AN ACTIVIST'S GUIDE TO ENDE GELÄNDE
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AN ACTIVIST’S GUIDE TO ENDE GELÄNDE
TABLE OF CONTENT
An activist Handbook! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Action Forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Public Communication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Outreach and Coalitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Internal Plenaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Logistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Going International . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
About us . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
HOW TO SHUT SHIT DOWN!
An activist’s guide to Ende Gelände Image credits: Title Tim Wagner,
Berlin, October 2020 p. 2 Roman Kutzowitz, p. 6 Tim Wagner, p. 8 Tim
Wagner (processed), p. 11 Michael Goergens, p. 14
Written by the Jens Volle, p. 18 Tim Wagner, p. 22 Mario Burbach,
International Working Group p. 23 Manuel Lopez, p. 24 & 25 Georg Kurz.
of Ende Gelände
Printed by Die Umweltdruckerei, Hannover
V.i.S.d.P.: Ronja Scharz,
Gneisenaustraße 2a, 10961 Berlin
An activist Handbook!
Dear comrades, ens of local groups associated to Ende Gelände and
this brochure was developed by us, the Interna- more than 100 people are working constantly in
tional Working Group of Ende Gelände, to give an one of the many working groups of Ende Gelände.
insight in how Ende Gelände works and to outline We have been working together for many years and
from our perspective the key factors for its success. our active participation in each step of the prepara-
Over the years since the first action in 2015, Ende tion process has allowed us to further develop and
Gelände has become an inspiration for the Europe- refine the way we do our actions—and adding a lot
an climate justice movement and beyond, and we of nice extras. Although we really enjoy eating pizza
get a lot of requests of international activists who at our camp or watching a laser show during block-
want to do their own version of Ende Gelände. ades, we believe that these treats are not essential
Ende Gelände started as an association of differ- for successful and powerful actions of massive civ-
ent groups and persons with a left actionist back- il disobedience. In this brochure, we want to gath-
ground (some rooted in the climate movement, er and discuss the most important points regard-
some not) to organise a mass action against Eu- ing the way Ende Gelände prepares and carries out
rope’s biggest source of CO2 in the Rhineland coal actions.
fields. The type of action we do (openly announced We are very happy that the way we do actions
mass actions with an action consensus, based on af- is so attractive to many people outside of Germany.
finity groups and fingers, using action trainings and Nevertheless, we want to stress that the (historical,
the tactic of floating through police lines) was not legal, …) context for disobedient actions is very spe-
invented by us. We have learned it from the Antinu- cific to each country and what works for us in Ger-
clear Movement in Germany who also took inspira- many does not necessarily work elsewhere. A care-
tion from different sources. ful adaptation is always required.
Only 30 persons took part in the first ›mass‹ ac-
tion in the Rhineland mining area in 2011 (still not We hope you enjoy reading this brochure and that
under the name Ende Gelände). Four years later, its content inspires you to think about how mas-
there were already 1,500 people at the first Ende sive actions of civil disobedience for climate justice
Gelände action. Since then, the number of partici- could look like in your context.
pants has kept growing up to 6,000 in 2019—and
so did the organisation crew. There are now doz- Your International Working Group of Ende Gelände
An activist Handbook! 1
Action Forms
We organise civil disobedient mass actions the action or find an affinity group to do the action
1 for climate justice, because we believe that with.
civil disobedience is necessary to stop the climate
crisis. However, not all people are able to organize AFFINITY GROUPS AND FINGERS
disobedient actions by themselves. The idea behind
Ende Gelände is to make civil disobedience as acces- Affinity groups are groups of 5 to 7 people who
sible as possible, so that a large number of people stay together during the action (as far as possible).
can join. Indeed, we believe that mass actions are These groups are formed on an ›affinity‹ basis, ac-
useful when it comes down to public communica- cording to which group members trust each oth-
tion (R Chapter Public Communication, p. 7), by er and agree on a certain number of issues before
providing beautiful pictures and videos of activists the action (eg. personal limits, desires, arrestability
entering a mine, running in fields, preparing them- etc.). Affinity groups may be long-term or tempo-
selves during trainings etc. They also help to nor- rary commitments: some affinity groups have exist-
malise civil disobedience, by showing that a lot of ed and travelled together to Ende Gelände and oth-
people are willing to take risks to fight for climate er actions for years while others are formed at the
justice. In that sense, they also help to highlight the camps and dissolve after each action.
increasing strength of our movement. Although Ende Gelände is a collective mass ac-
Moreover, the mass aspect of the action makes tion, affinity groups are important because they
it in general less risky for activists (eg. the risk of be- can provide the emotional support needed before,
ing arrested is more unlikely in a big action than in during and after stressful situations (eg. during ar-
a smaller one) and therefore, it can help to attract rests). They are also important places for decisions
people who are not always experienced activists. To like choosing what to do during the action or even
make the action accessible, we believe it is essen- leaving it in some cases. Besides, they facilitate
tial that we communicate openly beforehand about quick consensus decision-making during the action:
our action to the activists, to our sympathizers and each affinity group designates a delegate to partic-
to the broader public. Among others, we provide ac- ipate in ›spokes councils‹, responsible for making
tion trainings and legal information on the camp, a decisions according to the preferences expressed by
starting point for the actions. The camp is indeed a all delegates (and, by extension, all affinity groups).
space where people can prepare, ›have a look‹ first Finally, affinity groups usually organise debriefing
before they decide what they are going to do during moments after an action, to check in with every-
Action Forms 3
body and possibly reflect on ways to do things dif- same white suits and masks in order to anonymise
ferently in the future. But before that, all affinity activists and increase the sense of belonging. This
groups must pick the ›finger‹ they will join. action structure (based on a hand with five fingers
or more) allows flexibility, while acknowledging the
A finger is a group of several hundred people with collective dimension of the action (eg. if your finger
a specific objective (eg. going to the mine, blocking is kettled, it might help another one to reach its ob-
railways, supporting action logistics etc.). Among jective by tying up police forces). This collective di-
them, there is a camp finger (people staying at the mension is particularly important when your finger
camp site), which is essential to the action and has not reached its initial objective, because it helps
makes it possible for the people who cannot af- to overcome feelings of frustration or disappoint-
ford to be arrested to still be part of it. All fingers ment by acknowledging the collective success of an
are briefly presented during action plenaries on the action. On top of the finger’s goals, there is indeed
spot so that affinity groups can make their choice, an overall goal for each action which is decided by
even though some information might not be public the alliance as a whole beforehand.
out of security reasons. Fingers may adopt a colour
code (eg. silver finger), a theme (eg. deforestation) EACH ACTION HAS ITS OWN GOALS
or even a specific action culture (eg. in the queer &
feminist finger, activists usually do not run and pay In our view, it is important to be clear about the ob-
extra attention to care work and gender-neutral jective of the action in order to politically (re)frame
language). In order to make the action more acces- it. Examples of action goals are numerous: blocking
sible to the people with reduced mobility (eg. ac- the entrance or road to a power plant; blocking rail-
tivists with children, activists who cannot walk far way tracks; reaching and climbing a digger; reach-
distances or use wheelchairs etc.), we also have a ing a certain level in a mine so as to halt produc-
colourful finger which does not include running or tion; blocking for a few hours or days and overnight;
climbing into the pit. Fingers may be mainly Ger- ending the action on your own terms or when a de-
man or English-speaking, although interpretation mand is met. Since there are numerous action goals,
within a finger may be organised so that anyone it should be clear which one(s) are picked and why.
can attend the action despite wherever they come This needs to be communicated to the activists, the
from. media and the public. More specifically, it might
Even though fingers may develop their own be useful to clarify geographically what your goal
identity and usually pursue a common goal, all fin- is: which mine, which digger, which railway track—
gers form together a ›hand‹. Indeed, the hand is and why. How do certain physical landmarks ampli-
formed by all action participants, who wear the
4 Action Forms
fy your narrative and story? What would be an em- action, relies on a balance between flexibility and a
powering goal for activists? common purpose, between autonomy and collec-
Although it is important to discuss collectively tive consciousness. This flexibility can help to at-
the overall aim of the action, it is also essential to tract both experienced an unexperienced activists,
manage different kinds of expectations (number of by offering different types of engagement during
people, press coverage, coalition building, duration the action.
of the camp etc.) and sometimes divergent desired Moreover, the action usually includes a demon-
impacts (economic, political, cultural etc.), both be- stration and sometimes also a non-disobedient
fore and after the action. That is why we make time finger, both for people who are very vulnerable to
during our alliance meetings for lengthy strategic repression and who should not be taken into cus-
discussions (R Chapter Logistics, p. 19) in order to tody if possible. Our actions are always synchro-
give voice to the highest number of positions possi- nised with other demonstrations and smaller ac-
ble and eventually reach a consensus before an ac- tions happening in the same area. For example in
tion. We also dedicate time to evaluation, to reflect Summer 2017, we have developed an ›area concept‹
on what worked well or less well in order to im- together with other groups according to which dif-
prove the next actions. ferent kinds of protests (demonstrations, human
chains, civil disobedient actions of different sizes
TACTICAL DIVERSITY IS ANOTHER MAIN FEATURE etc.) would happen at the same time in the same
OF OUR OVERALL STRATEGY geographical area. This ›area concept‹ was a way to
increase cooperation and offer multiple ways to act
All activists follow the action consensus, which is a for climate justice.
framework explaining why and how we are going Indeed, we strongly believe in the power of tac-
to do the action. Even though the whole group usu- tical diversity, that is why we try to build coalitions
ally pursues a common goal (eg. blocking coal-min- with many actors with different tactics, from envi-
ing infrastructures), it does not mean that affinity ronmental ngos to Fridays to Future, from local res-
group cannot organise autonomously. Indeed, as idents to long-term occupations or autonomously
long as they respect the action consensus, groups acting small groups (R Chapter Outreach and Coali-
are free to self-organise. Ende Gelände, as a mass tions, p. 9).
Action Forms 5
Public Communication
Ende Gelände does actions not for its mere Although we know about the downsides of twit-
2 sake but to transport the message of climate ter, Facebook and co, we use social media intensive-
justice. In the run up to and during the action, we ly to shout out our messages directly without any
communicate strongly with the (to become) activ- filtering which is prevalent in the traditional media.
ists and the wider public. Our Mobilization Group Getting our message (especially the more radical
focuses more on the activists while our Press Group parts about anticapitalism and climate justice) into
reaches out to the broader public. In the Social Me- the traditional press is always challenging and we
dia Group, both aspects come together. All three had to decide which price we wanted to pay to get
groups develop a common and coherent narrative our message into the news. One critical point is the
and key message at the beginning of every new press spokesperson. The most efficient way would
preparation cycle. have been to choose the same cis-male white
The most important aspect is that Ende Gelände spokespersons every year, as the media most eas-
announces the action publicly some months before ily picks up on traditional white male leaders. We
the action. On the one hand, this gives the possibili- decided against that and rather opted for a group
ty to mobilise openly and prepare more participants of rotating flti* spokespersons to highlight the
in advance, and, on the other hand, allows our mes- queer-feminist values of Ende Gelände.
sage to be spread in the (social) media during a In general, we try to avoid responding to accusa-
longer time frame. tions of violence by the police or the press to have
Although Ende Gelände has so far always tack- more space for our messages. We provide trainings
led critical infrastructure of brown coal mines, the for our press spokespersons to deal with tricky in-
stories were always different. In 2016, we were the terview situations. Anyway, the scandalisation of
risk for future investors when a brown coal mine police violence was very successful in the last years.
was sold. In 2017, we stood in solidarity with the We also have good experience with letting trust-
people of the global south when the cop21 took worthy journalist accompany activists. This type of
place near the lignite mines. The narrative and key embedded journalism shows the diversity of our
messages are discussed and approved by the whole movement and leads often to personal insights into
Ende Gelände alliance. They are based on a thor- the Ende Gelände experience for the broader public.
ough analysis of the current political landscape, na-
tionally, locally and internationally. The groups can Ende Gelände uses an action consensus in a two-
then work freely on that approved basis. fold way. On one hand, we inform and prepare the
Public Communication 7activists about the way we do the action. An action consensus is a way of performing consensual activ- ism and empowering the participants to the action through clarity. On the other hand, it is a message to the public that no danger or harm comes from us. We are not a wild bunch of rioters but organized ac- tivists who say what they do and do what they say.
Outreach and Coalitions
Ende Gelände has focused on outreach to forces and seek ways to enhance each other’s caus-
3 other civil society actors and more autono- es and the struggle for climate justice. The aim is
mous informal groups from the beginning on. The not to agree on all terms, goal, tactics and analysis
idea was that, while Ende Gelände activists do civil or common actions.
disobedience, other institutions sympathetic to the
cause of climate justice, coal phase out and climate On a spectrum of allies, Ende Gelände not only
protection could declare their solidarity with Ende reaches out to civil society actors, but also to more
Gelände. They do not necessarily support or en- autonomous groups from the climate justice and
dorse what Ende Gelände does. However, such form anti-nuclear movement. The idea is to learn from
of tentative careful solidarity can strengthen and their tactics, but also to invite them to conduct
amplify our discourse and narrative. their own—often more separate and more autono-
mous—actions. Indeed, we believe that ›a diversity
HOW DO WE ACHIEVE THAT? of tactics‹ would enhance our cause.
Collaboration with both sides of the spectrum
We have mandated fixed delegates who work for a also mean that communication in the run up to and
defined period as the constant and regular contact during action is crucial in order to prevent (unin-
persons with ngos, institutionalised or more auton- tended) distancing in social media and press work.
omous direct action groups. It is a loose mean to The idea is to avoid judgemental and distancing
stay in touch, exchange ideas, know what the oth- statements that would discredit actions and groups
ers are doing, share strategies, and discuss dates as ›violent‹, ›bad‹ or ›illegitimate‹. Though this is an
and relevant climate related topics. These delegates ideal state of collaboration and sometimes there
are important to establish a sense of trust and con- is—often harshly voiced—criticism of certain ac-
tinuity to discuss controversial matters. tions that some groups believe harm the cause.
Ende Gelände embraces to be one (rather diso-
bedient) constituent among others and has been in We also find it extremely important to reach out to
contact with many relevant environmental ngos other movements. The climate crisis is not an eco-
and institutionalised groups. Initially, it was done logical crisis, but it is interwoven with various pow-
not only to suss out the potential political fights we er relations. These different social, political, cultural
could win but also to assess the political landscape and economic power relations are inter-dependent
and power dynamics at stake. Our goal is to align and mutually reinforcing. This means that the cli-
Outreach and Coalitions 9mate crisis must be viewed in terms of intersection- institutions and social distress are the perfect reci-
ality. Understanding and dealing with it as a single pe for the far right to declare ›day x‹.
issue will not eliminate the underlying causes and it
will only fight against certain symptoms. But what would it mean if the far right takes cli-
mate change seriously, diverting from the path of
A special issue we have been tackling is the fight climate change denial? Climate protection—not cli-
against the far-right. So, how is the climate crisis in- mate justice, but climate protection—from the far
terconnected with the far right? The far right has al- right will mean locating the responsibility and cul-
ways seen the cause for the environment and ecolo- pability for the climate crisis in migration and refu-
gy as ›their‹ rightful issue. In the 70s, the question gees. Closing borders in order to protect ›our envi-
of ecological problems and issues was—accord- ronment‹; allocating scare resources according the
ing the far right—captured by the left. The biggest race and nationality are likely scenarios. Measures
problem with the far right is not that they deny cli- to protect ›our way of life‹, the imperial mode of
mate change, but what happens if they take it seri- production and consumption and defending ›white‹
ously and place it on their agenda. privileges will be taken at any costs. In such a situ-
Today, with accelerating climate change, the far ation the prospect for climate justice will be slim to
right seizes the moment to recapture ›the envi- non-existent.
ronment‹ to load it with their nationalistic, racial This means our fight shall never fall behind the
and ›völkisch‹ (populist) worldview. The far right demand for global climate justice. Naming and ad-
has always gained from a climate of fear. The sup- dressing the climate crisis as a decrying fundamen-
posed havoc that climate change will bring to our tal injustice of our time is a central task for the cli-
social and political systems is a perfect opportuni- mate justice movement.
ty to push for fascist, authoritarian measures. The Ende Gelände has a working group called
existing injustices already apparent in our societies »Against the (far) right«. We work with various
will become even more entrenched and those most groups in the antifascist movement to connect
marginalised will be excluded and pushed to mar- movements and take a stance against the far right.
gins even more. Thirdly, the far right has always pre- The personal overlap, local proximity and personal
pared for ›day x‹. The far right has stock piled weap- contacts are vital in making such collaboration pos-
ons, many are trained in combat and are part of sible.
law enforcing institutions (police, military). At ›day
x‹ they will seize the moment and take over power
and install a fascist order. Increasing climate change,
a breakdown of social order, weakened democratic
10 Outreach and CoalitionsInternal Plenaries
In general, we try to have as many discus- lation in dedicated corners or via the technical tool
4 sions, information and decisions as possible of a spider.
in open plenary sessions. This concerns the big alli-
ance meetings, which take place every few months,
and where activists from all over Germany (and
elsewhere) come together, as well as meetings of
local groups or action plenaries. All fundamental
decisions concerning the alliance are made in open
plenaries. The agenda for plenaries and decisions
to be taken are communicated in advance, so that
people can prepare and discuss those matters in
their local groups, working groups or affinity groups
beforehand.
Through these plenaries, we want to make sure that
as many people as possible can participate in the
process, including new people who can be involved
more easily. The plenaries also contribute to the
positive atmosphere and sense of belonging.
Large plenary sessions succeed best when they are To structure the long days of the alliance meetings
well prepared and facilitated and when the ques- using many different methods helps. Apart from
tions and objectives are clear. Using hand signals plenary sessions we use small breakout groups,
simplifies communication and participation. Mur- which bring their discussions and results back to
mur rounds can liven up the discussion. In addition, the plenary in a compact form. Breakout groups can
we often use quoted speech lists: people who speak discuss the same topic to give more people the pos-
for the first time, or who are flti*, bipoc or dis_ sibility to speak or they can discuss different top-
abled person, are allowed to speak first and thus ics in more depth as it would be possible in the big
more often. Our plenaries are in German. Interpre- plenary. Breaks are also important for a successful
tation to English is organised via whispering trans- meeting.
Internal Plenaries 11WORKING GROUPS recommendations for behaviour and to provide
long-term support to activists affected by legal
Much of the work, including the shaping of deci- consequences.
sions in the open plenary sessions, takes place in q The Mobilisation wg develops our mobilisa-
working groups (wg). The working groups vary in tion material such as stickers, posters, flyers and
size, rhythm, work load and continuity. Each work- takes care of the distribution to the local groups.
ing group brings expertise from their field to the q The Inclusion wg accompanies and initiates pro-
process and decisions. Because of these differences, cesses that reduce various barriers to our alli-
examples are more helpful here than descriptions: ance meetings, discussions and actions.
q The Action wg takes care of the exact planning Other working groups are homepage, moderation,
of the action. It works rather secluded due to an police contact, paramedics, security and more.
increased risk of repression.
q The Action Logistics wg takes care of the materi- The working groups coordinate their activities in
al and concrete organisational support of the ac- a regular telephone conference, the coordination
tivists in the action. platform. This platform is also entitled to make de-
q The Camp wg organises the camp for the activ- cisions. One delegate from each working group at-
ists. tends the coordination platform with a mandate to
q The Finance wg manages and organises the participate in decision-making.
money for the alliance.
q The Press and Social Media wg communicates LOCAL GROUPS
with representatives of the press and manages
the social media channels. Besides, there are now Ende Gelände local groups
q The Process wg is the greasing oil between the in many cities and regions. All local groups are
working groups and has all kinds of things on its linked on a map on our website. These groups are
radar. different in sizes, some of them being composed
q The International wg maintains contact with ac- of only single affinity groups while others are very
tivists abroad (more information below). large. Often, they have emerged from connections
q The Outreach wg and ngo Communication wg that have developed through joint participation in
are responsible for maintaining contact with ex- Ende Gelände mass actions. Sometimes, they are
ternal groups or ngos. long-standing local climate justice groups that work
q The Anti-repression structure helps to assess not only in the framework of Ende Gelände, but
the legal consequences of our actions, to give
12 Internal Plenariesalso on other issues. Thanks to them, we are very DIGITAL TOOLS
large.
Local groups often carry out local actions and In our process, we use various digital tools. At the
interventions. Furthermore, they are very relevant heart of these tools is the large, unencrypted mail-
when it comes to mobilising for our mass actions. ing list. At each alliance meeting, new people are
The local groups mobilise locally and organise trav- added to this list, so that everyone who is or has
el to our actions. Sometimes, they also organise been active in the cross-regional alliance process is
large actions themselves, possibly with other local on it. This list reaches many people, but of course it
groups. For example, we have seen mass actions in is not a place for very sensitive information. We use
the Rhineland or in Lusatia which were more pre- it to start discussions and new topics, to prepare for
pared by the local groups than the (national) alli- and follow up on meetings, to share news from the
ance’s working groups. In this case, there are always working groups, and to invite to the regular confer-
regular supra-regional phone calls, where delegates ence calls or share the results.
from the various local groups come together.
Because of their high degree of autonomy, the Every one or two weeks, the coordination plat-
local groups often develop ideas, initiatives and ac- form—the conference call where delegates of the
tion concepts, which they then bring back to the working groups meet—takes place. For this, we al-
alliance. The local group in Munich worked for ex- ways use the same conference room where all par-
ample on the topic of mobility and mobility rever- ticipants dial in. Basically there are different provid-
sal and had a big interregional action. Political dis- ers who provide conference rooms free of charge.
cussions are often held at the level of local groups, We use a pad for taking minutes. It also helps to
where a lot of analysis and strategies develop. The support the moderation, because in the chat of
local groups are central to the further development this pad it is possible to raise hand (*), agree (++)
of the alliance and to overcome moments of collec- or disagree (−). Shared documents are stored in a
tive inertia. Last but not least, our regular alliance cloud to which people can access via their working
meetings are hosted by local groups. groups. Working groups often also have a file stor-
For many people, the local groups are the most age system, such as Crabgrass or Wachstumswende
important political group to which they feel they (both work in different languages). These systems
belong to: there are indeed many people who have can also be used to create task lists, start polls (e.g.
been active in local groups for a very long time, for finding dates) or lead discussions. Many work-
but who have never really been involved in the su- ing groups also use internet telephony/conference
pra-regional process. This has advantages and dis- calls via internet instead of telephone conferences,
advantages. for example to avoid telephone costs. Possible pro-
Internal Plenaries 13grams with video function are meet.jit.si or Zoom. CONSENSUS—MAKING PLANS TOGETHER
Mumble does not allow cameras but meets higher
security requirements in return. Different messen- Regarding decision-making, we want to be as par-
gers for smartphones may also be used, depending ticipatory as possible in our processes. For the de-
on the tasks of the working group. cision-making processes, this means that we want
both to enable as many people as possible to par-
ticipate in the discussions and to hear their voice
when decisions are made. We found that the typi-
14 Internal Plenariescal majority decision is not suitable for this since it q Minor concerns—I think the proposal is basical-
often ends up in silencing minorities. This type of ly good and I agree with it, but I have minor con-
discussion process is not very creative and does not cerns. People get asked if they want to verbal-
rely on many different voices. Therefore, we reach ize their concerns once again so that they can be
our decisions by consensus. taken into account when the proposal is put to
First of all, this means that we take a lot of time work.
to make decisions. Agendas are published before al- q Major concerns—I have major concerns but I
liance meetings, and for important decisions there agree nonetheless. Again, the persons can ver-
is a reader that summarises the most important balize their concerns. If there are too many con-
contributions to the debate, based on what has al- cerns and there is the space and time, the de-
ready been shared via our mailing list beforehand. cision-making process will go through another
Thus, there is the possibility to pre-discuss positions round to produce a proposal that responds to
in our own local groups or affinity groups. these concerns.
At the alliance meeting itself, very broad debates q Stand aside—I let the proposal pass, but I am
are opened up. The aim is to listen to and relate all not involved in the practical implementation.
controversial points of view. Sometimes, a feeling This may be the case if I find the proposal (polit-
arises that the proposals diverge more and more in- ically) wrong but do not want to stop the group.
stead of coming together; but this opens up space Many stand asides or stand asides of structures
for creative ideas. In order to bring the different needed for implementation of the proposal lead
ideas back together to form a proposal as a basis to a new round of decision-making.
for decision, we regularly form »controversial small q Veto—I think the proposal contradicts our fun-
groups« in which different positions and working damental goals and ideas, this decision must not
groups who have to implement the decision in a be taken. For us, one veto is sufficient to reject a
particular way are represented, in order to develop proposal for the whole group. The process has to
such proposal. These groups must not exceed a cer- go through a new round or the decision cannot
tain size to be effective. be taken.
q Agreement—I think the proposal is good and I
When the group decides on the proposal, there is agree!
not only the possibility to agree or disagree. Instead, q Abstention—I cannot take a decision because,
there are six levels to which people can assign for example, I arrived too late for the discussion.
themselves. They are asked one after the other:
Internal Plenaries 15All votes are documented in the minutes. We have LONG TERM PLANNING
had very good experience with this model. But of
course, consensus must be practised! This applies to Our actions usually require a long time for prepa-
the moderation, who must interpret the results and ration. The dates of our mass actions are often
make process suggestions. But it also applies to the announced months in advance. Therefore deci-
group as a whole, which must learn to get involved sions often have to be made months before our ac-
in the processes. tions take place. Usually we make plans for about a
year and the debate in advance takes one to three
Attention should also be paid to the various barri- months. Various local groups, working groups and
ers that exclude persons or groups of persons from other structures use the mailing list, for example,
the decision-making process. These can include to give their opinions on what they consider to be
male-dominant speech behaviour, rooms that are the politically exciting points of intervention in the
not wheelchair accessible, a lack of awareness for coming period, what an action framework should
racism in our structures, academic language, de- look like, and what lies within their available capac-
pendency on translation, plenary sessions that are ities. Ideally, it will also be coordinated with the an-
too long, and many more. nual plans of other groups. This long-term planning
enables us to have complex actions. We choose our
A problem we are currently working on is that our topics ourselves and do not make them dependent
plenary is now too large for holding good discus- on daily events. This way, we have a major political
sions. Therefore, we are experimenting with new discussion and analysis at least once a year. More
forms of discussion, such as a council system which importantly, long-term planning also allows (work-
work similar to decision-making during actions (see ing) groups and individuals to organise their time
below), in order to achieve a higher level of partici- and structure their year. This is an important basis
pation. for sustainable activism. On the other hand, long-
term planning may be a hurdle to react flexibly to
spontaneous events—whenever we have to, it is an
exhausting feat of strength.
16 Internal PlenariesDECISION-MAKING DURING ACTIONS to listen. For this purpose, it can help to form a very
tight, multi-rowed circle which is shielded by peo-
During actions, what we usually try to avoid often ple. Also the spokes council should work uninter-
happens: there is not much time to make decisions, rupted by constant new ›information‹ from outside.
or they have to be made in stressful situations. Al- It can make sense to have ›filter persons‹ to whom
beit to a lesser extent, this is similar with decisions new, important information can be given and who
that are made at the camp before an action. Here, will carry it into the plenary if necessary.
we use a system of spokes councils. Affinity groups
discuss the issues to be debated and send a dele- Plenaries always slow down the dynamics in an ac-
gate to this spokes council which takes decisions, if tion because they require time. That is why they are
necessary after further consultation with the affini- more suitable during a blockade or a police kettle
ty groups. In this situation, the multi-stage consen- than when a spot has to be reached and when mov-
sus procedure (see above) can also be used, but is ing is important. But even then they sometimes
usually shortened. It is often only a matter of find- make sense, for example when many activists are
ing out what people are up to, as well as question- much stressed and experience the action as neg-
ing serious concerns about the possible behaviour ative. Plenary sessions can be a way to gather and
of other affinity groups. The action consensus de- support each other in that kind of stressful situa-
scribed above is the basis for this. tion.
It is very important to keep the spokes council
protected and make sure that the police isn’t able
Internal Plenaries 17Logistics
In 2015, Ende Gelände was lucky to start its costs low, it is important that the Camp wg has a
5 first action from the amazing Climate Camp good network for lending material.
Rhineland. The big advantage to start a mass ac- In case of lack of suitable area or legal obsta-
tion from a climate camp is that activists and the cles, it is also possible to do a mass action without a
people involved in the structure have time and camp, like in the Ende Gelände actions in November
space to prepare themselves properly. Another ad- 2017 and November 2019. In any case, large gather-
vantage is that people that are attracted by the ing points for action trainings, briefings and get-to-
Climate Camp and its program in the first place gethers afterwards are needed.
get encouraged to take part in the action as well.
A camp provides easier and more direct communi- Moreover, no action is possible without an Action
cation between the working groups due to short Logistics wg. This group takes care of the materi-
distances. And it creates the feeling of belonging al that activists need in the action (eg. white suits,
together: not only the people going into the action masks, straw bags). There is always a trade-off be-
are part of Ende Gelände but also those doing the tween what should or should not be provided cen-
background task. trally, giving the activists what they need without
making the action an all-inclusive weekend trip. The
In Ende Gelände we have a Camp Working Group Action Logistics wg also tries to outsource prepa-
(wg) that provides the infrastructure of the camp ration work, e.g. a lot of local groups prepare the
(camping area, group tents, toilets, …) and that white suits themselves and the working groups of
works closely with supporting groups (kitchen, elec- Ende Gelände take care of their own material (e.g.
tricity, camp security etc.). The Camp wg started phones and computers for the Press Team). During
its work after the existing climate camps said that the action, the Logistics wg makes sure that activ-
Ende Gelände was getting too big to be hosted any ists get water, food and shelter (if possible).
more. One of its major and most time consuming
tasks is always to find a camp site with appropri- A big challenge for both the Action Logistics wg and
ate camping conditions (eg. large enough, access to the Camp wg is the storage of material in between
running water …) and which also makes it a suitable two actions and the transport of material before,
starting point for the action (eg. distance to possi- during and after the action. For that, it is advan-
ble targets, connection to public transport). To keep tageous to have good contacts to people with big
sheds and garages and big cars and transporters.
Logistics 19Going International
Our International Working Group (wg) is in ers is launched via different European-wide mailing
6 charge of mobilising activists in other coun- lists and several online meetings are organised to
tries and convince them to attend the Ende Ge- explain to future interpreters how things are going
lände actions and vice versa: it is also mobilising to happen.
German activists to attend other European actions.
This mobilisation task is divided along ›country co- Another dimension of international work is infor-
ordinators‹, who are people in charge of keeping mation exchange, which involves selecting and
close contacts with activists (or even Ende Gelän- translating appropriate information so that local
de local groups when they exist) in other Europe- groups in other European countries can have the
an countries, either because they are based in this practical and background information needed to
country or because they have a specific affinity with mobilise and to build a narrative which is relevant
this country (and usually speak the language(s) of to their context. Indeed, the wg makes sure all nec-
such country). Being a ›country coordinator‹ might essary information on the website is translated in
involve a variety of assignments, including answer- all necessary languages to facilitate local groups’
ing emails and making the link with other working mobilisation work. However, instead of translat-
groups, attending information events and even in- ing everything by themselves, members of the wg
formation tours to help mobilisation, helping with rather ask a pool or volunteers to translate. Infor-
bus organisation … mation exchange has a practical dimension which
helps mobilisation work, by spreading information
A key aspect of international mobilisation is to en- about action dates (including suggested dates for
sure interpretation on the action camp, so that in- arrival and departure), location, trainings and ac-
ternational activists are included in the action ple- tion forms, interpretation on the camp, legal brief-
naries (usually in German) and the action itself. The ing, packing list etc. Moreover, translation work is
International wg is also in charge of finding inter- more than just language-related, it also involves
preters before the action and has ›interpretation not only providing information about coal-mining
coordinators‹. Given the links with activists in other developments in Germany but also showing its in-
countries, it is possible to see in advance which lan- ternational dimension by stressing different sources
guages are strongly needed (eg. if three buses are of injustice that are relevant for climate justice ac-
planned from Spain, it might make sense to provide tivists outside Germany (eg. pollutions and green-
interpretation to Spanish). Then, a call of interpret- house gas emissions, forced displacements, limits
Going International 21to protest rights etc.). This selection and translation local groups’ needs and the alliance’s capacities but
work takes place before and after the Ende Gelän- usually involves: mobilising by spreading the word
de actions. about those campaigns and actions in Germany and
across Europe, organising collective transport to
ENDE GELÄNDE GOES EUROPE those actions from Germany, supporting with out-
reach to the media and actual press work, devising/
Our International wg also coordinates skill-share supporting the planning of mass actions for large
and support to other actions in other European numbers of people, fostering the implementation
countries. Although Ende Gelände has always sup- of a more queer-feminist organising style, organis-
ported other European climate justice groups by ing action plenaries, helping building web interface
providing skill-share and mobilising to their actions, to organise sleeping spaces etc.
this support has been formalised in 2018 with the
launch of a proper campaign called »Ende Gelände Finally, our International wg members also regu-
Goes Europe« (egge). This formalisation does not larly takes part in strategic discussions with Euro-
impede us from supporting other groups in more pean comrades, for example by attending meet-
informal ways, though. Since 2018, we have sup- ings of the Climate Justice Action network (cja). cja
ported through egge other European mass actions is the European network for climate justice which
of civil disobedience against fossil fuels. In 2018, we meets once or twice a year in order to discuss strat-
supported Code Rood’s blockade against fossil gas egies, provide skill-sharing or exchange dates about
in Groningen (Netherlands), and Limity Jsme My‘s
action against brown coal mining (Czech Repub- planned actions throughout Europe.
lic). In 2019, our support went to Reclaim the Pow-
ers’s action against the hostile environment and a
gas fired power station (uk), and to actions in Ven-
ice with No Grandi Navi (Italy). Those included an
action against big cruise ships and an action at the
Venice film festival, protesting against Hollywood’s
blockbustering of climate change as an entertaining
event. In 2020, the EGGE campaign supports 3 ac-
tions: »Shell Must Fall« in The Hague (Netherlands),
a mass action by »RadiAction« targeting the nucle-
ar industry (France), and the Turów action against
coal-mining (Poland). This support depends on each
22 Going InternationalWHITE SUITS AND MASKS
Ende Gelände is often asked why we wear those q Ende Gelände did not pop up out of nowhere.
white suits and masks during our actions. Over There is a long history of civil disobedience and
time, they have become a defining feature of mass Ende Gelände draws on a large number of tra-
actions of civil disobedience across Europe (even the ditions and tactics. The Tute Bianche, an Ital-
world?). There are a number of reasons one might ian social movement, active from 1994 to 2001
choose to wear white suits when blocking illegally wore white overalls at one of their early demon-
yet legitimately a filthy lignite coal mine with many strations resiting the eviction of a squatted so-
people: cial centre. As one story goes, they wore those
white overalls to evoke the ghosts that would
q You might want to protect yourself against filth, haunt the empty social centre if the police were
dust, sometimes mud that is largely found in to succeed. White was choose as a symbol of the
coal mines, across railway tracks and around youth workforce, mostly precarious, working on
power stations—the kind of visible filth associat- short term labour contracts, without rights or
ed with extracting and burning fossil energy guarantees. In Germany, white suits were worn
at anti nuclear actions in the German region of
q Unfortunately government has not been able to the Wendland in 2011 and 2012 with the cam-
read the signs and—believe it or not—the ex- paign Castor Schottern1. In the Rhineland, white
traction and combustion of lignite coal is not suits were also worn at the first action at the
banned (yet). By this logic preventing such dirty edge of the mine in 2014. In short, white suits
business operations and disrupting this model of are not unique to Ende Gelände nor are they
generating profit at the cost of millions of peo- an exclusive trademark of Ende Gelände. Those
ple across the globe is illegal. The state, police suits illustrate the wide tradition and history
and the courts try their best to prosecute, punish that Ende Gelände draws from.
and thus suppress legitimate acts of civil disobe-
dience that express public sentiment. But how q Wearing suits, whichever colour has been picked
about if it is hard to identify any individual cause up by many others across Europe. In 2016 ac-
because all of them wear those damn white tivists in the UK wore red suits when block-
suits and masks making it impossible to really ing a coal mine in South Wales, drawing on the
prove whose done it. red lines created in Paris. In Spain in 2017 activ-
ists entering a waste dumb near San Sebastian
(Donosti) wore white suits. Others pick the more›traditional‹ black when protesting. Ende Gelän- de opted tongue in cheek for white rather than black suits, concluding that white might be per- ceived as a more friendly colour than black. But whatever colour one might wear, we insist that All Colours Are Beautiful. q What goes for the white suits goes for the masks: Lignite mining is truly a dirty, toxic busi- ness. The dust can have long term effects on your health as countless studies have shown. We consider it rightful, possibly even as our duty to minimise harm. If the nice side effect of wearing a mask is to disallow the authorities to identify you, we—let’s say—are happy to pay the price. q We are aware that thousands of people wear- ing the same garment creates in a positive sense a form of unity during the actions. But we are also aware that a white suit might make you not necessarily less distinguishable to those hostile to our cause. We know that other traits defining people can not so easily be hidden. A white suit does not provide cover if you skin colour or hair differs to those around you. Especially now with Covid-19 a white suit and masks can be a trau- matising reminder of isolation, loss and death that came with the pandemic.
OVERVIEW OF SOME PLACES OF
DESTRUCTION AND RESISTANCE
HAMBURG
Code Rood carried out actions in Groningen and Amster-
GRONINGEN
dam. Ende Gelände supported this group in the context
of »Ende Gelände goes Europe«.
BERLIN Turów is the location
of a lignite mine and
AMSTERDAM In Datteln, a new hard coal- Lusatia is a place of coal fields with 3 mines: one of the largest
fired power plant went on line Since 2010: climate camps. power plants in
in 2020—breaking political con- 2016: Successful Ende Gelände action, the mining Poland.
cessions made the year before. infrastructures were blocked during 3 days.
LUSATIA MINING
DATTELN
Leipziger land (or middle German LEIPZIG
region) has coal fields as well.
Since 2018: climate camps.
COLOGNE TURÓW PLANT
HAMBACHER FOREST
The Rhineland is a place of coal fields with 3 mines:
Since 2009: DIY climate camps and small groups.
BÍLINA MINE
Since 2012: Hambacher forest occupation, which got world-
wide visibility during its 2018 eviction. Hambi became a pow-
erful symbol against the destructive lignite industry.
Since 2015: 5 Ende Gelände mass actions. PRAGUE
Limity Jsme My carried out actions against
In all lignite mining areas (Rhineland,
coal-mining in Czech Republic. Ende Ge-
Lusatia, Leipziger land) there are small
lände supported this group in the con-
villages which are threatened by the
text of »Ende Gelände goes Europe«.
growing mines. The inhabitants are at
risk of being evicted and their homes
destroyed. The Climate Movement sup-
ports their networking and resistance.
MUNICHAbout us
Ende Gelände is and has always been part of a
broad European climate justice movement. We, the If you want to support us with a dona-
International Working Group, coordinate the trans- tion, you can alternatively donate via Bit-
national networking of Ende Gelände and maintain coin or directly to us via bank transfer:
contact with activists, groups and alliances in Eu-
rope and beyond. Recipient: Ende Gelände
We are available for all international participants IBAN: DE48 4306 0967 1120 8464 00
before and during our mass actions. We make sure BIC: GENODEM1GLS
that all important information is translated into
several languages. You can find all the information regarding dona-
To strengthen the international climate justice tions here: https://www.ende-gelaende.org/en/
movement and to learn from each other, we organ- donations/
ise skill sharing. For this purpose we visit our inter-
national comrades or hold video conferences.
Since 2018, Ende Gelände has been mobilising If you would like to join us, or want to contact
every year as »Ende Gelände goes Europe« cam- us, please do not hesitate to send us a message!
paign for several mass actions outside Germany (R You can contact us here:
Chapter Going International, p. 21). We take care international@ende-gelaende.org
of this cooperation and keep close contact with the On our website you can find information in
organizing groups in the planning period. We ena- English and some other languages:
ble exchange of experience, skill share and support https://www.ende-gelaende.org/en/
through Ende Gelände structures. More background information on »Ende Gelände
Last but not least, we bring the international per- goes Europe« can be found here:
spectives into the Ende Gelände alliance. We also https://www.ende-gelaende.org/en/egge/
contribute to the Climate Justice Action Network. And as a podcast here:
The members of the working group live in differ- https://www.ende-gelaende.org/podcast/#3
ent countries (most of them not in Germany), so our You can access the Climate Justice Action
working language is English. We also run a mailing Network (cja) website here:
list to exchange important current information in https://climatejusticeaction.net/en/
English.
About us 27Index
A F O
About us 27 Finance Working Group 12 Open Plenary Sessions 11
Action Forms 3 Finger Group 4 Outreach & Coalitions 9
Action Logistics Working Outreach Working Group 12
Group 12, 19 I
Action Working Group 12 Inclusion working group 12 P
Affinity groups 3 Internal Plenaries 11 Press and Social Media
Against the (far) right 10 International Working Group 12, 21 Working Group 12
Anti-repression Structure 12 Interpretation Coordinators 21 Press Group 7
Area Concept 5 Press Spokesperson 7
L Process working group 12
C Local groups 12 Public Communication 7
Camp Working Group 12, 19 Logistics 19
Climate Justice Action Network 22 S
Coalitions 9 M Six assign levels 15
Country Coordinators 21 Mobilisation Working Group 12 Skill-Share 22
Mobilization Group 7 Social Media 7
E
Embedded Journalism 7 N T
Ende Gelände Goes Europe 22 NGO Communication Work- Tactical Diversity 5
ing Group 12
W
Working Groups (WG) 12
28 IndexThere are many ways to fight for climate justice. Ende Gelände is part of an im- pressive and broad movement. In the past few years, we have seen an increasing number of disobedient collec- tives all over the world and we are frequently asked about the way we prepare and carry-out our actions. That is why we would like to contribute to the growth of our movement by making our strategic, tactical, and organising choices more visible. With this brochure, we hope we can help emergent collectives to better grasp how mass actions may look like and what they might involve in terms of organisation! We want climate justice, and we want it now. Let’s fight for it!
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