Thursday
11 November 2004
·
To have a states meeting at Lake Cowal late January to discuss the Lake
Cowal easter convergence and Water Cycle Tour.
·
The Water Cycle Tour would effectively start at least one month before
the convergence (late February 2005) with forums and school tours in
communities along the Murray and Murrimbidgie rivers. The main focus will be to
introduce those communities to the issues surrounding Lake Cowal and the
potential environmental impact on their communities. To offer these communities
an open invite to the convergence at Lake Cowal in easter.
·
10 days before the mass Lake Cowal convergence is the proposal to tour
communities from Mildura to Lake Cowal with info stalls in their main streets
ending at the convergence at Lake Cowal.
·
After the convergence (hopefully with funding) there would be ongoing
communication with these communities evolving into long-term projects. Some
ideas:
Þ
Public Forums initiated by communities. Water Cycle tour participants
acting purely as facilitators
Þ
Water and soil testing training (we have a contact in Victoria who has
just finished their thesis on the impacts of cyanide on soil and water.)
Þ
School tours
Þ
Cultural tours
Þ
Cycle tours
Þ
Canoe tours
Þ
Arts projects
Þ
Music festival
Þ
Work experience for university students from the city with water
projects in these communities
Our
concerns so far have been that their are a lot of wonderful and big ideas not
much cohesion.
We
drew consensus on:
Þ
To have at least one coordinator for each state that acts as state
contact/s, liason etc.
Þ
Do we need to create another yahoo group for the Water Cycle Tour or do
we just keep using the save Lake Cowal group as a way to network between
states?
Þ
To have strong cohesion, networking and communication between the states
in regards to timelines, aims and objectives without forgoing flexibility,
autonomy and organic processes.
Þ
To have phone hook-ups between states on a fortnightly/monthly basis
using university facilities
Þ
That any fundraising should be solely for the Supreme Court case, an
activist legal fund and the logistics etc for the Easter convergence.
Þ
The time line of the tour would be up to a year (maybe more)
Þ
To act as facilitators within communities whilst respecting their ideas
and opinions.
Þ
To use the Lake Cowal website as a launch for the Water Cycle Tour
WATER
CYCLE TOUR OBJECTIVES
·
To promote community education around the impact of toxic waste on our
waterways.
·
To use Lake Cowal as an example of a future potential environmental
disaster and how this would affect these communities.
·
To promote discussion and debate around the use of cyanide in gold and
silver mining.
·
To encourage proactive support for the banning of cyanide use in gold
and silver mining in Australia.
·
To facilitate and create a platform for these communities to voice their
concerns and ideas around water issues affecting them.
·
To work cohesively with indigenous nations along these waterways.
eg: learning from the Yorta Yorta's struggle for land
managemnet in the Barmah forest on the Murray river. Working closely with
Friends of the Earth's Barmah Millewa campaign.
·
To promote awareness around the indigenous struggle for land rights and
sovereignty.
·
To involve a cross section of the community ie. Farmer’s, students, indigenous peoples,
environmental groups etc.
·
To offer support to local environmental groups, individuals and
indigenous nations in these communities with local projects, forums, literature
etc.
eg: Wetlands project on the Murrimbidgie in
Narrandera
·
To offer training in water and soil testing
·
To document all stages of the tour ie, photographs, film and video,
audio, art, writing, website etc.
·
To utilise local, state and national radio, television, print and
alternative media throughout the tour
·
To offer skill sharing workshops for all Water Cycle Tour paticipants
eg:
o
Public Speaking
o
Media and communications
o
Legal
o
First aid
o
Direct action etc.
Late
Jan 2005
- meeting between states
Late
Feb 2005
- begin networking between local communities on Murray and Murrimbidgie rivers
March
2005 -
10 days before convergence have stalls in communities ending at Lake Cowal
Easter
2005 -
Lake Cowal mass convergence
April
2005 -
Water Cycle projects along waterways begin.
·
Over the next month Melbourne Friends of Lake Cowal will draft a
proposal for Victorian funding bodies in regards to the Water Cycle Tour.
·
To see if Friends of the Earth will auspice the project so we can use
their tax deductibility status (this is needed for all grants to be applied
for)
·
The tour needs funding if it is to fulfill its’ objectives. Do we
apply for funding across states or act autonomously?
·
Funding bodies to apply for in February 2005:
o
Reichstein Foundation
o
Womens Trust
o
Environment Victoria
Resource
Support:
Student
Unions
Unions
I
hope this is some sort of start … none of this is set in concrete and the
Melbourne collective looks forward to hearing all states feedback and ideas!!!
LETS CLOSE
THIS MINE AND PROMOTE COMMUNITY
UNDERSTANDING
AND RECOGNITION OF
ABORIGINAL
SOVEREIGNTY