October 14 was a creative day for Amigos de la Tierra/Friends of the Earth Spain. For the Days of Action, the local groups decided to paint murals collectively. And because it is nicer to paint to music, many of these actions were accompanied by live concerts and other activities to denounce the lack of climate action coming from the government as well as their connivance with the fossil fuel industry.
Sofía Alfay, a volunteer in Santiago de Compostela (Galicia), wrote: “Our slogan for the Day of Action was “Free Your Energy”. My role for that day was to prepare some children’s game, and for that we worked on a board game of a world map. There, we could find dirty energy power stations (nuclear, coal, oil, gas, hydraulic megacentrals …) according to world productions, which would be removed and replaced by renewable energy (solar , wind, biomass, geothermal …), according to some questions we were asking to people. We also prepared coloring drawings, which were distributed to the children, as well as some decorated balloon, with reasons related to the day (renewable energies, energy saving, etc.).
In the meantime, the other initiatives planned for the Day of Action were developed, such as the painting of the mural, with ecological painting and mixed techniques, a “regueifas” workshop (“roosters” singing like rap), a traditional Galician music of feminist pandereiteiras … All this enlivened with coffee and cake prepared with a solar cooker, among other ecological skewers.
I had a really good time, both with the children and with all my companions, sharing the organized activities. And it seemed to me a really amusing and interesting plan to make people aware of climate and energy justice.
 |
|
Isabel Pérez, one of the participants in Madrid, wrote: “I participated to the Action Day for Climate and Energy Justice because I know it’s really urgent and necessary to work for an energy transition, but also for a change in our way of life. We have to act with fairness, dignity and respect to everything that surrounds us. But I understand this change can’t happen on its own; we have to change as a society and the Action Day is a way to work together, joining strengths, here and in other parts of the planet.
The murals are now there to remind passers-by of the importance of fighting for climate justice, continue to denounce and resist dirty energy projects and to pay hommage to the environment protectors who are risking their lives on a daily basis to defend their land, their resources and their communities.
|
|
 |
Olga, from the group of Aragon, wrote: “I joined the Global Action Day in Zaragoza to fight for what I stand for and believe in, together with thousands of people all over the planet. And the result was amazing!
During the action, we paid tribute to Berta Cáceres, indigenous leader and activist who gave her life to protect nature, her local community and our environmental rights. The Global South, women and youth are the most affected communities by the catastrophic social and environmental consequences of capitalism and climate change.
For that reason Young Friends of the Earth Aragon took part in the Global Action Day, painting a collective mural of resistance (the solution is in our hands) without forgetting great music and vibes with dj sessions, concerts and an open mic for anybody who wanted to reclaim people power and climate justice for the Global South and the great community of life on earth!
We enjoyed it a lot, fighting with our brushes, our guitars and a lot of happiness! Thank everyone who made this colourful day possible and everyone who came to the action to paint, learn, share, sing or dance…”
If you go to Córdoba, Eivissa, Logroño, Mallorca, Madrid, Ourense, Vigo or Zaragoza, make sure you go see their work!
