September 15: Large climate education & fossil subsidies demonstration
We joined this action together with XR Onderwijs, Fridays for Future and Teachers for Climate. Location on or near the Malieveld in The Hague. Scientist Rebellion organized a procession of professors in gown, scientists and academics carrying the IPCC report to the demonstration.
There was a short public lecture by professor Erik van Sebille followed by an IPCC reading marathon and conversations with school children, students and teachers about the IPCC report, climate science and the link between other sciences and the climate emergency.
September 9, 10, 15: Stop fossil subsidies, joining and supporting the action organized by Extinction Rebellion
The government spends billions every year on fossil subsidies. For more than 2 years, Extinction Rebellion has been campaigning for taxpayer money to stop supporting the fossil industry. In the last months, this campaign culminated in repeated blockades of the A12, between the Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate and the Dutch Parliament.
XR is planning to come back every day until the fossil subsidies are stopped – and we joined them: on the 9th of September, the 10th of September and on the A12 Education day on Friday 15th and will keep you posted about additional days later on.
September 3: Meet some fellow academics, social event
Social event for creating banners and signs, paint lab coats and enjoy a borrel – perfect to find an action buddy!
Why? For fun, to get to know other concerned scientists, to prepare for the A12 support demo or blockade.
Amsterdam West (Nieuwe Anita), Frederik Hendrikstraat 111, 14:00 (but you can drop by also later)
People versus Polluters: Tata Steel
On Saturday 24 June, Greenpeace organized a mass action at Tata steel, demanding that the highly polluting cokes plants will be closed immediately. There was also a support demo organised at the same time.
Tata steel emits 8% of all the GHG in The Netherlands: the largest emitter in the country. In addition, 150,000 people live under Tata’s toxic smoke. RIVM and GGD both conclude there is a link between the (up to 51%) higher incidence of lung cancer and other diseases in the area, and the toxic emissions from Tata Steel. Tata’s plans to reduce the pollution are inadequate and therefore unacceptable. We joined both the action and the support demo.
Stop fossil subsidies, joining and supporting the action organized by Extinction Rebellion
The government spends billions every year in fossil subsidies. For more than 2 years, Extinction Rebellion has been campaigning for taxpayer money to stop supporting the fossil industry. In the last months, this campaign culminated in repeated blockades of the A12, between the Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate and the Dutch Parliament. We supported and joined their action in January as well as March to highlight that even if their tactics are controversial, Extinction Rebellion’s demands are more aligned with the science than the actions of the Dutch government.
We again joined their action on the 27th of May, with over a hundred scientists and academics from all across the Netherlands; 35 of them were arrested. There was again an orchestra and water cannons.
May 7-13: Scientist Rebellion international action week
May 7 – 13, Scientist Rebellion organized an internationally coordinated week of action. These actions took place in at least 20 countries, all across the world. The goal was to raise the alarm on the climate and ecological crisis, and to push governments, corporations, and educational institutes to enact changes that make a livable and sustainable future possible.
In the Netherlands we joined this effort with three actions:
- Sunday, May 7: A scientists’ and academics’ march, starting at 13:30 on Dam Square in Amsterdam. There were speeches and live orchestral music.
- Monday, May 8: Coordinated actions at universities across the Netherlands, whose goal was to put a mandatory course on climate and sustainability on the map. The idea was to invite students and staff to reflect on what they feel is missing in the current curricula and what they want to see included on climate.
- Wednesday May 10th: Sit-in at the Ministry of EZK, as visible in this Twitter thread.
Nonviolent direct action trainings
When joining a civil disobedience action, it is really important to know what your rights are, and what you can expect to happen during and after the action. On April 16th, April 30th, May 7th and May 17th, we organized an action training to get more scientists ready for taking civil disobedience action. Would you like to join the next training? Follow our socials or get in touch with us to make sure you know when it takes place.
Open meeting
After this intense period of actions, we came together as Scientist Rebellion Netherlands on April 2 to discuss plans for the coming months and get new people involved in organizing. During the open meeting, we brainstormed ideas for the upcoming global Scientist Rebellion actions and discussed various campaign that several university groups are involved with. We presented our different working groups and helped new people get involved. It was a highly productive and enjoyable afternoon!
Blocking private jet terminal at Eindhoven
On the 25th of March, hundreds of activists and dozens of scientists and academics engaged in direct action against private jets and excessive carbon inequality at Eindhoven airport. We demanded a ban on private jets and a frequent flyer tax. Eindhoven Airport produces air- and noise pollution and damages health of local residents, it does NOT have the required nature permit. Therefore we also demanded from Eindhoven airport to cancel short distance flights.
Private jets are a caricatural symbol of the deep injustice at the heart of the climate and ecological crisis. The richest 1% of the population is responsible for more emissions than the poorest half of the world’s population.
Nonviolent direct action trainings
When joining a civil disobedience action, it is really important to know what your rights are, and what you can expect to happen during and after the action. On March 19th and 20th, we organized an action training to get more scientists ready for taking civil disobedience action. Would you like to join the next training? Follow our socials or get in touch with us to make sure you know when it takes place.
Stop fossil subsidies, joining and supporting the action organized by Extinction Rebellion
The government spends billions every year in fossil subsidies. For more than 2 years, Extinction Rebellion has been campaigning for taxpayer money to stop supporting the fossil industry. In the last months, this campaign culminated in repeated blockades of the A12, between the Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate and the Dutch Parliament. We supported and joined their action in January to highlight that even if their tactics are controversial, Extinction Rebellion’s demands are more aligned with the science than the actions of the Dutch government.
We again joined their action on the 11th of March, with almost 100 scientists and academics from all across the Netherlands; 37 of them were arrested, making it the largest mass arrest of scientists since the Second World War. There was also an orchestra. And water cannons.
Nonviolent direct action trainings
When joining a civil disobedience action, it is really important to know what your rights are, and what you can expect to happen during and after the action. On February 25th and March 8th, we organized an action training to get more scientists ready for taking civil disobedience action. Would you like to join the next training? Follow our socials or get in touch with us to make sure you know when it takes place.
Blocking private jet terminal at Schiphol using bikes
On the 14th of February, hundreds of activists and dozens of scientists and academics engaged in direct action against private jets and excessive carbon inequality in 11 countries and over 20 locations. They demand a ban on private jets and a frequent flyer tax. These internationally coordinated actions are a continuation of the Make Them Pay campaign.
We joined this campaign with an action at the private jet terminal at Schiphol, which we blocked using bikes.
Stop fossil subsidies, joining and supporting the action organized by Extinction Rebellion
The government spends billions every year in fossil subsidies. For more than 2 years, Extinction Rebellion has been campaigning for taxpayer money to stop supporting the fossil industry. In the last months, this campaign culminated in repeated blockades of the A12, between the Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate and the Dutch Parliament. We supported their action in November from the sidelines to highlight that even if their tactics are controversial, Extinction Rebellion’s demands are more aligned with the science than the actions of the Dutch government.
We joined their action on the 28th of January, this time both next to and inside the blockade. 16 members of Scientist Rebellion were arrested; there were 768 arrests in total.
Symposium: Academic Activism and the Climate Crisis
The Centre for Political Philosophy at Leiden university hosted a symposium on academic activism and the climate crisis where Scientist Rebellion members were participating. For more details about the event, see here.
Nonviolent direct action training
When joining a civil disobedience action, it is really important to know what your rights are, and what you can expect to happen during and after the action. On January 18th, we organized an action training to get more scientists ready for taking civil disobedience action. Would you like to join the next training? Follow our socials or get in touch with us to make sure you know when it takes place.
Local Scientist Rebellion groups
Would you like to become (more) active in Scientist Rebellion, but can’t find the time to join events happening in Amsterdam or The Hague? We started organizing local events at a few universities, and we are taking this further by starting local groups in universities across the country. Such groups could organize social events, discussions about activism by scientists or action trainings locally, but also push for changes at the university level (cutting ties with the fossil industry, including climate change in all curricula, etc.). We had a online call on January 4th to organize this. If you are interested in joining a local group, but are not sure whether one exists yet, email us!
Scientist Rebellion Christmas Event
An amazing year for Scientist Rebellion full of mischief, roaring speeches, posters, letters, and Signal groups came to an end. In the Netherlands, we grew from a small set of core organizers to a large and thriving community. To celebrate, we organized a Climate Fresk workshop and went for a fancy vegan 7-course dinner at a community kitchen in Amsterdam on Saturday, December 17th. It was a lot of fun! Make sure to get involved next year if you aren’t already — we are building a thriving academic community that is eager to create change.
Nonviolent direct action training
When joining a civil disobedience action, it is really important to know what your rights are, and what you can expect to happen during and after the action. On Sunday 27th November, we organized an action training to get more scientists ready for taking civil disobedience action. Would you like to join the next training? Follow our socials or get in touch with us to make sure you know when it takes place.
Support action: Stop fossil subsidies
On November 26th, Extinction Rebellion blocked the a12 in the Hague, between the ministry for economic affairs and climate policy and the parliament. It was the 4th time they blocked this specific part of the motorway, as part of a long campaign to demand that the government stops subsidizing the fossil industry. Currently, billions of euros are supporting the industry each year (between 7 and 17 billion euros, the numbers are uncertain because of a lack of transparency). We joined the action on the sidelines to make clear that whether or not you agree with such action tactics, XR’s demands are more aligned with the science and the climate emergency than the actions and promises of the dutch government.
We took XXL posters of reports and papers highlighting the climate emergency, carbon inequalities, and issues with fossil subsidies, and after the action we organized impromptu poster sessions in the shopping streets of the Hague and in trains.
Internationally coordinated actions against private aviation
On the 10th of November, hundreds of activists, including 129 scientists, blocked 11 international private airports to demand a ban on private jets and a frequent flyer tax. Taxation would help both to cut emissions and could be used to pay for loss and damage and fund climate finance for countries most vulnerable to climate breakdown. These demands incorporate a proposal made by the Least Developed Countries Group – representing the most climate-vulnerable countries at COP27 – and have been supported by multiple national Citizens’ Assemblies.
We joined the internationally coordinated actions, which a part of a new campaign called Make Them Pay, with a paper pasting action at the Ministry for Infrastructure and Water Management. A short video of all the action is available from here.
Mass civil disobedience action against Schiphol and private jets
On the 5th of November, we joined a mass civil disobedience action organized by Greenpeace and Extinction Rebellion. To secure a livable future for all, we must shift into emergency mode. Frequent flying and private jets are the pinnacle of climate injustice. If we are serious about the climate emergency, we must immediately slash these luxury emissions. More generally, aviation must be rapidly scaled down because there are no sustainable pathways for aviation in the short time we have left to avoid climate breakdown. It is unacceptable that big polluters like Schiphol and the aviation industry still get heavily subsidized by the government and have no intention to stop growing.
Nonviolent direct action training
In preparation for the SOS voor het klimaat action organized by Greenpeace and Extinction Rebellion, we co-organizing an action training on 30th October in Amsterdam. We talked about the history, theory, and practice of civil disobedience, what your rights are, and what you can expect to happen during and after the action. Would you like to join the next training? Follow our socials or get in touch with us to make sure you know when it takes place.
Paper pasting against gas drilling in the Wadden Sea
On Thursday 27th of October, we pasted scientific articles on the facade of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy to protest against the granting of a drilling permit for the Wadden Sea. The Wadden Sea is a UNESCO world heritage site and a fragile ecosystem. In addition to the moral and economic madness of investing in new fossil fuel infrastructure, we cannot allow potentially hazardous impacts on this beloved ecosystem.
Scientist Rebellion actions in Berlin, October
We joined over 60 scientists and academics for a week of climate actions in Berlin, Germany. Acting in coalition with Debt for Climate and Letzte Generation, we disrupted the opening ceremony of the World Health Summit on Sunday, occupied the German Finance Ministry on Monday, protested in front of the German Transport Ministry on Tuesday, and occupied the Porsche Pavilion of Volkswagen.
Our demands were that the German government (a) admit failure — there is no plausible pathway to limit heating to 1.5 degrees; (b) write to the World Bank and the IMF to initiate debt cancellation of the Global South as a first step towards climate justice and climate reparations, and so that they can leave fossil fuels in the ground and fund their renewable energy transition; and (c) take immediate steps towards decarbonizing the transport sector, including a 100 km/h speed limit on motorways and the reintroduction of the 9€-ticket for public transport.
It was empowering to take action with our fellow academics and members of Scientist Rebellion from all across Europe. After the week in Berlin, the actions continued in Munich, Bavaria.
Nonviolent direct action training
When joining a civil disobedience action, it is really important to know what your rights are, and what you can expect to happen during and after the action. On Sunday 2th October, we organized an action training to get more scientists ready for taking civil disobedience action. Would you like to join the next training? Follow our socials or get in touch with us to make sure you know when it takes place.
Protest against gas drilling in the Wadden Sea
On September 28th, we protested in front of the economic affairs and climate policy ministry against the granting of a drilling permit for the Wadden Sea. The Wadden Sea is a UNESCO world heritage site and a fragile ecosystem. In addition to the moral and economic madness of investing in new fossil fuel infrastructure, we cannot allow potentially hazardous impacts on this beloved ecosystem. The action followed a letter by Scientists4Future, which warned the government of the effects and was signed by almost 400 scientists, including experts on the Wadden Sea.
Science block at the climate march
On June 19th, more than 10000 people walked through Rotterdam to demand that the government stops supporting the fossil industry, and urgently invests in fair climate policies. Scientists4Future and Scientist Rebellion walked together in the Science Block to show that scientists are also very worried about the lack of emergency action on the climate crisis. The Science Block was a big success, with more than 50 scientists and academics joining from universities and institutes all over the Netherlands!
Scientists’ letter against new gas drilling in the North Sea
On June 1st, the Economic affairs and climate policy ministry announced the granting of a permit for a new gas field in the North Sea, just north of Schiermonnikoog. This comes only a few months after the release of the latest IPCC report, which showed it is essential that we take urgent action on the climate crisis and stop investing in new fossil infrastructure.
In response, more than 400 scientists signed an open letter to the Dutch government to protest this new permit, warning that continued investment in new gas infrastructure will lock in additional decades of greenhouse gas emissions, in complete contradiction with ambitions to keep global warming below 1.5°C. This echoes a series of recent warnings against considering gas as a more “climate-friendly” fossil fuel.
The letter was a joined initiative from Scientist Rebellion and Scientists4Future. We delivered it to MPs at the Tweede Kamer Wednesday 15th June.
Link to the letter and full list of signatories
Scientist Rebellion supports the XR Rebellion against the fossil fuel industry
End fossil fuels before they end us!
From the 19th-24th May, Scientist Rebellion joined a number of XR events and actions against the fossil fuel industry and fossil fuel subsidies. We marched through Rotterdam with hundreds of people, organized a workshop on science and activism as part of the community program, and joined the final disruptive action in front of the Shell buidling, where 2 scientists got arrested.
We have no time to lose and believe scientists need to join the forefront of the climate movement, support and engage in protests and civil disobedience to demand emergency action on the climate and ecological crisis.
Introduction to Scientist Rebellion and action training
When joining a civil disobedience action, it is really important to know what your rights are, and what you can expect to happen during and after the action. On Sunday 15th May, we organized an action training to get more scientists ready for taking civil disobedience action. Would you like to join the next training? Follow our socials or get in touch with us to make sure you know when it takes place.
Mobilization and Strategy Day
The global scientist rebellion was a big success, with hundreds of scientists taking part in protests, strikes, and civil disobedience around the world. What’s next? On the 30th April, we organized a mobilization and strategy day in Amsterdam, which included a short introduction to Scientist Rebellion, collaborative workshops on our strategy and upcoming actions, and lots of energy for the coming months!
Global Scientist Rebellion
From the 4th to the 9th of April, hundreds of scientists worldwide took part to protests, strikes and civil disobedience to demand emergency action on the climate crisis. You can find the press releases for actions that took place in the Netherlands here [ENG] and here [NL].
Scientists climate march
On the 6th April, we walked through the Hague with 50 scientists during the first scientists climate march in the Netherlands. We went to the ministries of finance, foreign affairs, and economic affairs and climate policy, where 3 speakers gave speeches on different aspects of the climate crisis. We believe that scientists, who have been warning for years of the climate and ecological crisis, need to be a more visible part of the climate movement to highlight the emergency.
Civil disobedience action
Scientists have provided the world with crucial information about the climate and ecological crisis for over three decades, yet greenhouse gases continue to rise. Conventional forms of influencing policymakers have failed. This is why Scientist Rebellion argues for a change in tactics, urging scientists to use their privileged position in society and join social movements engaging in nonviolent direct action.
On the 6th April, a group of scientists blocked the entrance of the ministry of economic affairs and climate policies to demand emergency action on the climate crisis. 7 of them got arrested.
Outreach action: Science in the streets
The Scientist Rebellion week in the Netherlands closed with an outreach action in Amsterdam. Scientists wrote quotes and draw graphs from IPCC reports on a large canvas, while others discussed the climate crisis with passerbys stopping to look at the canvas.
