causing climate change?
- Who or what stands in the way of responding to climate change in the way that you think is necessary?
- Who is with you in your vision of the change that is required?
- Who are the players in the issue? What groups, individuals, ideas are involved? What’s the arc of the response to date – what are the stories being told?
- What stage is the environmental movement at in Canada, according to the Movement Action Plan tool?
- What does Moyer suggest is necessary at this stage to develop movement capacity? What does Moyer say can be expected at this stage from opponents?
- Given this analysis - what are the next steps in developing a movement strategy?
Friday Night
Participatory group-building get to know each other activities.
Welcome from the Art of Living.
Opening Ceremony.
DINNER MEAL
Conclude with Activist Historical Timeline Exercise – Participants will be asked to name time when they became concerned about climate change and name a moment/event that was a high point and low point in their activism.
Identify participant objectives for week-end.
Review Agenda
Closing rounds
Film/Other Activities
Saturday morning: Assessing the Terrain
Morning activity – outdoors/indoors – exercise (yoga and stretching, walking)
BREAKFAST MEAL
Check-in
Develop Climate Change Movement timeline: Identify significant events in climate change campaign in Canada leading up to Copenhagen and place in a historical timeline.
De-brief Copenhagen (the ‘present’ moment on climate change timeline)
- What did the environmental movement want?
- Who do we mean when we say ‘the movement’?
- How did it express its goals?
- What did it win and/or lose?
- What was/is the popular public perception of the issue and stakes? What are the means of communication and information collection used by the Canadian public?
- Who worked to oppose environmental movement goals from being achieved?
- At Copenhagen
- In Canada
- Why are they blocking progress
- What are their interests?
- What is their vision?
- Movement activity leading to Copenhagen. At this moment,
- What are movement’s strengths and weaknesses?
- What are opponents’ strengths and weaknesses?
Saturday Afternoon: Movement Assessment
Presentation: Moyer’s Movement Framework (Participants will have had reading as preparation).
Discussion:
- What stage is climate change movement at now in Canada?
- In what ways do behaviour of movement and power holders conform/not conform with the stage we are in now
- Comparison with other historical movements?
- Future scenarios
- What is your vision of what you would like to see happen?
- If power holders gain momentum what might happen?
- Summary: What is at stake for Canadian youth activists – what can be lost or won?
- How do we work together? Who’s involved? Activity: mapping the different groups/people involved in the movement and the issues.
What is a vision of a sustainable society, that does not cause climate change? What does climate justice mean and look like in practice?
What potential capacity do Canadian climate change youth activists have, if organized, to win your vision and defeat your opponents?
Targets
Primary
Secondary
How are they vulnerable to pressure
Spectrum of Allies
What messages might animate allies?
Possible arenas of action where Canadian climate change youth activists can create pressure, with allies, on targets
Storytelling, music, stargazing, snacks
Sunday morning
Planning – Given the analysis from Saturday:
- What are possible next steps?
- What resources are required?
- What commitments do you want to make to each other at this time?
- Who does what by when?
Evaluation of Training
Closing Comments
Closing Ceremony
