Paul’s Canberra events calendar, August 2019

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We recommend Paul Oboohov’s calendar, with forthcoming events for the remainder of August. Paul is a long-time activist in Canberra and a Vintage Reds member. (Updated 4 August)

Canberra: Uni Student Walkout for Climate Action!
Noon – 1pm, Friday, 9th August 2019. Kambri Precinct, 154 University Ave, ANU. On August 9 students across the country will be walking out in protest demanding real action on climate change. Our demands: – Stop Adani! – No new coal or gas – 100% renewables – Sustainable Jobs. Organised by Uni Students for Climate Justice, ANUSA – ANU Students’ Association, NUS National Union of Students, PARSA – ANU Postgraduate and Research Students’ Association, and StopAdani Canberra.

Climate Change Updates.
12:30 – 1:45pm, Tuesday, 13 and 20 August 2019. Hughes Community Centre, 2 Wisdom St, Hughes. Prof. Will Steffen will address Canberra’s seniors on climate change. Prof. Steffen is a member of the Anthropocene Working Group and the ACT Climate Council. Hosted by Council of the Ageing (ACT) and U3A.
1. 13 August 2019: Climate Change Update 1 – Impact of humans. We are now in a proposed new geological epoch – the Anthropocene – where humans have a dominant role in geology and ecology. What is the impact of humans on the Earth System as a whole – both the climate and the biosphere?
2. 20 August 2019: Climate Change Update 2 – Adapting to climate change. Australia which is particularly vulnerable to such change.

Public Meeting: Australian Unemployed Workers’ Union, Canberra.
Unemployed? Underemployed? We are your union.
5:30 – 7:30pm, Friday, 9th August 2019. The Food Co-op Shop & Cafè, 3 Kingsley St, ANU. An independent union for the unemployed, by the unemployed. We fight for better conditions for all unemployed workers. Membership is free and open to everyone. Free food provided. Join us in fighting for a better future! Organised by the AUWU, Canberra.

IPCC Special Report on Climate Change & Land: Implications for Australia.
6 – 7:30pm, Tuesday, 13th August 2019. HC Coombs Lecture Theatre, 8 Fellows Rd, ANU. On 8th August 2019, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change will release their Special Report on Climate Change and Land. It will cover desertification, land degradation, sustainable land management, food security, and greenhouse gas fluxes in terrestrial ecosystems. This event will consist of a presentation by Prof. Mark Howden followed by audience Q&A. Mark will discuss interactions between climate change and the land, including climate change impacts on agricultural productivity, food security and biodiversity. He will explore the implications of the report for Australia, covering policy and land management responses for reversing land degradation, improving economic returns, crop yields, nutrition, climate adaptation and mitigation. Organised by the ANU’s Climate Change Institute.

The Pollinators 
6:30 – 8pm, Tuesday, 14th August 2019. Event Cinemas Manuka, 6 Franklin St, Griffith. Thousands of semi-trailers criss-cross the country in the dead of night delivering goods through the darkness to stores, warehouses and factories. But some of them carry an unsuspected and highly unusual cargo. Honey bees. Tens of billions of them are transported back and forth from one end of the United States to the other in a unique annual migration that’s indispensable to the feeding of America. One out of every three bites we eat, the growth of almost all our fruits, nuts and vegetables, would be impossible without pollination from bees. A new documentary feature, The Pollinators, presents the fascinating and untold story. And warns that the bees are in serious danger. Tickets, general admission, $23.95. Organised by Films For Change Canberra.

FLOOR TALK: AIDEX protests.
1 – 2pm, Thursday, 15th August 2019. Canberra Museum & Gallery, 176 London Circuit, Civic. Join Guy Hanson and Jacob Grech as they discuss the AIDEX anti arms sales protests. Thousands of Australians took part in the 1989 and 1991 protests, some of the most violent in Canberra’s history. Guy Hanson recognised the historic importance of the objects used in the protests and acquired the Stop Arms for Export protest float as part of the National Museum of Australia’s collection. Guy and Jacob will share a first-hand perspective of the protests. Hosted by Canberra Museum and Gallery.

Unionists Teaching Unionists Workshop: Economics is for everyone!
1 – 3pm, Saturday, 17th August 2019. UnionsACT office, Level 1, 11 London Circuit, Civic. A workshop on political economy / economics 101. Bring some snacks to share, and questions. People have strong feelings on most things. When economics impacts us every day in almost every way – why not economics? Following feedback from UnionsACT unionists, we hear that activists from across Canberra would like to get together and socialise and learn union history, culture, theory and skills through talks, workshops and other events. In this first Unionists Teaching Unionists workshop, union member and delegate Thomas will be challenging mainstream theories of economics. What do sexy statements on “fiscal growth”, “strong economy”, “capital” and “tax stimulus” mean for ordinary workers? And how as unionists can we combat those priorities of profit before people? Organised by UnionsACT.

Climate Justice Collective/Green New Deal: Canberra Chapter August Meeting.
1:30 – 3:30pm, Sunday, 18th August 2019. King O’Malley’s Pub, 131 City Walk, Civic.
Hi Comrades, join us for our August meeting. Just a general catch up about what we’ve been up to in Canberra in the last month, and things coming up in the next month. Also all Green New Deal discussion most welcome. Hope to see you there!

Seminar – Towards Ecological Democracy – a political theory for the 21st Century.
1 – 2pm, Tuesday, 20th August 2019. Fenner Seminar Room, Frank Fenner Building, 141 Linnaeus Way, ANU.

“It’s increasingly clear that the 19th century political theories & practices which still dominate our politics are incapable of dealing with 21st century challenges. Trust in our current democratic system, in Australia & around the world, is crashing through the floor – & for good reason; by almost every measure, it is failing. With climate breakdown looming, mass extinction underway, inequality spiralling, & extreme right authoritarianism on the rise, we need a politics which is able to both act to reverse these trends & create resilience in the face of difficult times to come. The intersecting ecological, economic & social crises demand a radically reinvented politics.”

Green Institute Executive Director, Tim Hollo, will present a theory of ecological democracy which seeks to apply the fundamentals of ecology to politics, articulating a vision of interconnection, interdependence, and resilience in diversity. Active, constructive critique and participation are welcome. Organised by The Green Institute, Tim Hollo, and ANU Fenner School of Environment & Society.

Another Country – Encore Screening.
7:30 – 9pm, Tuesday, 20th August 2019. Capital Cinemas Manuka, 6 Franklin St, Griffith. Legendary Aboriginal actor David Gulpilil has spent his adult life trying to navigate his way through two very different cultures: that of his Yolngu people and that of the colonising Australian culture. In Another Country, he gives us first-hand insight into the confusions and chaos that occur in the clash between these cultures. At the beginning of last century the Australian Government, along with entrepreneurs, opportunists and ‘do-gooders’, made a concerted effort to gain control of the lands of the Yolngu people across northern Arnhem Land, along the central part of northern Australia. The long succession of would-be cattle barons, missionaries and government agents failed to dispossess the Yolngu of their lands, but the introduction of their new ways and different laws succeeded in eroding the heart of a complex culture that was once strong, defiant and self-sufficient. This documentary considers the ramifications of one culture being dominated by another. Tickets $25.35, or $20.08 concession. Organised by Films For Change Canberra.

Young Changemakers Workshop with Erfan Daliri.
5 – 7pm, Wednesday, 21st August 2019. The Food Co-op Shop & Cafè, 3 Kingsley St, ANU. SEE-Change, School Strike for Climate and Australian Youth Climate Coalition present the Young Changemakers Workshop, facilitated by long-time activist Erfan Daliri. Young people are the future. We are inheriting massive challenges of widespread injustice, a rapidly changing climate and a standstill in progressive political action. In the face of these challenges, we must remain hopeful, empower each other and skill up. The global School Strike for Climate movement has inspired people the world over, and we’ve got to keep up that momentum. Erfan Daliri is a poet, author, activist and motivational speaker with over 10 years of experience in community development, youth engagement, activism, advocacy and social change consultancy. His mission is to empower others to become effective agents of change in their communities. In this workshop, Erfan will dive into social movement theory, effective activism, campaign messaging and confidence building. If you are a budding activist in Canberra who is passionate about making the world a better place, come along to this free workshop to gather inspiration, skills and meet awesome like-minded folk. After the workshop, Erfan will be giving a free talk to the public to launch his new book, Raising Humanity. Organised by SEE-Change, The Food Co-op Shop & Cafè, and Australian Youth Climate Coalition Canberra – AYCC ACT.

Protest Religious Exemptions Bill: No Right to Discriminate!
11am – 12:30pm, Saturday, 31st August 2019. Garema Place, Civic. In October 2018, a YouGov Galaxy Poll found that around 80% of people opposed the right of religious schools to expel LGBTI students or sack LGBTI teachers. This is an even larger majority than the 61.6% of Australians who voted YES to marriage equality in the 2017 postal plebiscite. Despite huge support for LGBTI rights, including among religious Australians, the Liberal government wants to further entrench and broaden discrimination in a so-called “Religious Freedoms” bill. Senior members of the Opposition including Chris Bowen have said that the Labor Party should support the bill. This is nothing more than a bitter and vicious conservative minority attempting to roll back progress after our community’s smashing victory for equality in 2017. Discrimination is unacceptable under the guise of religious belief or any other basis. Join the protest to tell parliament and the bigoted minority: No right to discriminate! End religious exemptions! No to homophobia and transphobia! Message our page for more information and if you would like to get involved! Organised by Equal Love Canberra.

Heads Up

    • Canberra – Global #ClimateStrike.
      Noon – 2pm, Friday, 20th September 2019. Front Lawns, Parliament House, Capital Hill. To everyone who cares about a safe climate future, this is your invitation to join the Global #ClimateStrike on September 20 – people around the world standing up to confront the climate crisis when our politicians won’t. Australia is already on the frontlines of the climate crisis. Prolonged drought. Flash flooding. Catastrophic bushfires, severe cyclones and heatwaves. But just at the time when we need to ramp up climate solutions, we have elected a Government that wants to open the floodgates to new coal, oil and gas projects that put all of us at risk. So, on September 20, three days before the UN Emergency Climate Summit, school students are inviting everyone to join us for our biggest ever global #ClimateStrike. By taking time off school and work together around the world, we’ll show our politicians that people everywhere want climate justice and we’re not going away until we get it. We’ll strike in solidarity for everyone who’s already being hurt by the climate crisis and everyone who will be impacted if we don’t act now: workers, first nations people, young people, mining communities and more. Everyone is invited, everyone is needed. On March 15, 1.6 million of us went on strike around the world. On September 20, we’re going to take our movement to the next level. If you’re an adult, please take the day off and invite your friends, workmates and families to join us. See you on September 20 to strike for climate justice. Hosted by School Strike 4 Climate and Canberra – School Strike 4 Climate.
    • Labour Day Festival and Union Picnic. 10am – 2pm, Monday, 7th October 2019 (Labour Day Public Holiday). Eddison Park, Justinian St, Phillip. Free entry! Free face painting! Fairy floss, popcorn, giant bubbles, rides for the kids, sideshow alley, food, tug of war, sack races, dog show, petting zoo, music and more. Organised by UnionsACT.