About
The climate crisis is here and now, and it’s shaping the rest of our lives. Our political and economic systems have failed us and now we face the collapse of our economy, ecology, and society, but together we can find ways to look after each other and the natural world on which we depend.
Our plan is to transform society by building people power. To do this, we demonstrate the effectiveness of working alongside each other in a systematic, well organised way that achieves results. It’s up to every one of us to decide. We can liberate ourselves and each other. Or we can live in distraction and powerlessness.
Our opponents have big money, sophisticated marketing, and technology which they are unleashing relentlessly to pursue their goals. In response, Climate Liberation Aotearoa is here to organise resistance to the destruction of our home, and to take back our power.
This year we are focusing on fast track mining projects and cruise ships.
GOALS
We want to save the Denniston Plateau from the proposed mine expansion at Bathurst’s Stockton coal mine:
The Denniston Plateau contains a unique sandstone plateau and rare wetlands, full of endangered and endemic creatures like the unique Avatar Moth, found nowhere else in the world. Also present are the great spotted kiwi and fern birds, and a rare skink found nowhere else, along with a giant snail. Currently Bathurst Resources plans to put in a fast track application to mine this area. If approved this would be a disaster for the environment.
We want cruise ships to stop traveling to Fiordland & ultimately end luxury emissions like those from cruise ships all together by ending the cruise ship industry.
VALUES
Climate Liberation Aotearoa activism takes place on colonised lands. We pay respect to the tangata whenua of Aotearoa. We support tino rangatiratanga. Toitū te tiriti.
The following values form the basis for our actions as a group. We aspire to internalise them before deciding to become part of the group. We regularly revisit them, and they are a living part of our group culture.
Further guidance in the Brave Spaces doc
Nonviolence
We commit to the practice of nonviolence in our personal behaviour, language and in the actions we take. We acknowledge that nonviolence is just one way of doing direct action. We acknowledge (or stand in solidarity with) other liberationist movements that use a diversity of tactics.
We approach situations respectfully, yet with determination and steadfastness. We avoid blame and insults and do not ridicule people. We call our own community members in, in alignment with our Brave Spaces Guidelines. We see those in positions of power within the system as human beings. However, we will call out those in power who perpetuate harm to people, non-human life, and the planet. We stand in the way of their harmful behaviour. We accept the consequences of our actions while minimising the risk to our community members where we can.
Belief in the Good
We are convinced that love and solidarity are stronger than selfishness and hatred. Every person is capable of it. In conflicts within our organisation, we assume that each individual wants to contribute to a better world.
Regenerative Cultures
We believe in building a resilient community of resistance where burnout is not inevitable. We value open communication and handing back tasks that cannot be completed. We build solidarity, trust, and security, creating space for emotional exchange.
When tensions arise, we aspire to address them openly and without involving unnecessary parties, whilst ensuring relevant people have space to be heard, before it becomes a conflict. When tension escalates into conflict, we seek support from others (possibly through mediation). We aim for conflict resilience where issues have closure. We acknowledge we are all unlearning systems of harm, learning ways of being that support resilience, and liberation for all people.
If a member no longer agrees with the kaupapa of Climate Liberation Aotearoa, or is no longer willing to work within the Brave Spaces Guidelines, they are expected to voluntarily resign from any working groups, roles, facilitation, or positions of responsibility. We live the change.
Disruption and Resistance
We acknowledge that our society is accustomed to its own mechanisms of dominance, use of fossil fuels, and luxury emissions and consumption, while ignoring the issue of self-destruction. We will cause disruption and expect that at times we will be met with hostility. This will not hold us back.
Collective Growth
We live a culture of reflecting and learning. We are in a constant process of questioning, reflecting, adapting and evolving. We recognise that we form part of a complex political landscape. We question power structures (both internally and externally), our assumptions, privileges, positioning, and our tactics, to better understand our role in the political landscape.
We recognise the intersection(s) between the climate crisis and forms/structures of oppression including colonialism, racism, sexism, classism, ableism, homophobia, transphobia, religious discrimination, and exploitation under capitalism for example. We tolerate no form of discrimination.
Radical Inclusivity
We value diversity and believe that each person has a valuable contribution to make. We welcome everyone and every part of everyone, but we don’t welcome all behaviours (see Brave Spaces Guidelines). We appreciate that we come from a wide range of backgrounds and have different life experiences and responsibilities outside of this group. We are the tea makers, sign writers, photographers, chanters, parents, children, grandparents, storytellers, bakers, organisers, chaos makers, facilitators, agitators, ideators, music makers, letter writers, action takers, drivers, carers, and so much more that make a movement.
If you align with the values and kaupapa of Climate Liberation Aotearoa you are welcome. We value your presence.
Transparent Structures
We create transparent structures and roles. We are open about some roles having more decision-making power in our structure. We have a functional hierarchy. The core team holds the seeds that are germinated by the working groups and local groups. That is the core team makes fundamental decisions in consultation with working groups and members as needed. Coordinators and local groups implement the CLA strategy aligned to the values and Brave Spaces Guidelines.
When informal/hidden power dynamics emerge in our groups, we attempt to create transparency and equity. We communicate our own limits.
Revolutionary Change
It means we must change who holds power in society, who makes the decisions, and where our priorities lie. We must build a culture where it is easy to favour people and nature over corporations and the quest for profit, where our decisions align with fairness and the preservation of life rather than its destruction. It means replacing the capitalist economic system based on endless economic growth with an economy of “enough”, incorporating Te Tiriti partnership values. Nothing less will save us.
We seek to honor Te Tiriti
We support tino rangatiratanga and Toitū Te Tiriti. We acknowledge that tangata whenua are the first peoples of Aotearoa and have been violently and systematically excluded both from the whenua and from decision-making. We acknowledge that mātauranga Māori is a whole and sophisticated system enabling mana whenua to maintain relationships with and best care for the whenua. We work to make space for and amplify Māori voices and support Māori leadership in climate spaces. We acknowledge that we cannot achieve climate justice without decolonisation and re-indigenisation. The climate and ecological crisis is inextricably linked with colonisation and therefore solutions will not come from the colonial capitalist system that created this crisis. We acknowledge that Climate Liberation Aotearoa is currently a predominantly Pākehā group. We have ongoing work to do to decolonise our thinking and behaviour as individuals and our practices as a group. We are committed to supporting each other in that journey, and to holding each other accountable.
ORGANISATION
We have a functional hierarchy. The core team holds the seeds that are germinated by the working groups and local groups.
STRATEGY
Main Theme: The government has failed us. It’s time to take charge for ourselves and make the changes we need in society.
Core group and local group structure
The core team will be responsible for overall strategy and messaging, in consultation with the CLA membership. Core team will plan large actions that people from local groups will be encouraged to travel to take part in. Local groups will plan and carry out actions in line with the strategy, consulting with the core team in accordance with action planning.
Theory of Change
By bringing direct action and community together through deliberative processes and radical action we will build power and move towards radical system change. By engaging in attention grabbing disruptive civil disobedience we grab the attention of other radicals. We invite them to join and train with us, and promote our desire to transform our political and economic system.
What is wrong
Our capitalist, neoliberal and colonial, political and economic system is not capable of making the changes we need to survive. In Aotearoa in 2025 our government is making an unprecedented attack on Papatūānuku, climate, and Te Tiriti, but the majority of people are not yet calling for radical system change. The people are being assaulted in so many different ways by this government that it’s hard to get out of day to day survival mode, find the time, imagine an alternative, and figure out how to fight back.
What we want
We want to replace our current capitalist system with an alternative system that honours Te Tiriti, prioritises human well-being, a stable climate, ecological sustainability, and social justice over perpetual growth and consumption. The alternative we envisage will more equitably distribute where power lies in our society. We want a culture and economy where it is easy to favour people and nature over corporations and the quest for profit.
What we will do
We plan to learn and practice real community, as an organisation, and with other communities. This includes using deliberative practices and taking direct action together to improve our lives, find meaning and purpose, and directly solve some pressing local issues. This may include taking action on local social issues as well as climate and environmental issues to ensure we are being responsive to the needs of communities. We will train in and instigate deliberative processes, direct action training, and lead and collaborate in successful direct actions with communities. Through civil disobedience, we aim to capture public attention and invite those who agree to join and train, growing our capacity. We will not be relying on making change through existing structures, laws, and systems of governance, but through our own collective power.